On Bush

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The US dollar is in freefall. Illegal immigration is out of control. The Federal budget deficit is astronomical at $400bn, because of a trade deficit spiralling out of control. That now stands at $742bn, which equates to 7% of the US economy! The war in Iraq is going badly, attempts to gloss over the reality notwithstanding. Manufacturing and service jobs are relocating abroad, to countries where labour costs are far, far lower.

The result: The weakening of America. The United States of America is weak because it lacks strong, determined, decisive leadership, because its economy has been allowed to drift, and because it has allowed itself to get involved in a war in a far off land about which it understands little. The war has become a drain on the American economy. And there is little prospect in sight of its being brought to an end. In fact, with Iran flexing its muscles, and with that country determined to develop nuclear capabilities, the prospect for America is looking bleaker than ever.

This is a very worrying development: The free world needs a strong America. It is the free world’s only hope. If America fails, the world will be plunged into darkness.

World economic developments and changes in the balance of power mean that one has to ask the question: Are we witnessing the beginning of the end of the US as the world’s superpower. After all, China is coming up quickly and strong; it’s flourishing. Inward investment is large and valuable. It has a ready supply of cheap labour, and a ready market for its goods due to the enormous population of China. Those who work there also have to consume. After years of hardline communist rule, the Chinese have got a lot of catching up to do, too. Which can only be a boost for the Chinese economy.

One cannot help but ask one pertinent question: Has the US government deliberately turned a blind eye to the enormity of the problem with illegal aliens from Mexico till now to try and compete with the cheap labour available in China? Is it trying to make the US economy more competitive again by allowing these people into the country? There seems to be no other logical explanation for the authorities’ tardiness and reluctance to deal with the problem.

It seems to me that the US government is guilty of playing fast and loose with the country’s future. Can there really be rational, coherent, well-defined economic, foreign and immigration policies underlying all this? Or is the government simply being reactive – reactive to events, both economic and political – as they unfold? It seems to me that there is much of the latter going on. There seems to be little coordinated policy to bring the US back to the health the American people deserve.

At a time when Islam is gaining so much in strength, we need a strong America more than ever. Islamofascism is the greatest threat to the free world since Nazism and communism. The US, with the help of its die-hard and staunch allies, the British and Commonwealth nations, was able to defeat these two ‘isms’. We are showing little resolve to defeat Islamofascism. Indeed, till now, the enemy we face has not even been properly defined; instead, we are told that we are at war with Islamic terrorism. This is something else that Bush has failed to come to grips with. The nature of the enemy!

But then, what can we expect from a president who cannot even control the borders of the country he presides over? Can we really expect of him that he be able to defeat the enemy?

There needs to be a fundamental re-think by the White House staff on all these issues. Is it, perhaps, time to reintroduce the use of the P-word? For years now, protectionism has been extremely unfashionable; and it has been held in a bad light. But can America really go on trying to compete with economies, without a little help of protectionism, with countries whose economic circumstances are so totally different from its own?

How realistic is it for Americans to try and compete with the Chinese who can produce everything so much cheaper than the Americans can? Or does the US government want all jobs to be relocated to China. Does it wish to become a nation of consumers, building up ever larger national debt?

When one of our children is weak, we, as parents, shelter and protect it till it grows up to be big and strong. Why should this not be the case with economies also? After all, it’s what the Japanese did for many, many years. What makes the US so different?

You see, it’s all well and good to argue for open competition on the world markets. It’s a great idea in theory. But for that to work well, there has to be a level playing field. The Chinese, for example, are not willing to play the economic game on a level playing field. The Chinese yuan, as a case in point, needs to be revalued. But if China revalued its currency, it would make it more difficult for China to attract as much inward investment. Hence it is reluctant to do so.

It is very clear to me: President Bush needs to start getting tougher. He needs to be tougher on illegal immigrants, tougher in his foreign policy, tougher in his economic policies, tougher on Islam, tougher, actually, in all he pursues.

President Bush, unless he does a U-turn on many aspects of his policies, will leave the US much, much weaker than it was when he took office. This will not be a good legacy for him to leave the nation. As a result, history will judge him harshly on it.

Mr. President: Step up to the plate before it’s too late! Remember this: Mrs. Thatcher used to say that the best decisions are the tough decisions.

Mrs Thatcher was a great leader. Great leaders have many characteristics in common. Perhaps above all, they have vision. They are decisive. They couldn’t care less what others think of them. They have set standards, and they stick to them. They are honest. They expect a lot from the people they lead. They show those they lead what to do, and ensure these things get done. But they also listen.

How do you measure up, Mr. Bush?

15 Characteristics of Great Leadership

©Mark Alexander