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Leadership for Good or Bad?
A BUZZFLASH READER COMMENTARY
Dear BuzzFlash,
Some pundits seem to think Democratic presidential candidates will not be able to challenge Bush on his leadership.
That's nonsense.
Leadership –- the ability to lead -- can be beneficial to a nation, or it can be harmful. More important than having an ability to lead are the purposes to which such leadership skills are applied.
Josef Stalin certainly demonstrated leadership skills that eclipse those of our current president, but most decent people would not consider Stalin's leadership a good thing. Adolf Hitler applied his great leadership skills to restoring German self-esteem after World War One, but he also imposed hideous domestic policies on Germany and led his nation down the terrible path to a war that left the country in ruins.
Leadership certainly is a quality we look for in a president, but equally important is how and to what ends one exercises leadership and power. Does one use power for the greater good of the majority while alleviating the needs and respecting the rights of powerless, vulnerable minorities?
Franklin Delano Roosevelt had great leadership skills, but -- as contrasted with Mr. Bush -- FDR used those skills to help those in our society who needed help, not just the one percent of the nation's wealthiest citizens.
Whatever leadership skills Mr. Bush may or may not have, he has the power of the presidency, but he has used that power to harm the frail elderly with his cuts to Medicare and Medicaid. He has used his presidential power to harm children by under-funding public schools, cutting funding to public libraries, and cutting funding to day-care programs that enable working parents to keep their families strong and safe.
He has used his presidential power, not to fund healthcare for the 40 million Americans who do not have any heath insurance, but to give tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans.
Mr. Bush has used his presidential power to harm the air we breathe and the water we drink.
Is that the kind of leadership any American should respect? I think not.
Any Democratic candidate for the presidency of the United States who does NOT attack Mr. Bush for the ways in which he has used his presidential power will not win the trust of the American people.
Democratic candidates will be remiss if they do NOT attack Mr. Bush for his failed leadership of this country.
Signed,
A Loyal American who loves BuzzFlash
A BUZZFLASH READER COMMENTARY
Articles in the BuzzFlash Contributor section are posted as-is. Given the timeliness of some Contributor articles, BuzzFlash cannot verify or guarantee the accuracy of every word. We strive to correct inaccuracies when they are brought to our attention.
