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| jose el fontanero... |
 Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 6:36 am |
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Obama's 'Delayed Empathy' over Fort Hood Massacre
Rick Moran
This hasn't gotten half the play it should have and for good reason;
President Obama's weird, off-putting introduction to his remarks about
the Fort Hood massacre reveal him to be something of a cold fish.
Obama's shocking insensitivity was first noticed by Robert George
writing in the president's home town TV news station WMAQ:
After news broke out of the shooting at the Fort Hood Army post in
Texas, the nation watched in horror as the toll of dead and injured
climbed. The White House was notified immediately and by late
afternoon, word went out that the president would speak about the
incident prior to a previously scheduled appearance. At about 5 p.m.,
cable stations went to the president. The situation called for not
only his trademark eloquence, but also grace and perspective.
But instead of a somber chief executive offering reassuring words and
expressions of sympathy and compassion, viewers saw a wildly
disconnected and inappropriately light president making introductory
remarks. At the event, a Tribal Nations Conference hosted by the
Department of Interior's Bureau of Indian affairs, the president
thanked various staffers and offered a "shout-out" to "Dr. Joe
Medicine Crow -- that Congressional Medal of Honor winner." Three
minutes in, the president spoke about the shooting, in measured and
appropriate terms. Who is advising him?
While the president's actual remarks about the tragedy were
appropriately solemn and dignified, the introduction was painful to
watch.
Here it is. You make up your own mind about how bizarre this is:
Ed Lasky adds:
Is it just me, or does anyone have a problem with a president that
reaches out to tyrants of the world, and apologizes for all the sins
he believes America has committed to them and their people (before his
coronation) yet has nary any sympathy for American soldiers killed by
a home-grown terror attack? Does he empathize and sympathize with
foreigners who he believes were mistreated by America yet not
empathize with our own American soldiers? Did the Teleprompter go on
the fritz again?
Obama had a friendly smile for his good friend "Joe Medicine Crow" who
he shockingly incorrectly identified as a Medal of Honor winner (Mr.
Crow received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Obama last
spring).
Even the Boston Globe found the president's initial tone disturbing:
Obama's initial remarks came shortly after 5 p.m. Thursday, while
Americans were struggling to come to grips with the shocking rampage
and its chaotic aftermath. The stage was set for the president to
quickly and somberly address the tragedy. Instead, a serene-looking
Obama offered light introductory comments, keyed to those attending a
Tribal Nations Conference that was hosted by the Department of
Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs. His introduction included a
convivial "shout-out'' to one of the conference attendees.
Several minutes in, Obama finally called the Fort Hood shootings "a
horrific outburst of violence.'' The words he spoke next were
respectful and appropriate. But it took him too long to get to the
point of delivering them.
It takes more than scripted eloquence for presidents to connect with
their fellow Americans. It requires a visceral ability to grasp the
scope of tragedy, calculate its impact on the national psyche, and
react swiftly to it. Ronald Reagan did it after the Challenger
explosion took the lives of seven crew members on Jan. 28, 1986. So
did Bill Clinton, after the Oklahoma City bombings of April 19, 1995,
left 168 dead and more than 600 injured.
When a gunman fired those shots at Fort Hood, the country immediately
felt the pain. Obama missed the first moment to show he understood
just how much it hurt.
The Globe has it right. In addition to all of his other hats, a
president has another role; "Mourner in Chief." When national
tragedies occur, the nation expects their president to articulate the
grief they are feeling. They expect solemnity, gravity, eloquence, and
a reassuring serenity from our chief executive so that we feel united
as a nation in our grief.
Obama failed that test miserably. It was almost as if he couldn't
scroll ahead on the teleprompter and get to the remarks he was going
to make about Fort Hood immediately. He seemed trapped into making the
remarks about the tribal conference because he didn't realize the
importance of the "moment" - that slice of time where whatever a
president says or does is magnified by events.
Think of Reagan after the Challenger disaster. His short televised
address lifted up an entire nation, inspired us to continue reaching
for the stars, while paying tribute in a gut wrenching, emotional way
to the fallen astronauts.
The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in
which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last
time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and
waved goodbye and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the
face of God."
At bottom, the speech told us that the president understood our
distress, but insisted that the highest honor we could pay the dead is
to continue their work. That is leadership.
Obama? Not so much. |
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