Welcome to our first and last reunion

“Welcome to our first and last reunion”

In the Rose Garden on my final day at The White House

It’s those words, the opening line to the musical Follies, which I keep replaying in my head while packing my suitcase.  Surrounded in my apartment by mementos, trinkets and pictures, a feeling of anxiety fills my stomach.  Four years ago, I said goodbye to my dream job after an all too brief rendezvous.  Now, four years older (and maybe a bit wiser), I re-enter what was once hallowed ground, the administration of George W. Bush.

Currently, I’m en route to Dallas for the opening of the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.  For staffers who worked in the administration, this is one of only two reunions we’ll ever have to celebrate the work of the 43^rd president together.  And with the next reunion being a state funeral, it’s the more joyous of the occasions.  So why then am I so nervous about attending this reunion?

Marine One Landing on the South Lawn of The White House

Reunions are funny things because they’re time lapses.  Unfortunately though, they can also become a state of mind.  I know too many colleagues who have never moved beyond The White House years, forever defining themselves by their brief encounter with the executive branch.

Yet in fairness though, it’s hard to move beyond The White House.  No job will EVER top it.  From the moment you leave, every job interview onward we’ll include at least one White House related question.  I can’t count the number of interviews I’ve been on where the interviewer disclosed to me that they are a Bush Republican!

Working in The White House means, you’re one of the lucky few who was on the inside gate of history looking out, and it’s that perspective on history which can define you, but only if you let it. It’s easy to become paralyzed by this state of mind, and maybe that’s my real worry.

Not that I’ve let the experience define me: but rather, the opposite.  That I haven’t branched out enough or sought tougher goals. By attending this reunion, maybe it’s a reminder to make my post-White House life as rich and fulfilling as was my Bush Administration experience.

On Thursday morning, President and Mrs. Bush will be joined by former Presidents Clinton, Bush (41) and Carter.  They each dreamed of reaching The White House, and after leaving, faced the challenge of being defined by that goal.   Their post-presidency work is a reminder that our past exists only to inform and motivate us, to use our experiences to create a better present and future.

As Bush Administration alumni, this is our first and last reunion with President Bush.  It will be, as one of the Follies characters says at the show’s opening, “A final chance to glamorize the old days…and lie about ourselves, a little.”  For me, it will be one last chance to remember the people and the experience that came to define my early professional career.  To use this final reunion as a reminder of the standards set by President George W. Bush and continuing to personally and professionally progress forward on the ideals I first held at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

The George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum

SPECIAL EDITION: A Hero Passes, A Legacy Left

Everyone has heroes.  Some people look up to athletes and others celebrities.  I admired Margaret Thatcher.  Now with her passing, I’m left to use her example as one of the guiding principles of my life.

I never met Lady Thatcher, and in fact am really too young to remember her tenure as Prime Minister.  What I know of her has been learned through various books, documentaries and watching clips of her parliament debates on YouTube, all of which confirm that her legacy was the consistency with which she held to her conservative vision.

This is a lesson I have to remind myself of daily as a young conservative living in the Obama era.  Too often I’m left to believe that the core values I was raised on, personal responsibility, hard work and professional success no longer seemed to be championed in our country.  Like many of my “conservative” political friends, I could sway and adopt today’s populist beliefs or be consumed by cynicism only to become disenchanted with our democracy.  But then again, I’m reminded of Lady Thatcher.

The England she inherited as Prime Minister in 1979 was in even worse shape then the post-recession United States of today.  Garbage piles filled the streets, rolling blackouts consumed the country and an attitude of self-doubt filed the British psyche.  Similar to today’s political conservatives, Thatcher could have championed impractical populism to solidify political support.  Instead her course was one of consistency, consistency for the beliefs she had held long before ever becoming Prime Minister:

“My policies are based not on some economics theory, but on things I and millions like me were brought up with: an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay; live within your means; put by a nest egg for a rainy day; pay your bills on time; support the police.”

Lady Thatcher’s beliefs were controversial and her legacy will forever be debated. But I ask, what is life without a few bumps?  The fact remains that when she left office, England had been transformed to enter the new century in a much stronger position and the world was at peace.  Could any leader ask for much more?

My task remains clear, that to honor her legacy, I need to remain true to my beliefs: that government should be small and efficient, fiscal management is necessary for our democracy’s survival, and personal responsibility is core to the character of our country. As someone who currently opposes most of the Obama Administration’s policies, my tone must be civil while my criticisms must always contain constructive suggestions, a lesson I try to practice with every entry on this blog.

And now with Lady Thatcher’s passing, a legacy is left is to guide our country, and indeed the world, to hopefully a better place.

Passport Control SOS

Over the Easter weekend MarqueePolitics, like many of you, traveled to spend the holiday with family.  It was on this trip where he saw, up-close, the absolutely foolish effects of the sequester.

I’m not a morning person, but at 6 a.m. on Monday morning I found myself in the main terminal of Toronto’s Pearson International Airport.  Not wanting to miss my 8:30 a.m. flight back to DC, I gave myself plenty of time to clear security and also get my standard breakfast: a large iced coffee with an apple fritter.  For some unknown reason, for flights bound for the USA, passengers have to clear American customs prior to boarding in Toronto.

So at 6:15 with passport in hand, I walked toward Passport Control only to be denied entry.  When I inquired why a security agent informed me, “Due to recent budget cuts (the sequester), you are not allowed to enter customs until your flight time-range is called.”  I was then directed to a holding pen, joining well over a 100 other miserable passengers who were experiencing the same fate.

After 75 minutes of sitting and listening to the airport loudspeaker blast the greatest smooth jazz hits of the 1980’s, it was announced that those with 8:30 flight times could now enter customs.  Cognizant that it was now 7:30, that my flight was leaving in one hour and I still had to clear customs AND security, I ran to Passport Control only to find myself standing in line for another 25 minutes.  When I finally arrived at a US Border agent, the agent asked for my passport, furiously stamped it, handed it back to me, and told me I was free to go all without looking up or asking questions.

With five minutes to spare, I made my plane and sat at my gate dumbfounded.

My position on the sequester is well known: it was an absolutely foolish attempt to tackle America’s debt problem.  The sequester is the equivalent of telling an alcoholic to quit drinking hard liquor and stick to beer!  Sequestration inadvertently cuts the wrong areas, rather than address the heart of America’s debt problem.  What’s even more embarrassing is that the stupidity of this law is now being seen by citizens from around the world when they travel through America’s borders.

The financial catastrophes of Cyprus, Greece, Ireland, Italy and Portugal should serve as a warning to America.  Our time to fix the debt is running out.   Cutting border security and TSA staff, furloughing government employees and across the board cuts are the wrong approach.  If you disagree, try going through American customs or boarding an American-bound international flight.  If you do, bring a book, cause you’ll be there a while!  But don’t worry, you’ll have plenty of time to read the sign about how this delay was made possible due to budget cuts.