PRESIDENT OBAMA'S OVAL OFFICE SPEECH---"A REAL NON-PAGE TURNER"

Last Tuesday night President Obama greeted us from the Oval Office to herald the end of the war in Iraq. If soaring rhetoric has been this President's trademark, this speech was no example. It barely left the ground in terms of inspiration or even gravitas. Wooden, somber, and dull, President Obama almost expressionless, went through the motions of announcing the exiting of our combat troops from Iraq--- "turning the page", as he so unemotionally put it. There were many references of tribute and thanks to our troops, but little said about success or victory. He perfunctorily mentioned President Bush, but only as an almost ridiculous and insulting aside, and certainly no respect or congratulations were extended. Nothing was said about the military "surge" which Bush ordered and which was highly successful in bringing the war to an end, and which Obama himself is now using against the war in Afghanistan. Nor was anything at all mentioned about the Iraqi people being freed from a vicious dictator and now being allowed to build their own democracy for the first time in their history.

The merits of this war have been discussed, sliced, and diced since it began, and there will perhaps never be a consensus on whether it was the right thing to do. We will never know what may have transpired had we not taken Hussein out. But the fact remains that in a very difficult time, George W. Bush, given the information he had to work with , made the excrutiating decision to go to war---he led, as he was elected to do. It must be remembered that this happened only after both Congress and the United Nations had agreed and approved this action. It should also be noted that Saddam Hussein was given plenty of opportunities to change this course of events. He refused, time and again. President George Bush has been criticized unmercifully, crucified politically, and deemed a murderer, Satan, and almost a pariah for doing what he was elected to do--he made a decision, routed out a possible terrorist haven, and kept us free from further terrorism attacks. The man deserves more than a passing comment about his patriotism. He did not lie, manufacture reasons, or deliberately deceive. Say what you will about George Bush, there was nothing in his background or in his character to suggest that he was diabolical, manipulative, or dishonest. He did what he thought was best for the country at the time---just as President Obama has done with many of his controversial decisions since taking office.

The speech that Obama gave on Tuesday did nothing to make this country feel better about itself--we lost over 4000 of our men and women in that war, who fought for what many thought were just reasons. They and we deserved better than a President who acted almost like a petulant child who had been forced to acknowledge a victory, but who refused to do so, apparently pandering instead to his leftist supporters and his own stale line that somehow anything done under George W. Bush was wrong. That's been his predominant talking point since his campaign, and he's sticking to it---amazing, really, for such a smart man to be so uninventive. Any good salesman knows that even the best of pitches become tiresome and ineffective with over use and abuse. It is time for Obama to lose the blame game, the Bush bashing, and the stern "Father Knows Best" attitude. No one expected his speech last night to be one of celebration---that would have been inconsistent with his past declarations. But the lack of words such as victory, democracy, America's military might, or pride of country, left his presentation empty, graceless,depressing, and meaningless. We could have used just a little pat on the back and, if not a pep talk, at least a nod that we had accomplished something good. Instead he chose to concentrate on our faltering economy and even blamed that on the war in Iraq. He spoke of lessons learned as though somehow we had failed rather than won this war.


President Obama has a very tough road ahead of him. He must lead the way out of some very daunting and frightening circumstances. He was elected, in part, because of his charisma, his apparent ability to rise above pettiness, and his promise to be a president for all us, his countrymen, not an apologist, or divider of class or party. But his polls show him losing ground fast. It's not an easy task, to win over a country's heart, regardless of whether we agree with him on every decision. Obama could begin by becoming more neutral in his choice of words, and showing less partisanship. A country follows a President when they begin to believe that he, regardless of party connections, embodies and displays true love of country and its core ideals. Both President Eisenhower and president Kennedy seemed to succeed as men who rose above partisan conflict and became well admired by even those who disagreed with them.

In this very dire time, with his polls slipping and our confidence in him and our economy waning, President Obama needs more of us---and we need more from him. There is still time. It is said that "the office makes the man". We are waiting and hopeful---that this man will find the best in himself, will listen to the heart beat of America, and respond in kind. At present, it appears he is only listening to his Chicago politician instincts, which is to conquer all opposition, never give credit even if due, if it is in opposition to his goals, and power his agenda through, no matter what. This may have worked for him as a Community Organizer, but a whole different set of skills are needed --one with more humility, less arrogance, a little empathy. Obama must find and use them quickly or he will have learned lesson number one when leading as a CEO for this country----the people for whom he works, will decide to turn the page, rise up and have the last say. Those words could be "no more!" and the result may well be "a one term president".