It is nearing the end of a busy day in my world. January 20th was not only Inauguration Day, but it was also the day I drove to San Antonio for a lunch meeting, sent PAC letters, talked to a handful of reporters, scheduled interviews and briefed myself on EPA Advanced Notice of Proposal to make CO2 a greenhouse gas under the Clean Air Act, and basically try to tax ranchers on cow farts (they do not have the authority to do that by the way...and I don't believe it will actually happen).
If I was in Washington D.C., today would have been about one thing. Obama. And as much as I didn't vote for him, I would have embraced the fact that America has a shiny new President and watched 24 hours of coverage on "America's News Station" (Fox of course). Instead, I chose to move to the real world where the only piece of the inauguration I heard was in the background of a conference call this morning and on the radio during the drive to San Antonio. Ladies and Gentlemen...there is life outside of Washington, and Carmen Fenton has officially landed there.
So, after all the craziness of the day, I am sitting at my computer (pirating my neighbors connection...thinking to myself I should really stop doing that), and jotting down my thoughts on the broken pieces of the monumental moment in American history that i witnessed and heard today.
Here we go...
First off, I am a Republican. I did not vote for Obama, and did not and have not jumped on the Obama bandwagon. So if you are reading this and are already offended...you should probably read no further.
I do not hide the fact that I am a conservative, but I do not shout it from the mountain tops either. I, unlike many of my friends, am not a radical. I would never picket, throw punches at a press conference (believe me...I have seen it), or interrupt an elected official with shouts of complete hate.
I strongly believe that one's personal convictions about politics stem from their overall view of government and what role it should play in their lives. I also strongly believe that those views should be expressed politely and convincingly when appropriate.
As I said before, I was not an Obama supporter, but I will support and pray for him as the President of the United States. No doubt, today was his day. He has broken the glass ceiling for so many in our country. His presidency will always be full of historical and inspirational value, and no one, no matter how many bad decisions he makes, will ever take that away from him. But while I commend Mr. Obama on his success, this day I could only focus on him and his family for a moment. My real focus was on Bush.
I love George W. Bush, and like many Texans, I am proud of him and respect him for what he has accomplished. America voted him as President two times. We chose him. And I think he did a pretty good job. I didn't always agree with him, but I didn't publicly boo, criticize and ridicule him either. I tell you what...any man, who has endeared the public hate that Bush has endeared deserves all the respect in the world.
I don't feel sorry for Bush because they booed him at today's inauguration, or because Obama chose to "eat dinner" rather than pay him the respect of attending his goodbye speech. Just the opposite...I admire Bush. Through everything, the snubs, the disrespects, he has never been caddy. Not once. Because he knows that his purpose was greater than himself, that he was called on by God to serve his country, that he made decisions no other man could have made. He is a man of God called on by God. He knows that.
And while all the Obama lovers were hating him, Bush made sure that Obama's transition to the White House was seamless, that it was as easy on his family as possible, that it was respectable to the position. Very much unlike the transition the Clinton administration put together for Bush.
If I were Bush, I would have boarded Marine One, looked down on the radical Obama worshippers and the press pool and given them the big middle finger. But not President Bush. He exited Washington D.C. with the morals and values that he went their with...despite the backhanded comments. Bush was never an elitist. He is a typical Texan.
I sincerely hope that Obama is an amazing president. I hope he lives up to the hype that he created. I hope that our country will continue to rally behind him.
I also hope that we teach our children the meaning of true love, pride in our country and respect for our president. You see all the celebrities, the radicals, the Republican haters out there who truly think they are spreading peace, love, and harmony throughout the country by publicly hating Bush and worshipping Obama are wrong. True love, pride and respect breaks all barriers of political parties. It comes together and supports the leaders God chose for our country...something the citizens of this country have not done in a very long time.
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