Personal memo to each of you who voted in the 2008 US Presidential election: One at a time, you could have elected me. 😯
In an hour or so, President Obama gives his State of the Union Speech.
But what if it were President Roth (as in, I) giving the address, what could you expect?
- No advance copy to anyone (except my wife)
- No teleprompter(s)
- No Presidential special guests beyond former Presidents willing to attend
- No speech writers
- No partisanship
- No laundry list of my accomplishments or my goals
- “Ask what good you can do for you neighbor…then do it.”
- “I have asked what good I can do for you. I’ve come up with two things I can promise right now. First, I will veto any legislation that has any earmarks attached. Second, I will push hard for a reduction in income tax rates with matching reductions in federal spending.”
- “We have had a hard year. So did the Pilgrims. And they had a time of thanksgiving. For what are you thankful? Fellow Americans, answer the question in your own hearts. Then tell each other. Let’s cultivate a spirit of gratefulness.”
- “President Carter, please stand. Thank you, sir, for…” followed by three good things he did for the country.
- “President Bush 41, please stand. Thank you, sir, for…” followed by three good thing he did for the country.
- “President Clinton, please stand. Thank you, sir, for…” followed by three good things he did for the country.
- “President Bush 43, please stand. Thank you, sir, for…” followed by three good things he did for the country.
- “I reaffirm my appreciation for our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution. The Almighty has blessed us beyond measure through the principles and laws established by our founding documents.”
- “I am grateful to be an American. We live in an exceptional country. God Himself has bestowed on us freedoms and liberty few nations have enjoyed. We have carelessly surrendered too many of those. We have brazenly abused others of them. And many we have put to good use for ourselves, our families, our communities, our country, and even our world.”
- “I asked you about your own thankfulness. You aren’t here to express them in this forum. But your representatives are here. So we’ll have a fifteen minute open mike period in another five minutes or so. In that time slot, Senators and Representatives with a sincere personal expression of gratefulness may have a maximum of fifteen seconds to say one thing for which they are thankful. While you’re thinking, let me tell you some things for which I’m thankful…not as President, but as Mark Roth….”
See what you missed? 🙄
You may be thankful for that also. 😉