By Rachel Wells on Sunday, November 14, 2010 at 3:25pm
Page 150, Decision Points
I served 2,685 days as President after Arlene gave me that badge. I kept it with me every one of them. Eventually September 11th will come to feel more like Pearl Harbor Day – as an honored date on the calendar …not a scar on the heart, not a reason to fight. For me, the week of September 11th will always be something more. I still see the Pentagon smoldering, the towers in flames, and that pile of twisted steel. I still hear the voices of loved ones searching and workers yelling, “Do not let me down!” I still feel the sadness of the children, the agony of the burn victims, and the torment of broken families.
Page 151, Decision Points
September 11th redefined sacrifice. It redefined duty. And it redefined my job. The story of that week is the key to understanding my presidency. ..after 9/11, I felt my responsibility was clear. For as long as I held office , I could never forget what happened to America that day. I would put my heart and soul into protecting the country, whatever it took.
Critically, some might say that those lines are hyperbolic, dramatic, a political ‘excuse’ to explain the actions many believed were controversial – from the Patriot Act to the the Iraq war and yes, to his decision to Waterboard – and clearly I can see their point. But to conclude that, one would have to see 9/11 as an ‘event’, a diplomatic misunderstanding – a causation of American policy and not as an act of war. It is from this point on that one sees the Bush Presidency through shades of gray and not in black and white. It is from here, where this nation divided. Which way did the American people see this new world, this world at war? For President Bush, there were no shades of gray – it was personal.
Iraq
This is more than likely the most anticipated section of the book for Bush’s critics. Many believe that this (combined with what was depicted as his uncaring during Katrina) – cast the the Bush presidency downward. I am not going to detail, as Mr. Bush did, this process of decision making – I want you to come to your own conclusions after you read his accounting. I conclude that I was wrong in my assumption that Mr. Bush relied too heavily on those around him – after reading you will discover that while he did rely on reports, Saddam’s past, the failures in the UN, President Clinton’s own words on the threat of Saddam, the CIA and Saddam’s own intentions – his decisions were made through the prism of 9/11.
Mr. Bush does not say he “if I knew then what I know now” , in so much as weapons of mass destruction – yet he does defend partly his decision on the intelligence being shown him at the time. I got the sense , objectively and quite reassuringly that weapons of mass destruction or not, Saddam Hussein in this new world at war, was a clear and present danger to the security of the United States. I also believe that there is much he is not saying. Not in a deceptive way – rather in a ‘cat swallowed the canary’ knowledge. He knows it was the right decision, weapons of mass destruction or not. Yes, he does say when they told him those weapons were not ‘found’ he gets a ‘sickening’ feeling the reasons for that, one must read and decipher for yourself.
Facing Re-Election – Ghosts of 1992?
Politically, if I had to pin point a moment that shaped Mr. Bush it would be the loss of his father (Pres. George H. W. Bush ) in 1992 to Pres. Bill Clinton. We have heard George W. Bush describe that being a son of a President is much harder than being President. He details his father’s loss and the worry his father had during his Presidency about what the media was saying, or how the media (and others) would demonize him. Often, the son would comfort the father – just as the father a decade comforted a son. So when George W. Bush ran for re-election in 2004, the ghosts of 1992 began to rise. Again it was personal.
President Bush was, (contrary to the image he tried to convey and once again under estimated by the media) , quite the political animal. Many say Karl Rove, the Architect, was responsible for the election victories – on the ground that may be so, but after reading how Bush was so involved in the minutia of his re-election and the determination that he would not be cast as his father was in 1992, it becomes evident that Bush was more political than many knew. Refreshingly so. And for those of us at the time frustratingly so now – where was this guy?? I digress.
A wonderful example of this is when President Bush caught the ‘flip flop’ of John Kerry. Decision Points, page 288 :
Shortly after he clinched the nomination, my campaign ran an ad highlighting his position. Kerry responded, ” I actually did vote for the $87 Billion before I voted against it.” I spoke to Karl the moment I heard the sound bite. “There’s our opening,” I said. “The American people expect their president to take a clear stand and defend it, especially when it comes to supporting our troops in combat.” We grabbed the ‘flip flop’ theme and ran with it for the rest of the campaign.
