BLOGS BY BOB

Why did Scott McClellan write his book now?  Why didn’t he say something while he was on the inside of the Bush administration?  Those are the burning questions surrounding his new book, “WHAT HAPPENED: Inside the Bush White House and What’s Wrong With Washington.”  In my opinion Scott McClellan is neither a villain nor a hero.  I think he is simply a man trying to come to grips with his own conscience. 

 

In 1951 the “longshoreman philosopher” Eric Hoffer published a book called “The True Believer: Thoughts On The Nature Of Mass Movements.”  It was a social psychology book and although my theory may be a bit extreme, I believe Scott McClellan is an embryonic version of the “True Believer” of which Hoffer wrote.  While Hoffer discusses movements, I have chosen to apply his philosophy to an individual.  I seek not to condemn or defend McClellan’s actions but rather to offer one possible explanation for them.  Before I go on let me try to paint a word picture of the environment in which Mr. McClellan worked.

 

Imagine the exhilaration of holding a high-level position in the White House, where people clamor for your attention, where you had almost unlimited access to the President of the United States and sit in, even as an observer, on meetings that affect the entire world.  Imagine the excitement of facing the international press on a daily basis and becoming one of the most recognized faces in the world.  That is the world in which Scott McClellan lived.

 

I worked in a much more lowly position than Mr. McClellan, having served as the press secretary for a Minnesota Governor, but the power and ego trip are exactly the same.  Captains of business and industry who would not have given me the time of day in the past, sought my counsel in the knowledge that I had the ability to open the doors to the Governor’s office for them.  The important word here is “access.”  Anyone with access to the person who holds the office, becomes immediately endowed with substantial power.  I could call any state Commissioner (cabinet secretary in the White House) and with these words, “The Governor would like …..” have a powerful state Commissioner standing in my doorway in minutes — not a messenger, not an aide but the Commissioner him or her self.  That kind of power is a dizzying experience equaling ones’ most outrageous alcohol or drug induced fantasies.  And – it is not only highly addictive the addiction must be fed.  You will do almost anything to please the boss in order to ensure your position.  Losing the power is seen by some as being equivalent to death. 

 

When holding a position like Scott McClellan’s your sense of loyalty can become extreme even in the face of strong evidence that challenges it.  It is easy for me to understand how he could have harbored resentments, serious disagreements, even disgust and still remain loyal, unable to confront the people who gave him the position he so loved.

 

In his book, McClellan says the was forced out of office, that Karl Rove and others felt that his usefulness was over and a new voice and face were needed.  I submit, though, that they saw the beginnings of his disgruntlement as reflected by the questions he asked and his attitude about the language his bosses were telling him to use.  From experience, I can tell you that publicly defending a position with which you disagree is a creepy feeling, it is a gut ache caused by feeling disloyal to your sense of integrity.

 

Here’s Wikipedia’s take on Eric Hoffer’s book (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_True_Believer):

“The True Believer: Thoughts On The Nature Of Mass Movements” is a social psychology book by EricHoffer published in 1951 which discusses the psychological causes of fanaticism. The book evaluates and sometimes disparages Communists, Fascists, Nationalists, and early Christians. Part of Hoffer’s thesis is that movements are interchangeable and that fanatics will often flip from one movement to another. Furthermore, Hoffer argues the motivations for mass movements are interchangeable: religious, nationalist and class-based movements tend to behave in the same way and use the same tactics, even when their stated goals or values are diametrically opposed.”

 

I feel sorry for Scott McClellan, I am on a first name basis with the demons he is fighting.  I didn’t write an “expose” book and never will because disagreements with my boss pale in comparison to those faced by the President’s Press Secretary.  We never sent troops into harm’s way, we never bombed civilians or started a war and we never adopted lying as a communications policy.  I hope his book helps Mr. McClellan find the serenity he seems to seek.   

 

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According to Republican Presidential nominee Senator John McCain, if you are not a veteran, you have no right to an opinion about veteran’s affairs. 

 

Here’s the story.   On May 22, 2008, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly approved a landmark increase in college aid to veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Senator McCain, however, sided with President Bush who has promised to veto the legislation which was authored by Virginia Democratic Senator Jim Webb. But the 75-22 margin, more than the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto, suggests an easy override of the President’s wishes.

 

On the Senate floor, Democrat Presidential candidate Barack Obama respectfully disagreed with McCain’s opposition to the Webb bill saying, “I respect Senator John McCain’s service to our country. He is one of those heroes of which I speak. But I can’t understand why he would line up behind the President in his opposition to this G.I. bill.”  The bill’s chief author is Senator Jim Webb who has a son serving in Iraq.  Webb, like McCain, is a war hero who also served as secretary of the Navy under President Reagan. 

