The Most Powerful Man on Earth

What if Superman was Clark Kent’s disguise, instead of the other way around? I mean, what if Clark Kent only pretended to be a super hero in order to pursue his true calling of reporter at the Daily Planet? What if, when he was supposed to be fighting crime and saving Lois, he snuck away to a phone booth to become… ta da, “Clark Kent, intrepid reporter”, and busily wrote his next article instead of saving the world? Is a hero a hero if he neglects to be heroic? Is a mighty man mighty if he refuses, or is unable to use his might? When is Superman not Superman?

For many years the President of the United was unquestionably considered as the most powerful man on earth. Since the inauguration of our current so-called Commander in Chief, that moniker has arguably been passed to such people as Vladimir Putin of Russia or Xi Jinping of China. Considering the President’s dismally impotent response to the ISIS/ISIL crisis might lead one to contend that British Prime Minister David Cameron or even the brutal decapitator in the abominable video are more powerful men than our own fundraiser with a five iron.

Gone is the President’s 2008 promise to the American people:

“…The bargain that any President strikes… with the American People is, you give me this office and in turn my fears, doubts, insecurities, foibles, need for sleep, family life, vacations, leisure, is gone. I am giving myself to you… The American people should have no patience for whatever is going through your head because you have a job to do…”

Now I suppose that the President wasn’t really promising to never take a vacation or enjoy a little leisure time any more than he was saying he would go without sleep for eight years or never have a fear or doubt. What I think he was saying, and what I believe to be a paramount truth, is that all those things, and yes, even his obligations to his family, are secondary to the position of power that he holds. That is the bargain. You give yourself to your country for the duration of your term; if your life detracts from the job, then you don’t get a life for a few years, or you leave and let someone else give it a try. You take your doubts and fears and you bury them in a dark hole. You hide your insecurities, you’re the leader of the free world, weakness is not your prerogative. Your country, and the world itself depend on how well you perform your job. And if you aren’t up to the task, at least pretend that you are. The perception of a President who spends his time golfing and attending fundraisers as Americans are being beheaded, America is being threatened, and he himself is being insulted, is that of a man unwilling to do the work of the office, hesitant to face our strong enemies, unconfident in his own power; a man who only wants to be President if he can redefine what being President is, something less profound, less risky, more fun… smaller.

Oh, I’ve heard the explanations of how the President is the President no matter where he is or what he’s doing. He’s on the job when he’s on the links, or riding the waves in Hawaii, enjoying the breeze in Martha’s Vineyard, or basking in the adulations of the party faithful at a Democratic fundraiser. You try using that line of reasoning with your boss! The truth is that just because you are on-call doesn’t mean you are on the job. I’ve played golf, I love the ocean; you do those things to get away from your problems, not to work on them. I don’t begrudge the President a little personal time, but with a job as vital as this, one would expect those times to be few, taken at relatively calm periods, and quickly cancelled during unexpected crises. To whom much is given, much is expected. This is a big job, the biggest; you might not get a lot of time off. One gets the impression this President only took the job for the perks.

IMHO: Americans for the most part are accepting of the humanness of those in office. We don’t ask them to make many sacrifices, even less than most of us make for our own jobs. Perhaps that is a mistake. Maybe if taking the job involved more sacrifice, people would take it for the right reasons instead of just the nice house or the free haircuts. The world is a dangerous place and mild mannered Clark Kents are a dime a dozen. They’re great in the newsrooms, college campuses, and Washington think tanks; but not in the White House. In the White House we need a powerful man, a man undaunted by the responsibility of the position, a man unencumbered by the failings of his nation or his predecessors, a man confident enough in his own ability and values that he does not run from his calling or hide from his mission. In the White House we need the most powerful man on earth. In the White House we need Superman.