QandO

July 27, 2004

Jimmuh's Convention Speech
Posted by Dale Franks

You know, the more I read Jimmy Carter's speech last night at the Democratic National Convention, the more I remember why exactly it is we ran him out of Washington the first chance we got, embarrassed at ourselves for sending him there in the first place. Some of his rhetoric was just a bit too much, especially for those of us who remember what the state of the nation under Jimmy Carter was actually like.

[W]e cannot do our duty as citizens and patriots if we pursue an agenda that polarizes and divides our country.

Heh. That's pretty funny, coming from a guy whose party's major campaign theme seems to be the existence of "Two Americas".

Let us not forget that the Soviets lost the Cold War because the American people combined the exercise of power with adherence to basic principles, based on sustained bipartisan support. We understood the positive link between the defense of our own freedom and the promotion of human rights.

Really Jimmy? We all knew that that? I mean, I did, and so did all the people I knew, but during your four years in the White House, it wasn't entirely clear that you did.

While thousands of Cuban soldiers were running amok in Angola, you were kissing Leonid Brezhnev. While Soviet troops were preparing to invade Afghanistan, you were chiding us about needing to get over our "inordinate fear of communism". That is, when you weren't chiding us about what lily-livered girly-men we'd become with the famous «Malaise» speech.

Finally, the one notable occasion when you did exercise American power, to try and rescue the hostages in Iran during a fundamentalist Islamic revolution you fomented, it turned into a total freakin' disaster.

For those of us older than 35, it's probably not the best strategy to remind us of your pathetic "exercise of power with adherence to basic principles". 'Cause, frankly, when you had that as your charge, you didn't seem too freakin' competent at it.

Today, our Democratic party is led by another former naval officer -- one who volunteered for military service. He showed up when assigned to duty, and he served with honor and distinction.

He also knows the horrors of war and the responsibilities of leadership, and I am confident that next January he will restore the judgment and responsibility to our government that is sorely lacking today.

Having put in 10 years on active duty as a trigger-puller and bullet-stopper myself, excuse me if I don't get all mushy-eyed at the idea that serving as a company grade officer 30 years ago has any bearing whatsoever on Kerry's ability to lead the country. Richard Nixon was a former Navy officer, too, and I don't remember you getting all weepy about his military service and its relevance to the presidency.

Maybe if Kerry had served for 30 years, and ended up as a flag officer with 3 or 4 stars, you might have an argument about his strategic judgment. But, then again, maybe not. Curt LeMay wore four stars on his shoulders for nearly 20 years, and I wouldn't've wanted that loon within 1000 feet of the Oval Office, except as the subordinate of a president who had a freakin' clue.

With our allies disunited, the world resenting us, and the Middle East ablaze, we need John Kerry to restore life to the global war against terrorism.

And, speaking of Iran, one wonders if there'd even be a need to wage a global war of terrorism if you hadn't abandoned our chief ally in the region, the Shah, to the Islamic fundamentalists who overthrew him, thereby igniting the torch of radical Islam throughout the Mideast. And I think it'd be a bit tendentious to argue that the elevation of Ayatollah Khomeini improved the human rights situation in Iran.

Thanks to your fecklessness, Jimmy, the banner of Islamic revolution was raised high in 1979, and led directly to the horrid situation we face today.

So, telling me that John Kerry will follow in your footsteps doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. We're still suffering the ill effects of your four years of "leadership". I can hardly imagine what kind of crop a similar four years of John Kerry will sow that our children will have to reap the bitter harvest of, a generation hence.

In the meantime, the Middle East peace process has come to a screeching halt for the first time since Israel became a nation. All former presidents, Democratic and Republican, have attempted to secure a comprehensive peace for Israel with hope and justice for the Palestinians. The achievements of Camp David a quarter century ago and the more recent progress made by President Bill Clinton are now in peril.

And, of course, that is all George W. Bush's fault, I suppose. It has nothing to do with Yasser Arafat rejecting the peace deal Bill Clinton tried to broker. Nothing at all to do with Arafat's al-Aqsa Martyr's Brigade or Hamas murderers shooting pregnant women in the stomach and head, or blowing up pizzerias filled with women and children.

Oh, and about your Camp David legacy: I don't see that you had much to do with it, frankly. Anwar Sadat had already flown to Jerusalem to make peace with Menachim Begin. The decision had already been made to secure peace between Egypt and Israel before you had anything to do with it. All you did at Camp David was to dot the T’s and cross the I's of a decision Sadat had made without even consulting you.

Elsewhere, North Korea's nuclear menace -- a threat more real and immediate than any posed by Saddam Hussein -- has been allowed to advance unheeded, with potentially ominous consequences for peace and stability in Northeast Asia.

Uh, yeah. Just out of curiosity, weren't you the guy who came back from NoKo in '94, telling us what a prince of guy that Kim Jong-Il was? I mean, you practically did the whole Neville Chamberlain bit, waving the agreement with Kim over your head, and announcing it secured peace in our time.

Meanwhile, your pilot had barely got the landing gear retracted after leaving the tarmac at Pyongyang before that little maniac Kim was planning on building strontium bombs like the cool missile that James Franciscus shot off at the end of Return to the Planet of the Apes. And now, somehow, all that is W's fault.

So, what, can we take it as a given that you'll support the president in an upcoming invasion of North Korea? No, I'm sorry, forgive me for asking. Of course you won't. Because there's no threat to the people and interests of the United States that you don't think can't be solved by a unilateral American retreat, is there?

And so I say to you and to others around the world, whether they wish us well or ill: do not underestimate us Americans. We lack neither strength nor wisdom. There is a road that leads to a bright and hopeful future. What America needs is leadership.

And, we'll probably get it as long as we can keep you and your ilk as far as possible from the levers of power.

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