What Is a War President? Franklin D. Roosevelt's grandson assesses George W. Bush's performance
WEB-EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY By James Roosevelt Jr. Newsweek
Oct. 29 - Last May, I walked through the magnificent new World War II Memorial that was soon to be dedicated on the National Mall in Washington. The architecture, sculpture and carved quotations were impressive. But it was the faces of the retired veterans and the depth of feeling in the eyes of their wives and widows that was most moving. As I watched them read the words of inspiration from the war's leaders etched into the stone walls, I thought of my father, who served during the war as a Marine in Carlson's Raiders. His father, my grandfather, was making his own contribution: as president of the United States.
Today, I remember the words etched into that memorial while I read the news from Iraq. The contrast is stark. This summer, Franklin Delano Roosevelt's name and legacy were invoked by almost a dozen speakers at the Republican National Convention. But George W. Bush is not, and never will be, a president like FDR.
In the White House today is a man who for the first time in our nation's history invaded another country without our first being attacked and without the support of a global alliance. The real leadership of FDR, by contrast, was the skill with which he solidified our alliances and made winning the war a truly global effort.
At home, FDR mobilized American industrial power to provide the needed equipment for our forces and those of our allies. His fireside chats focused on calls for national sacrifice, but his concern for the troops was also very personal. My father and all three of his brothers were on active duty—in combat—in the Marine Corps, the Navy and the Army Air Corps. Their sister, Anna, and their mother, Eleanor Roosevelt, ministered to the soldiers and sailors with the American Red Cross. They shared the common sacrifices with ordinary Americans both in uniform oversees and in factories, homes and offices all over America.
Where are George W. Bush's personal sacrifices? Where are the inspirational words meant to mobilize America now?
Most importantly, Dr. Win the War (as FDR was called) met with the leaders of the Allied nations throughout the war to plan the peace. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill, together with Joseph Stalin and sometimes even Charles DeGaulle, knew that military victory leading to an unplanned peace was hollow and potentially disastrous. Iraq today proves that their fears were well founded.
Americans old enough to remember the 1940s—and those of us who learn from history—have a model of a War President. He is one who builds true cooperation with our foreign friends. He is one who is never the aggressor, but once attacked, involves even those closest to him in an all-out effort to win. And he is one who has a plan for the peace such as the Marshall Plan in Europe or reindustrialization in Japan.
A War President isn't self-proclaimed. A president becomes a true War President by leadership that inspires followers at home and abroad. And most importantly, a War President never loses sight of the goals of true peace with honor.
For Bush to grant himself this title is an insult to my grandfather and the inspired leaders who led this country in wars that were just. To put it simply, George W. Bush has not earned the right to be called a War President.
Roosevelt is a former associate commissioner of Social Security for Retirement Policy
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