What is a President?
On August 28, 1788, in replying to a letter he’d received from Alexander Hamilton, George Washington wrote, “I hope I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain (what I consider the most enviable of all titles) the character of an honest man.” At that time, Washington had not yet been unanimously voted first President of the United States but he was aware that many held him in high esteem and expected he would play a considerable role in the formation and execution of a new government. It is to Washington’s credit and our great fortune that though he was very much inclined to retire to Mount Vernon and live his final years as a humble farmer, when he was elected to lead our nation he did, and did it well. But it’s the words he wrote to Hamilton previous to his taking office that speak to the type of man he was, and the type of President he came to be.
Throughout our nearly 244 years as a nation, forty-four different citizens have held the office of the President of the United States - a few great, many good, some forgettable, and a few we wish we could forget. On this Presidents’ Day, in an election year, let us be reminded what it is we expect from the leader of our great nation by looking at words of those who came before.
We are all well aware of the great partisanship currently permeating the country. With the ebb and flow of history, times like these are bound to occur, yet regardless of who is in power, we should expect our elected officials to work for the benefit of us all. In his inaugural address on March 4, 1845, James K. Polk reminded us that this is especially true of the President when he said, “Although in our country the Chief Magistrate must almost of necessity be chosen by a party and stand pledged to its principles and measures, yet in his official action he should not be the President of a party only, but of the whole people of the United States.” How true this is. Though I’m sure there would be great debate over how well each President accomplished this ideal, we as an electorate should demand this credo from whomever holds the office. Though elected by some, one becomes the Executive of all.
Not only should a President be working for all of us, a President should do so in accordance with the rule of law. The day Martin Van Buren was inaugurated, he expressed his “desire to declare that the principle that will govern me in the high duty to which my country calls me is a strict adherence to the letter and spirit of the Constitution as it was designed by those who framed it.” The duties of the Executive, as well as those of the Legislature and Courts, are laid out for all to see in the US Constitution. Anyone who aspires to hold a governmental office, and dare I say, all US citizens, should familiarize themselves with the words within that document. It was not a document made in haste or with lack of forethought. It has carried us through two and a half centuries of unparalleled success for good reason.
However, even if a President does perform his duties as outlined by the Constitution, there is no guarantee he will do them well or with integrity. Stan Lee, the great comic book writer, popularized the proverb, “with great power comes great responsibility.” George H.W. Bush, after spending eight years as Ronald Reagan’s Vice President, knew this well. On January 20, 1989, after taking his Presidential oath of office, Bush said that a President should, “use [his] power to help people. For we are given power not to advance our own purposes, nor to make a great show in the world, nor a name. There is but one just use of power, and it is to serve people.” Not just any people, mind you, but America’s citizens. For the President is chosen to be in service of the people, not himself. Some of our elected officials, and I’m not speaking about Presidents alone, have most certainly forgotten this. Yet it is a valuable tenet to which we must hold our officers accountable.
In a December 2, 1829 speech at the Virginia Constitutional Convention, James Madison warned us that. “The essence of government is power; and power lodged as it must be, in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.” Abuse of power may be the greatest existential threat our government may ever face, and a President who abuses his power is a dangerous one. In our past, the nation has handled abuses of power with surprisingly good results, but we may be getting to a point where it is more and more difficult to successfully defend ourselves from it, especially if we turn a blind eye to misdeeds occurring right before us. For if misconduct goes unchecked, it only opens the door for power to be abused with increasing frequency and severity.
If indeed a President of the United States does not attain the high standard set for him by those Executives who came before, by the US Constitution, and by us, the people for whom he is working, it is our duty as an electorate to choose someone else to lead. In a Presidential Address by Franklin Roosevelt on July 8, 1938, he stated, “Let us never forget the government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a President and Senators and Congressmen [and women] and government officials but the voters of this country.” If we remember nothing else on this Presidents’ Day, we must remember this: we the people are the Chief Executives of the United States of America. (And the Legislature too, for that fact.) We may elect one individual to guide us on our path forward into the future, but it is the collective we who truly rule the roost. Therefore, should that individual not adhere to the principles we demand of them, we have every right, nay, we have the duty to rid ourselves of that person. For being the President of the United States of America is a privilege we bestow upon an individual and if that singular someone cannot see fit to act as one should when given the responsibility of many, then they should be stripped of that responsibility as soon as possible. For a privilege is something to be cherished and respected. Take it from one who understood this:
“The confidence and respect shown by my countrymen in calling me to be the Chief Magistrate of a Republic holding a high rank among the nations of the earth have inspired me with feelings of the most profound gratitude.”
- Zachary Taylor, Inaugural Address, March 5, 1849
Taylor understood what an honor it was to be elected by the people to lead and ultimately demonstrated a characteristic we should expect from any Commander in Chief: humility and gratitude. I know if the person chosen to lead this great nation performs the duties of the office well, irrespective of whether I agree with every decision or action made, I am happy to repay gratitude that in kind. Happy Presidents’ Day to all. May we elect only those worthy of the position from this day forward.
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