What We Wish He Would Say

by David Bardallis

Senator Lott, Senator Daschle, Chief Justice Rehnquist, Speaker Hastert, Mr. President, Mr. Vice President, my fellow Americans:

I stand before you a humble man. I am humbled by the honor that has been bestowed upon me: the honor of serving as the 43^rd president of this great Republic. I am humbled by the well wishes of my colleagues and fellow citizens, and humbled by their optimism and their faith in a brighter future for themselves and their children.

We Americans truly do stand on the brink of a brighter future; a future gleaming with a promise bequeathed to us over 200 years ago by the brave men who founded this country. At that time, the future of America was much more in doubt. Nothing was guaranteed. The founders’ promise, the promise of freedom, took the courage, honor, and dedication of many brave souls to bring it to fruition. But bring it they did.

As we stand at the dawn of a new millennium, we do well to remember that promise, and to remember that compared to the great sacrifices made by those patriots of the past, what is required of us to keep the torch of liberty burning in our time is relatively little. But even though most of us will never be asked to give our lives or fortunes for freedom’s sake – as our forefathers did – we can still pledge our sacred honor to do the little things that need to be done to keep America the envy of the world, its beacon of freedom.

To start, we can speak the truth to each other, everywhere and always, even and especially when it is painful to do so. We can take care of ourselves and our families. We can accept our responsibilities, both large and small. We can admit when we are wrong, and make amends if necessary. We can help our friends and neighbors when they are in need. We can teach our children the difference between right and wrong.

And we can ask God for His blessing as we do these things, and for His forgiveness if and when we fail to perform these vital tasks.

In short, we can heed the advice of another of our presidents, Calvin Coolidge. He said, "If all the folks in the United States would do the few simple things they know they ought to do, most of our big problems would take care of themselves."

And America does face some big problems. Crime in our streets, drugs in our schools, and unrest in the world around us. But we can overcome even the biggest problems not by pointing fingers of blame at others but by looking to ourselves and pledging, as individuals, to make our own corner of the world a better place.

It takes courage to do the things we ought to do. And it takes dedication to do them in the face of resistance. Resistance not only from within ourselves, but also from without.

As I take the oath of office today, I am reminded that troubling examples of this outward resistance to doing the right thing abound today across America. People who want to take care of their families struggle with a crushing tax burden that takes a greater portion of their incomes than the portion they spend on food, clothing, and housing combined. That is wrong.

People who want to accept their responsibilities, work hard, and succeed are trapped in a cycle of welfare dependency that discourages them from earning more and prevents them from standing on their own two feet. That is wrong.

People who want to go into business for themselves, to have their chance at the American Dream, are frustrated and sometimes stopped entirely by a mass of regulatory red tape and punitive fees and taxes. That is wrong.

Parents who want to teach their children right from wrong, to be more involved in their children’s education through home-schooling, are too often hassled by education and social services bureaucrats who think they always know best. That is wrong.

People who want to devote more of their resources to charity are instead forced to fund countless ineffective government welfare programs that often hurt those they are supposed to help. That, too, is wrong.

Helping others help themselves is the essence of what I mean by "compassionate conservatism." It will be the business of my administration to see to it that taxes are lowered, barriers are removed, and freedom is restored so that all Americans have the opportunity to achieve their dreams without the heavy hand of government keeping them down.

Our American forefathers fought the most powerful government on earth, their own government, for the right to live in peace and freedom, to order their affairs as they saw fit. They fought for their liberty. And they won.

Today, that is still the task before us. Again the people of America groan beneath a powerful government. Again that government is their own government. But as in the past, we can break with the trend, throw back Leviathan’s tentacles, and once again declare our independence.

Let us now begin to reclaim our proud American birthright of liberty. Let us have the courage to always do the right thing. Let us move forward confidently into the future. My fellow Americans, I say to you: let freedom ring.

God bless you, and God bless America.

January 18, 2001

David Bardallis is co-editor of LexNatura.Net, a conservative, Catholic journal of politics and culture.