Our all-too-human presidents

Whereas the American revolution ushered in democracy, with founding father George Washington insisting on a non-imperial presidency, America has gradually evolved into an elected monarchy.

Our country now feels obliged to treat the president as if he — and there have only been men so far — is something special, superior to us common people.

This violates the founding principle of our republic. We find it necessary to hold our presidents as heroes and saints, rather than as true men of the people — normal, each with his strengths and failings.

For instance, our 35th president, John F. Kennedy, is seen as a beacon of hope and an agent of change by the liberals, just as our 40th president, Ronald Reagan, is viewed as the leader of “The Shining City upon a Hill” and the greatest transformative president of the 20th century. But, of course, neither man was without flaws.

Kennedy’s moral failings, his extramarital affairs with Marilyn Monroe, Marlene Dietrich and many others (including a suspected spy), are now legendary. In addition, many believe that Kennedy won the 1960 election against Richard Nixon through electoral fraud.

Yes, Kennedy delivered powerful speeches, but actions speak louder than words.

Kennedy’s failed 1961 “Bay of Pigs Invasion” of Cuba was perhaps a low-light of his presidency, and whereas Kennedy receives credit for his work in civil rights, in reality, it was President Lyndon B. Johnson who enacted much of the civil rights legislation. Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968.

Similarly, Reagan gets credit for transforming our country back into a land of hope and prosperity even though the “Teflon President” left us with record national deficits.

Reagan’s popularity plummeted in 1986, when the Iran-Contra affair was exposed.  It was revealed that Reagan’s staff had tried to fund Nicaraguan rebels, or Contras, through illegal arms sales to Iran.

Reagan’s policies were widely regarded as favoring the rich and being insensitive to the poor. Reagan drastically cut taxes for the rich while eliminating social services for the poor.

He criticized the effectiveness of welfare services. Reagan was famous for his 1976 presidential campaign stories about “Welfare Queens,” people who engage in welfare fraud.

Our tendency to idolize our presidents has continued into the 21st century. We did not hesitate to deify President Barack Obama during his 2008 campaign. He could do no wrong. His pastor, Jeremiah Alvesta

Wright, when asked why he thought President Obama was disowning him, said, “… he says what he has to say as a politician.”  But no one cared: President Obama was a messiah who transcended politics and could provide panaceas to all our problems.  Then, just nine months after his inauguration, he was awarded the Nobel Peace prize, based not on any accomplishment, but on hope.

I am not here to call these presidents villains, but just human beings, each with his strengths and failings, vanity and self-righteousness. As President’s Day comes upon us, perhaps we all need to reflect on what our first president, George Washington, wanted us to see in our presidents; just one of us serving the common good, hopefully to the best of his human ability. Long live the king in England, not here.