Saturday, May 07, 2005
Bush and The 60 Year Freedom Quest
President Bush just gave another superb speech on freedom and democracy in Latvia. Don't rely on the mainstream press to give an adequate account of it or of it's scope and likely impact. You can get the full speech text of Freedom and Democracy in Latvia here or you can get some excerpts and thoughtful annotations from John at Power Line Blog . Bear in mind that the President is speaking bluntly about the end of Nazi fascism in Europe, being replaced, for some, by an unfree life behind an Iron Curtain; and doing so before planned discussions with Putin. President Bush has a clear, strong foriegn policy vision and he uses this speech, as his others, to make both the vision and the strength clear to all.
These quotes give the flavor of John's commentary :
" I see it as another in a series of brilliant speeches, dating back to 2001, in which President Bush has outlined not only his foreign policy, but his--and our nation's--philosophy. His purpose today, I think, was to locate his Middle Eastern policy squarely in the tradition that has animated America's actions abroad since 1941. Implicit in his historical narrative is a rebuke to the liberals who oppose freedom and denounce the administration's 'neoconservative' foreign policy as a radical and unrealistic departure from America's historical role."
"To a greater extent than any politician since Churchill, President Bush has set forth and defended his policies in a series of speeches that combine intellectual brilliance and philosophical gravity. Today's speech in Latvia was the latest in this series, and, like the others, it will be studied by historians for centuries to come."
Both are worth reading; do so I think you will agree with the above assessment.
These quotes give the flavor of John's commentary :
" I see it as another in a series of brilliant speeches, dating back to 2001, in which President Bush has outlined not only his foreign policy, but his--and our nation's--philosophy. His purpose today, I think, was to locate his Middle Eastern policy squarely in the tradition that has animated America's actions abroad since 1941. Implicit in his historical narrative is a rebuke to the liberals who oppose freedom and denounce the administration's 'neoconservative' foreign policy as a radical and unrealistic departure from America's historical role."
"To a greater extent than any politician since Churchill, President Bush has set forth and defended his policies in a series of speeches that combine intellectual brilliance and philosophical gravity. Today's speech in Latvia was the latest in this series, and, like the others, it will be studied by historians for centuries to come."
Both are worth reading; do so I think you will agree with the above assessment.
