Greedy Trial Lawyer
Message From Earth To America's Ayatollah
Category: Seeing Clearly Now
David Brooks of the New York Times has just returned from a pilgrimage to the White House where he had an audience with Ayatollah Bush.
I spent the first four days of last week interviewing senators about Iraq. The mood ranged from despondency to despair. Then on Friday I went to the Roosevelt Room in the White House to hear President Bush answer questions on the same subject. It was like entering a different universe.Far from being beleaguered, Bush was assertive and good-humored.
I left the 110-minute session thinking that far from being worn down by the past few years, Bush seems empowered. His self-confidence is the most remarkable feature of his presidency.
His self-confidence survives because it flows from two sources. The first is his unconquerable faith in the rightness of his Big Idea. Bush is convinced that history is moving in the direction of democracy, or as he said Friday: "It's more of a theological perspective. I do believe there is an Almighty, and I believe a gift of that Almighty to all is freedom. And I will tell you that is a principle that no one can convince me that doesn't exist."
Second, Bush remains energized by the power of the presidency. Some presidents complain about the limits of the office. But Bush, despite all the setbacks, retains a capacious view of the job and its possibilities.
Unfortunately, as is often the situation in theological matters, on the other side of the world are other ayatollah's who are convinced their Almighty has provided other gifts.
If we could get our American Ayatollah to take off his robes and actually perform the job of President of the U.S. it is possible the power of his office could actually accomplish something beneficial during his final year in office.
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