rollinbud
Active Member
Since President Obama has made it clear that he intends to run on his supposedly "gutsy call" in ordering the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, here is a simple and obvious question that I'd like him to answer:
Don't we hire a president for that precise reason: to make "gutsy calls?"
Related questions: Isn't making tough calls the first thing in the president's job description? We don't hire a president to vote "present" on the difficult things---although this one certainly did that as a state and then U.S. Senator. As Obama himself once said, by the time issues get to his desk, they are inherently difficult to resolve.
So why all of the preening? Why all of the handwringing about what a "gutsy call" it was? Could it be because he's never really had to make one before, so it's all brand-new to him? Could it be that because he's never been a chief executive, he has no clue what it involves? Could it be that he's a major-league narcissist who requires ego stroking at every turn? Could it be that he actually believes that he's the first president to have to make such a tough decision?
Could it be that it's all of the above?
Presidents must make tough calls. This is what they do. Real leaders don't whine about how tough those decisions were or luxuriate in their own courageousness. They pass the credit to others when things go well, take the blame when things go badly, and continue to make the "gutsy calls" without straining to remind everyone how "gutsy" they truly are.
That's what classy ones do too.
Don't we hire a president for that precise reason: to make "gutsy calls?"
Related questions: Isn't making tough calls the first thing in the president's job description? We don't hire a president to vote "present" on the difficult things---although this one certainly did that as a state and then U.S. Senator. As Obama himself once said, by the time issues get to his desk, they are inherently difficult to resolve.
So why all of the preening? Why all of the handwringing about what a "gutsy call" it was? Could it be because he's never really had to make one before, so it's all brand-new to him? Could it be that because he's never been a chief executive, he has no clue what it involves? Could it be that he's a major-league narcissist who requires ego stroking at every turn? Could it be that he actually believes that he's the first president to have to make such a tough decision?
Could it be that it's all of the above?
Presidents must make tough calls. This is what they do. Real leaders don't whine about how tough those decisions were or luxuriate in their own courageousness. They pass the credit to others when things go well, take the blame when things go badly, and continue to make the "gutsy calls" without straining to remind everyone how "gutsy" they truly are.
That's what classy ones do too.
