The Great Decider Speaks to the Young

Sandy Levinson

You will find below some of the text of a talk delivered to high school students a couple of weeks ago in Tipp City, Ohio. My editorial interpolations are in brackets.

Tipp City High School
Tipp City, Ohio, April 19, 2007

THE PRESIDENT: ....

Let me say something about Virginia Tech.... You know, it's a -- there is -- the President spends time at disasters[, except, of course, for Katrina, which interfered with my vacation clearing brush at Crawford; I can't emphasize enough the importance of having priorities]. Part of the job of the presidency is to help people heal from hurt [or, at least to say that I will help people heal from hurt, so long as it doesn't affect my other priorities, including keeping in place all tax cuts for the rich]. And the amazing thing is, though, when you go down to a scene like Virginia Tech, you can't help but be buoyed by the spirit that out of the tragedy comes a certain sense of resolve. [That is, life really isn't very tragic at all; all clouds have silver linings, which allows me to sleep soundly every night instead of being kept awake by what I've seen on occasional visits to Walter Reed Hospital.]

One of the things I try to assure the families and the students and the faculty of that fine university was that there are a lot of people around our country who are praying for them. [Some, of course, were praying for more sensible gun-access laws, but we can ignore that.] It's interesting here in Tipp City, the first thing that happened was a moment of silence, a moment of prayer, to provide -- at least my prayer was, please comfort and strengthen those whose lives were affected by this horrible incident. It really speaks to the strength of this country, doesn't it, that total strangers here in Ohio are willing to hold up people in Virginia in prayer. And I thank you for that. And my message to the folks who still hurt in -- at Virginia Tech is that a lot of people care about you, and a lot of people think about you, a lot of people grieve with you, and a lot of people hope you find sustenance in a power higher than yourself. And a lot of us believe you will. [God, no doubt, must have had some reason to allow the slaughter to take place at all, or to exhibit what seems striking indifference to the success of the insurgency in Iraq. But if we just pray harder, maybe the surge will work, at least well enough to hand off the hot potato to my successor. I don't really think much about theodicy, and you shouldn't either.]

My job is a job to make decisions. [When you grow up, maybe you'll go to college and read a German philosopher named Carl Schmitt, who will explain, using some hi-falutin' language, what a "sovereign" is. You don't have to read the books, because you're looking at one.] I'm a decision -- if the job description were, what do you do -- it's decision-maker. And I make a lot of big ones, and I make a lot of little ones. Interestingly enough, the first decision I made happened right before I got sworn in as President. [Some people might think that my first decisions included naming my cabinet, including asking Don Rumsfeld to return for another term as Secretary of Defense, but those decisions were really made by Dick Cheney. I was very happy to be given responsibility for decorating the Oval Office.] I was at the Blair House, which is across the street from the White House, getting ready to give my inaugural address. And the phone rang, and the head usher at the White House said, "President-elect Bush." I said, "Yes." He said, "What color rug do you want in the Oval Office?" (Laughter.) I said, this is going to be a decision-making experience. (Laughter.)

The first lesson about decision-making is, if you're short on a subject, ask for help. So if you're a student listening and you're not very good at math, ask for help. Don't be afraid to admit that you need help when it comes to life. [As Philip Roth wrote some years ago, there are times when real life takes over from anything the satirist might imagine.] I wasn't afraid to admit I wasn't sure how to design a rug, so I called Laura. (Laughter.) I said, they've asked me to design a rug in the Oval Office; I don't know anything about rug designing; will you help me? She said, of course. But I said, I want it to say something -- the President has got to be a strategic thinker and I said to her, make sure the rug says "optimistic person comes to work." [Instead of "informed person...," say.] Because you can't make decisions unless you're optimistic that the decisions you make will lead to a better tomorrow. [I.e., always assume the best. People who ask you, "But what will happen if you fail" are pessimists, and we certainly don't want any of them around when we make our decisions. So tell your parents what the President of the United States told you the next time you discuss your desire to become a professional deep-sea diver even though you've never learned to swim and are afraid of the water.]

And so, if you were to come in the Oval Office, what you would see is this fantastic rug that looks like the sun. And it just sets the tone for the Oval Office. [I really, really love my rug. And if you don't believe me, just read the story in the Washington Post by Peter Baker, "Bush Weaves Rug Story Into Many an Occasion: President Uses His Oval Office Floor Covering as a Metaphor for Optimism and Leadership." It includes a nifty picture of my fantastic rug. If you could just see it, then all of you would share the confidence in my leadership that I have. ]

I share that with you because I make a lot of decisions, and I'm optimistic that the decisions I have made will yield a better tomorrow [though, if I had it to do over again, I might not have given George Tenet the Medal of Freedom had I known he was going to write a book. You'll never see Fredo writing a book about his work in the Texas and US Bush Administrations. That's what a real "Bushie" does. If you can't say something nice about me, then don't say anything at all. That's what my father taught me, though he also taught me that it's nifty to hire other people who will say all sorts of nasty things about people you don't like.]