I heard our President ask us to trust him again today. It caused me some concern - especially for a guy who does not like to polarize himself or others politically. I think most of the distinctions we draw are unnecessarily divisive and intrinsically false.
But he said, "Trust me," and it struck me as troubling. It was nothing new. He asks that of us a lot. But he really is asking a lot and needs to know that.
This time it was about foreign control over East Coast ports. President Carter agrees that we should trust him and the process. Most governors and congressional representatives of both major parties seem to disagree.
So the appeal has gone out to the American people to step up to the plate again and trust their government. After all, the government always has our best interests at heart and the government is always honest - even with itself - and never mistaken, not to mention all-knowing, all-wise, and all-powerful.
It seems that "trust me" is the one thing Americans should not be asked to do by a democratically elected government. The founders assumed that we would elect good leaders who had a strong moral compass. Yet, they understood the ambiguity of power and the need for checks and balances. So they built them into the system.
I like the President and respect him as a man of integrity and good intentions. I tend to admire presidents and always hold them in high esteem for the sake of their office, responsibility, and sacrifice. The President is a good man. I agree with him on quite a few issues including his stand against abortion and for faith based initiatives. I think less government is better ... wait a minute ... Is that one of his positions?
It seems that he is gravitating away from the traditional conservatism of less government toward more government as long as it is in the interest of "national defense."
He is not a state's rights advocate as he federalizes more and more crimes that ought to be handled locally or as he sets national standards for everything from education to drug policy. State's rights used to be a conservative position.
He is advocating less government oversight and more presidential power to be trusted to take care of everything.
The problem is with precedent. You can never get the horse back in the barn very well. Faces change; leaders come and go. Give your government an inch and it will take a mile of trust. Connecting patriotism with this blind trust is disturbing, but even now, as I question the politically correct assumptions of the day, I fear being labeled unpatriotic,
Patrick Henry said, "Give me liberty or give me death."
The current trend is toward, "Liberty is worthless if we are dead."
I thought those who were willing to lay down their lives for liberty were the people we called patriots. Is the Patriot Act really the Anti-Patriot Act? I would not want to apply that label or any label to those who disagree with me.
Conservatives of yesteryear touted, "Better dead than Red." Where did that go?
"Trust me," he says with all sincerity and the best of intentions. And he has done a lot to help us and there are many conveniences and "freedoms" that we should be willing to voluntarily and temporarily relinquish - but to trash the Constitution and Bill of Rights for safety? Is that what America is all about?
I don't think the President really understands what he is asking. If I thought he did, I'd have to reevaluate my high opinion of his morality and ethics. But I really think he is caught up in the responsibility of the moment to protect us - so caught up that he cannot and will not rein himself in. It is the checks and balance system that must do so. His job at the moment is to push the envelope as much as possible.
If we just sit back and trust our government, we are relinquishing our authority and responsibility as citizens. We are the line drawers and the line holders. We are the conscience of the nation. We are buck stoppers and fire starters. We are the citizens and we need to be able to look over the shoulders of our government.
Apparently, the President does not trust the judges on his own secret courts because he refuses to follow procedure that enables him to get a warrant after the fact. I can't imagine any other reason for not complying with an already accommodating set of rules in the war on terrorism.
If he cannot trust the government (Yes there are three branches), why should he ask us to do it.
Again, I stress that this man is a hard-working, morally sound, ethically driven, good natured, kind leader who is my brother in Christ. I doubt none of that. I would trust him with my wallet ,or my wife, but I cannot give him the rope to hang himself with unrestrained absolute power. It is not right and it is not American. It is certainly not patriotic in my understanding of the term.
I am praying for the President of the United States and our troops. May the heroes return safely to their families and may freedom ring throughout the earth. God bless America.
Just my opinion.