A Lament. . .

(A Lament. . .)

It has been remarked that in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, there was great unity in the country. President George W. Bush was a figure to rally the nation. He ordered a swift response and placed into action a plan that resulted in the swift defeat of the Afghan based Taliban. It could have ended there but Iraq was introduced as a side-show, one that expanded the so-called War on Terror.

It turns out that that sense of unity that was witnessed in the wake of 9/11, was short lived. Tragedy might be immediate but politics never rests. By the end of his time in office, the country was again polarized with Democrats and Republicans back at each other's throats. The President was in Alaska, where he made the statement that he had been at what would become known as "Ground Zero," the day after. Which he patently was not. One figure that was not seen in New York is its former Mayor, Rudi Guiliani, "America's Mayor," the city executive who stood defiant in the wake of the atrocity, the one who went to funerals for countless firemen and police officers, one who was there that day and the days after. Biden can only lie about it.

America's Mayor was perhaps not in New York because he is under indictment of his own because he had sided with Donald Trump. Guiliani is sharing charges with eighteen others, including the former President. And where is President Biden ? He should have stayed in bed when he said as much at that Hanoi press conference. If he had stayed in bed, he might not have done a few things that got him to trouble.

How bad had things to be to get to this point ? How far as one to go to indict a former popular Mayor and proceed with a new impeachment inquiry just announced in the House. One must say that law enforcement and other first responders were heralded 22 years ago. Now, it is defund the police. These results were inevitable, as the natural "state the union" is conflict and not consensus. But when Americans die in some mass casualty event, there tends to be a rally around the flag moment. The difficulty is doing it with a straight face.