 

The Webb G.I. Bill is co-authored by Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton along with Republican Senators Chuck Hagel, Frank Lautenberg and John Warner.  It proposes paying tuition, room and board and a $1,000 monthly stipend to veterans who have served on active duty for at least two years. The legislation is backed by several veterans’ groups, including The American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Webb argued that providing today’s veterans with a G.I. Bill similar to what World War II-era veterans received would boost recruiting, ease the transition of soldiers returning from war and raise the quality of life for those who have risked their lives.

 

McCain responded to Obama not with an answer but with an angry personal attack saying that he would not listen to any lectures on veteran’s affairs from Obama, “Who did not feel it was his responsibility to serve our country in uniform.”

 

Well, if people who didn’t serve in the military are not entitled to opinions on the subject then I imagine Senator McCain is also referring to George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Abraham Lincoln (not a veteran by his own admission) Franklin Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton (Bush was in the Air National Guard but rarely showed up for work). 

 

I cannot help but infer that McCain feels his judgment on the needs of current veterans is better than that of other Senators (whether having served or not) simply because his service is superior to theirs. What incredible arrogance. 

       

Let us follow McCain’s convoluted reasoning a little farther.  Does John McCain have a right to opine on issues concerning women — he’s never been one.  Does the good Senator have any right to speak out on minority issues — he’s never been a minority.  Does the Arizona Republican have any right to speak out on Israel — he’s not Jewish.  And —what about the economy?  McCain admits he is weak on the subject.  His response to Obama was not only an example of his famous hair-trigger temper; it was a perfect example of hubris.  And, oh yeah, I’d still like to know the answer to Senator Obama’s question, “Why are you opposed to this G.I. Bill?

 

Finally, in case you didn’t know, the original G.I. Bill returned between five and thirteen dollars on every one dollar invested. It also was more generous than Webb’s proposal because it also covered private college tuition.  Guess who said this, “The original G.I. Bill is one of the greatest things about the 20th century.”  None other than Arizona Senator John McCain. His support of President Bush in opposition to the Webb bill can be defined as nothing other than sheer hypocrisy.  Never have the words “John McCaine, more of the same,” been truer.

 

Please read and comment on my Organ Donation and Transplantation blogs on

http://blogsbybob.wordpress.com

 

Also…visit my Facebook site, Organ Transplant Patients, Friends and You at  http://tinyurl.com/225cfh  OR — my Facebook home page http://www.facebook.com/home.php

 

 

 

Being as I am a political junkie I thought I would share my views on the current presidential campaign. 

I like Hillary Clinton but she will not win the presidential nomination of her party and should withdraw from the race now.  She should do it gracefully and together with her husband should not only support Barack Obama but work as hard for him as they did for her.

Ms Clinton is one of the most informed presidential candidates I’ve seen and I have voted in the last twelve presidential elections.  She should be president of the United States.  Hillary’s big drawback?  Bill!  For some reason she gets blamed for her husband’s sins. Hillary’s loss of the nomination can be directly blamed on Baggage Bill despite his successful presidency.

Barack Obama is bright, inspirational and visionary.  He is also professorial and sometimes speaks over the heads of his audience. He will win the nomination and probably the presidency.  My lingering doubt about Obama lies with the Pastor Wright issue.  I can’t believe that he could be a member of that church for twenty years and never heard, or heard of any of the outrageous things the pastor said.  I also don’t know what took Obama so long to divorce himself from his pastor.  “Goddamn America” is repulsive enough but blaming the people of this country for the 911 attack is unconscionable and would cause me to leave the church and disown the pastor whenever and however I heard of it. I’d like to know the rest of THAT story.

John McCain, the American hero and Republican maverick will be President only if the Democrats destroy each other.  McCain, God bless him, is more of the same.  To this point, his attempts to separate himself from George W. Bush have been feeble.  I think McCain could be a good leader, but he’ll never get there by riding the Bush horse. 

This country is in a mess.  Gasoline at $4.00 a gallon, unemployment is up, the economy is in shambles, our planet is dying, we are in dept up to our eyeballs, the war in Iraq has now gone on longer than WW ll, Korea and the Civil War and there’s no end in sight.  Mr. McCain is offering no solutions to any of those challenges other than the same failed Bush policies that got us here in the first place.  If he is a real leader, he should begin offering some real solutions.

In summary, other than the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln this may well be the single most important presidential election we’ve ever had.  Voters should forget ideology and party affiliation and think about our collective future. If we don’t, the “American dream” will be an empty promise echoing off the walls of a deteriorating congressional rotunda.  China will become the economic and military leader of the world and we will join Russia, England, France and Spain as a “former world power.”