The photo of former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton standing beside President Obama outside the White House was a photo opportunity to support aid for Haiti.
In our view, that photo reflects much more than our efforts to deal with the current crisis in that impoverished, neighboring country. It reflects 17 years of U.S. government policies and laws.
In the short term, then and now, we can individually and as groups or parties cast derision against each one of those men. Some may even rant against all three of them collectively. But don’t forget that they were duly elected by “us,” and the photo reflects over the longer term how we the people have ourselves chosen to be governed.
We as a country are where we are today, good or bad, as a partial and direct result of those three men. They collectively share that burden as well as the good things that have and are happening in our country. Responding to Haiti is only one small example.
Over the longer term of history, all three men are good and honorable men who did and are doing their best to act in the best interests of all Americans. We can and will disagree with specifics then and now. That is what a democracy is all about.
Finally, the photo demonstrates to us that if we stand side by side and pull together, we can withstand great tragedy and overcome great obstacles. It would be incomprehensible if the photo showed only Democrats or only Republicans alone trying to deal with today’s crisis in Haiti.
Why can’t we do the same more often in dealing with the other issues confronting us? The photo endorses a slight modification of the old saying, “Together we stand, divided we ...?”
Opinion
Related Photos
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President Barack Obama, right, speaks as former Presidents Bill Clinton, center, and George W. Bush, left, listen in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington Saturday, Jan. 16, 2010. Bush and Clinton have been asked by Obama to help with U.S. relief efforts in Haiti after the earthquake. Pablo Martinez Monsivais
Discussion
In our view: More than a photo op
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