A Weakened Presidency

The latest Newsweek poll shows the President with a 36% job approval rating. Only 29% of those polled support President Bush’s handling of the Iraq war. Remarkably, 42% of the public supports the censure of the President over the wiretapping program.

These poll numbers, even though they are great news politically for the Democrats, should not give comfort to most citizens. There is almost three years left in this presidency, and a weakened President will not serve the interests of the American people. We need a President who can confidently navigate the treacherous foreign policy waters ahead. A President distracted by internal political worries is playing a very weak hand against challengers such as North Korea or Iran. Our adversaries, and would be adversaries, surely benefit from a President hamstrung by a clear lack of public support.

What is to be done? Should the public get behind the President or should the President get behind the public? First, I think the Administration needs to realize that they are in the midst of a serious crisis of confidence from the American public. Even though the Administration is right to point out that they should not be making decisions based on polls, the situation now has gone well beyond the public mood in one or two isolated polls. It should be obvious to anyone that the President has lost his mandate. It is than incumbent on the President, in a democracy, to respond to the clear will of the governed and adjust rhetoric and actions to regain popular support. The American public has a collective wisdom and the longer the Administration chooses to ignore that wisdom; the greater harm is done to the country, at home and in international affairs.

As this Administration, I hope, begins to recalibrate to regain its mandate, it is the responsibility of the opposition party to not play every retreat for political gain. The stakes are very high for the country and the Democrats need to encourage this Administration to move toward accommodation without playing politics. We will be looking for Statesmen in the years ahead – it is time for true leadership on both sides of the political aisle.