United States Finding Its Way Again

Below is Dr. John Hamre of the Center for Strategic and International Studies latest memo...

Washington is unusually vibrant these days because of the upcoming change of government. Announcements are made every day about new people coming into office, and messages come of current public servants who are returning to private life. But this year seems bigger than usual. There is a sense that we are at a fundamental turning point in American politics.

Government these days seems very important and fresh. This sense of enormous moment draws me to reflection, and that in turn takes me back to a fabulous little speech that Senator Bob Dole gave back in 1997. He had been defeated by President Bill Clinton, who in turn honored Senator Dole by bestowing on him the Presidential Medal of Freedom the following January.

At the awards ceremony, Bob Dole delivered one of the finest little speeches of the past half century. It is so good, that I am just going to share it with you in its entirety.

“Mr. President, no one can claim to be equal to this honor, but I will cherish it as long as I live, because this occasion allows me to honor some others who are more entitled.

“At every stage in my life, I have been a witness to the greatness of this country. I have seen American soldiers bring hope and leave graves in every corner of the world. I have seen this nation overcome depression and segregation and communism, turning back mortal threats to human freedom. And I have stood in awe of American courage and decency – virtues so rare in history, and so common in this precious place.

“I can vividly remember the first time I walked into the Capitol as a member of Congress. It was an honor beyond the dreams of a small town. I felt part of something great and noble. Even playing a small role seemed like a high calling, because America was the hope of history.

“I have never questioned that faith, in victory or in honest defeat. And the day I left office, it was undiminished. I know there are some who doubt these ideals. And I suspect there are young men and women who have not been adequately taught them. So let me leave a message to the future.

“I have found honor in the profession of politics. I have found vitality in the American experiment. Our challenge is not to question American ideals, or replace them, but to act worthy of them.

“I have been in government at moments when politics was elevated by courage into history—when the Civil Rights Act was passed, when the Americans with Disabilities Act became law. No one who took part in those honorable causes can doubt that public service, at its best, is noble.

“The moral challenges of our time can seem less clear. But they still demand conviction and courage and character. They still require young men and women with faith in our process. They still demand idealists, captured by the honor and adventure of service.

They still demand citizens who accept responsibility and who defy cynicism, affirming the American faith, and renewing her hope. They still demand the President and the Congress to find real unity in the public good.

“If we remember this, then America will always be the country of tomorrow, where ever
day is a new beginning and every life an instrument of God’s justice.”

Thank you, Bob Dole. These are remarkable days, and these wonderful words reflect what we all feel in our hearts. We are bound together in a common destiny. This must be a time for unified purpose.