Like most people, I have a vision of acceptable Presidential behavior.
For starters, my President should display a minimum amount of “class.” He should make it clear he stands above the political norm. He would never openly employ cheap political tricks to make a point over the opposition. He would always remind us that he is acting in the best interests of the country, not his political party. In no case, would he ever, ever criticize the members of the opposition by name.
My President would display big servings of plain old “apple pie” Americanism. He would make it clear he believes our country is exceptional, and he will fight to defend all it stands for. My President would believe that we may have national misgivings, but they are far outweighed by our contributions to world society. Under my President’s leadership, the world would know they can rely on our moral compass in difficult situations.
While he goes about doing great things for the country, he would display a casual sense of humility. This is not about him. It is all about presiding over a great country as it fulfills its destiny. Our country is the exceptional entity, not him. He merely presides over it.
My President would not tell me every minute of every day how smart he is. If he were really smart, he would realize his job is not about “smarts.” Instead, My President would rely on character, courage, and a desire to continually project the strong moral foundation of America to the world.
My President would realize that this great country was built on creating an environment that allows anyone to succeed. Making citizens dependent on government handouts destroys that incentive and causes the national foundation to crumble. Punishing the successful is the flip side of that travesty. America is not Europe. Income redistribution is anathema to my President.
I only realize I have these Presidential expectations when they get violated. Sadly, Barack Obama fails every aspect of my Presidential test. Under this President, alarm bells have been ringing off the wall signaling levels of violation never reached before.
