As expected, President George W. Bush, applauded Senator John McCain's "readiness" to take on the position of Commander-in-Chief. It was a full endorsement of the Republican candidate. Bush's speech although straightforward was considerably less than rousing.I know what it takes to be president. In these past eight years, I've sat at the Resolute desk and reviewed the daily intelligence briefings, the threat assessments, and reports from our commanders on the front lines. I've stood in the ruins of buildings knocked down by killers, and promised the survivors I would never let them down. I know the hard choices that fall solely to a president. John McCain's life has prepared him to make those choices. He is ready to lead this nation.
Bush's speech endorsing McCain focused heavily on the perils facing a post 9/11 America and McCain's history as a soldier. Bush pointed to American fear and McCain's strength in Foreign Policy.
My fellow citizens, we live in a dangerous world. And we need a president who understands the lessons of September the 11th, 2001: that to protect America, we must stay on the offense, stop attacks before they happen, and not wait to be hit again. The man we need is John McCain.
What Bush did not offer was a detailed endorsement that McCain would be the right leader to guide us through the domestic problems our country must deal with. Bush made only an overarching reference to domestic issues:
We've seen McCain's commitment to principle in our nation's capital. John is a steadfast opponent of wasteful spending. As president, he will stand up to the high tax crowd in Congress, and make the tax relief permanent. He will invest in the energy technologies of tomorrow - and lift the ban on drilling for America's offshore oil today.
For me, President Bush's speech would have been more effective if he had described in greater detail why he believes in Senator McCain's ability to guide us in fixing domestic problems like: creating new ways to solve the public education mess or fixing health care. I found the omission of details pretty glaring.
I would not begin to guess why Bush chose to talk so little and so broadly about McCain's readiness to solve our domestic issues. Maybe Bush decided to only focus on McCain's perceived strengths.
Prominent Black Republicans
Condoleeza Rice
United States Secretary of State
Joseph Barrak, AFP/Getty Images
Colin Powell
Former United States Secretary of State (2001-2005)
Ron Edmonds, AP
Clarence Thomas
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Randy Snyder, AP
Alan Keyes
Political activist.
Kelley McCall, AP
J.C. Watts
Republican politician and entrepreneur.
Steve Jaffe, AFP / Getty Images
Armstrong Williams
Television, radio host, columnist and political pundit.
Graham Williams Group, AP
Alveda King
The author is a niece of the civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr.
Johnny Nunez, WireImage.com
Don King
Boxing promoter.
Frank Franklin II, AP
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Civil rights icon.
AP
T.D. Jakes
Famous American preacher.
Johnny Nunez, WireImage.com
1. The RNC thus far has been a huge flop. At this point the republicans need to convince themselves that their candidates are worthy of Presidential office.
I'm glad I don't have to vote for them.
Vote Obama-Biden 2008
Joann at 7:55AM on Sep 3rd 2008