In December 1941, Japan’s military attacked our naval base in Hawaii killing 2,403 Americans and sinking four of our battleships. Imagine for a moment, if you possibly can, how the current occupant of the White House might have responded if he were president at that time:
“We recently had a skirmish with Japan, but nobody was hurt and it is all under control. I know more than the generals, and so I can assure you that going forward this incident will amount to nothing. So don’t worry about a thing. I have everything under control.”
Of course, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt responded quite differently. He addressed a joint session of congress the very next day following the attack: “Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.” Roosevelt sugar coated nothing. He respected the American public enough to tell us the unvarnished truth. We did not panic. We sacrificed and fought back and, ultimately, won.
Democracy relies upon a well informed public being given facts, not “alternative facts” or fiction. Facts and the truth matter. We do not need a cheerleader, we need a real leader like Roosevelt who is willing to level with us.
Burt Ross