Kerry, for the next big thing

The Crystal Ball is Hazy, So the Choice is Clear

By Rick Horowitz

I'm voting for John Kerry, and I can't tell you why.

Maybe I should put it a little differently: I'm voting for John Kerry, and I can't tell you exactly why.

Think back a minute, back to the 2000 campaign. Do you remember all those discussions and debates about terrorism? About the threat from al-Qaeda? About Osama bin Laden?

I doubt it -- because there weren't any discussions! There weren't any debates! That's right: Terrorism -- the biggest issue we're facing today -- wasn't even on our radar screens when we picked a president four years ago. (Which, come to think of it, was probably a lucky break for George Bush; if the world had looked especially threatening in November of 2000, a one-and-a-half-term governor with virtually no international experience might not have looked especially reassuring.)

Anyway, what's past is past. That was the last time; this is the next time. But that's my point: We don't always know what the next time will bring, what the next big issue will be. It could be more terrorism. But it could also be some crisis in the health-care system, or on Wall Street. Major turmoil in race relations, or an environmental disaster. Or something so far off the charts that it doesn't even make our list of unlikelies.

We just don't know.

So I'm looking for a candidate who'll be better at dealing with things -- with unexpected things -- whatever they turn out to be.

And from everything we've seen in the past four years, George Bush is not that kind of candidate. He's not that kind of person.

Let me be fair. I think George Bush believes deeply in the things he believes, including the need to protect this country from enemies abroad. I also think George Bush did a fine job in rallying the nation after September 11th. He delivered a couple of really great speeches -- before Congress, at the National Cathedral -- in the days following the attacks. He was every bit as solid standing on that infamous pile of New York rubble.

And if being an effective president were simply a matter of believing deeply, delivering great speeches and shouting inspiring words through a bullhorn -- well, it's Bush over Kerry, no question.

But it's not that simple. There are other skills -- more important skills, it seems to me -- that a president needs to handle a crisis. To handle the next crisis.

I want a president who's well informed; being well informed makes it less likely the next big thing will take him by surprise. (Call it the end of the "August 6th mindset.") But more than that: The next president needs to be open to information, even to new facts that might upset old assumptions. When the truth is uncomfortable, a president can't afford to squeeze his eyes and ears shut the way George Bush so often does.

What else do I want? I want a president who can reason his way through unfamiliar situations. It's good to have principles; it's not enough to repeat a few pet phrases over and over again. You watched the debates. You know what I'm talking about.

I want a president who understands that America isn't the Lone Ranger -- we can't do everything by ourselves. From time to time, a president actually needs to be able to persuade people, to convince them to make common purpose with us. A smirk and a swagger will only get you so far.

Sometimes a leader has to fall back on his instincts; I want a president whose "default" position isn't always with the well-heeled and the well-connected, with the last thing Dick Cheney and Don Rumsfeld have whispered in his ear. We know the sort of people who get to sit in on this administration's strategy sessions. We know whose advice is heeded, whose interests are protected. I want a president who'll put some other people around the table, too. Put them there, and listen to them.

I want a president who --

But you get the idea. We've had four years to watch George Bush, to see his habits and his quirks, his instincts and his inclinations in action. It's not a pretty picture.

So here's what it comes down to for me: I don't know what the next big issue will be.

But I'd much rather have John Kerry in the Oval Office to handle it.

Posted 10/26/04. Let Rick help you handle your commentary needs. (And couldn't your friends use a little help, too?)

Rick Horowitz is a syndicated columnist, TV commentator, writing coach and public speaker.

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