Nuance was not a description of George W. Bush – he did not see it in the grays of many, it was either right or wrong.
A letter from his daughter. I am including this letter that Jenna Bush wrote to her father because I see it as a foreshadowing. Read it yourself, then decide on it’s meaning for you. I still believe it was and remains the most touching in the book for so many reasons.
Decision Points, Page 288:
Dear Dad,
I had a vivid dream last night, a dream so vivid I woke in tears. Although I am not yet as spiritual as you, I have taken this dream as a sign. You have worked your entire life to give Barbara and me everything we have ever needed. You have given us love, support; and I know you have included us in every decision you have ever made.
You and Mom taught us the meaning of unconditional love. I watched as Mom selflessly, gently gave herself to Pa as he suffered. And I watched you give a year of your life to Gampy; I watched your shared pain on election night. At age 22, I finally learned what that selfless pain must have felt like.
I hate hearing lies about you. I hate when people criticize you. I hate that everybody can’t see the person I love and respect, the person I hope that someday I will be like.
It is because of all these reasons that I have decided that if you want me to I would love to work full-time for you in the fall. ………….I may be a little rough around the edges, but with the proper training I could get people to see the Dad I love.
(con’t)
Jenna continues:
In my dream I didn’t help you. And I watched somebody win who isn’t supposed to. And I cried for you, for our country, and for my guilt. I don’t want my dream to become reality, so if I can help in any way please let me.
I love you and am so proud of you.
Love,
Jenna
March 2004
President Bush then recalls taking Barbara with him to a rally in Michigan. He turned to look at her as he approached the podium, tears streamed down her face. These people are cheering for my dad, she thought, surprised – a mixture of sadness and happiness. Bush recalls, “It reminded me of the feeling I had for my father, the circle was complete.”
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Katrina
If there were any frustration (PR) wise I had with President Bush it was that nasty girl known as Katrina. He details what he should of done, his mistakes, his anger, his frustrations and his conclusions. By now, you have heard him explain this over and over again and of course we all have our own recollections. I refuse to get into this again except to say. “WHERE WAS THIS BUSH THEN?” Read it, you will understand. As throughout, it seems he often struggled with his ‘instinct’ and the presidency. Hating the PR portion, yet fully understanding the PR portion of being President – he often was conflicted by the ‘talking heads’ around him. He was not in a bubble as he was in an assumption that the American people did not need to be hand held. He believed that the American people knew who he was… unfortunately the media saw to it they would define it for him.
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President Bush has given us a unique look, a personal look into the decision making process of his Administration and his reasoning for them. I am not going to concentrate any further on the gossip, the Dick Cheney nonsense or the inner workings of a White House. Nor will history. History will review the decisions, the decision points, and also the long lasting consequences of the man who made them – clearly this is why he chose to write in the style he did. Without a doubt it is a journal. A journal of a man who saw his responsibility as President, as a son, as a father and as an American.
I did not agree with many of his domestic decisions, SMART, Harriet Myers, TARP – nor do I now – but I can respect the man who thought otherwise. After President Bush left office I admit that I was a bit angry with him. I could not understand why he did not do as he did in these pages, speak straight to the American people. Trust us in the way he claims he did. Then as I read, I have come to the conclusion that he believed we ‘knew’ – that he did not have to extol his own virtue – it was not who he was, but what he did that should be enough. He sees now what happened, he also is confident that assured he made the right decisions.
He kept us safe. He remains optimistic. He also hears and sees more than you think. I will admit that while reading these pages, it was like watching the West Wing during the Clinton years. A respite. No matter what one thought of George W. Bush’s agenda or policies, after reading Decision Points, you can not help but conclude – he did so from an honest place – from Midland to DC back to Dallas again – he never changed, the times did, but the man did not.
I can not recommend this book highly enough. For every American.