There are plenty of people who have suggested to me that my mind works a bit differently – it seems split about 50/50 as to whether that’s a good thing or not.
A couple years ago my convoluted cranium concocted a new standard with which to judge Presidential candidates. It occurred to me in a moment of despair where Pres. W. was once again making a mockery of logic, intelligence, and American society by speaking in public. For some reason I wondered how many secret service agents Pres. W. travels with. I imagined that it must be more than the average President – being as we are at war, and he’s a fairly heavily despised man in many parts of the world where bumping off politicians is something that you do to work up an appetite before breakfast.
And then I began thinking about Secret Service Agents – I’d had a run-in with them myself and found them to be quite exceptional people (more on that some other time). These Agents are unbelievable. To be on the Presidential detail you have to be very smart, very strong (or at least able to subdue anything that head’s in POTUS’s direction), and very forget-able – both able to blend in and stand out in any crowd to provide appropriate protection. (I can only suspect that W. has not yet applied the same unwavering demand for mediocrity that he applies to other governmental positions to his security detail.) More than that, these agents are the epitome of honor and integrity. Their compensation amounts to a few dollars and the pride of doing something that is incredibly important incredibly well.
The be-all/end-all of serving as an Agent on the Presidential Detail is this: When the bullets start flying your job is to be a human shield. Knowing that these people put themselves in harm’s way regardless of their belief in the President’s politics, in defense of the office and the sovereignty of our nation.
Which leads me to the formulation of my new standard.
If people of such honor and integrity are willing to sacrifice their lives for you, you damn well better be worth it. This standard s not partisan, and it doesn’t care the slightest bit about about smoking marijuana in college, infidelity, or ability craft a coherent sentence. The measure here is whether you spend every day that you are in office serving and protecting the people who need it most.
I dare say that W. doesn’t quite measure up, and that we really should do better next time.
