Bush,
Blair and the decline of power
The American embassy’s spokesman in Colombo treads far more
carefully than even angels or evangelical ones from his part of
the world.
Well with a God-fearing big boss like George W Bush, who is in speaking
terms with God, this chap Philip Frayne naturally does not want
to put a wrong foot anywhere, particularly in his mouth.
Naturally he needs to be careful. There is the president of the
United States who goes about saying that he got instructions from
God to do the things he has done since entering the White House.
How he first got there, of course, is a different matter. Some say
it is even a family secret. But that’s another story.
Now you don’t muck around with anybody who is in speaking
terms with the Almighty and who receives messages telling him what
to do. Being the president of the only super-power around is a hell
of a lot of power to start with.
He could blow poor Osama to little bits — if he could find
him, that is. Believe me he has tried. He has blasted or locked
up all the fellows with long beards and a lean and hungry look he
could find, but somehow Osama seems to elude the long arm of the
Bush-whackers. That is why this Frayne chap has to be careful of
what he says about Osama and al Qaeda.
When there is a president who claims to be in communion with the
Almighty himself (or herself if you ask some feminists) and seriously
believes he does the deity’s bidding it would be foolish for
a lowly spokesman not to give Osama a good bashing and label him
the Mother of all Terrorists and turn down his US visa application.
Spokesman Philip Frayne faithfully does his duty. Poor chap, what
else could he do. Commenting on my story last Sunday about a possible
link between the LTTE and Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda he tells
an English language daily.
“Obviously we would be concerned about any links between the
LTTE and al Qaeda or any other terrorist group.” Having got
that off his chest he adds rather coyly that the report refers only
to a “possible link”.
Let’s begin at the beginning, like Byron’s Don Juan.
Last Sunday I quoted from the latest issue of the “Military
Balance” published by the International Institute of Strategic
Studies (IISS) that cited the LTTE as having a possible link with
al Qaeda.
Following up this story, another newspaper asked the American embassy
for its comments as though it had all the answers. If it did the
US won’t be up to its neck in trouble in Iraq.
So up and speaks dear Philip. If Frayne was trying to say that since
the IISS had not provided any evidential support it is mere speculation
then the poor chap is in a bigger soup than the one the Katrina
victims in New Orleans should have been given but was not.
Frayne represents a country that invaded Iraq with hardly a scrap
of evidence to support President Bush’s claim that Saddam
Hussein had weapons of mass destruction and that he was planning
to buy uranium from an African country to build nuclear weapons.
Bush has been badly exposed on both counts and it is even more abundantly
clear now than it was then, that the president, helped by Britain’s
Tony Blair invaded Iraq under false pretences.
If
his country’s leadership had shown the circumspection and
caution that Frayne is showing today the Bush administration would
not be in the terrible mess it has got itself into these past few
days.
But it is not only the Bush White House that has been profoundly
damaged by the events of recent weeks. It is also the administration
of his closest ally in the Iraq misadventure.
Tony Blair is increasingly appearing as a prime minister that is
losing control of his cabinet and facing a revolt of his own backbenchers.
It is useful to remember that Bush is serving a second term and
Blair is serving a record third term for a Labour prime minister.
It is not just the fiasco of Iraq that has led to this miasma that
is increasingly undermining the power of president and prime minister
and pushing back their final agendas, which they hope, will be part
of their legacies.
True, Bush’s biggest concern just now is that the fall out
from Iraq is bringing scandals right up to the front door of the
White House. Already the chief-of-staff of Vice-President Dick Cheney
has been indicted on three counts including perjury, obstruction
of justice and lying to investigators.
While Lewis “Scooter” Libby has resigned, Bush’s
own chief political adviser Karl Rove is not off the hook yet. He
will be under scrutiny for the next six months in an investigation
that began in 2003 over the disclosure of the name of a covert CIA
agent.
Remember after the Clinton sex scandal, Bush came to the presidency
promising to “restore honour and dignity to the Oval Office.”
Blair came to power promising clean government and a hundred other
things.
Neither Bush nor Blair has kept his promises. That comes as no surprise
as politicians have hides thicker than that of a rhinoceros and
breaking promises comes with the vocation.
Bush and Blair are passing through turbulent times because their
judgements of people were impaired by their proximity and personal
attachment to individuals in their respective administrations.
They were at best dubious cronies who did not care about stretching
the law and the rules for personal benefit. Instead of clean governance,
transparency and rectitude, the administrations of the two Bs had
highly placed persons who dared to breach codes of conduct that
governed those in public life.
Only a few days ago, David Blunkett, a close ally of Tony Blair
was forced out of the cabinet for the second time in 10 months or
so for violating the code demanded of even one-time ministers.
Just as Bush defended Lewis Libby, Tony Blair defended in parliament
Blunkett’s conduct only to find the whole thing blowing up
in his face.
This is not the first time that Tony Blair has brought back into
cabinet a minister who has been forced into resigning and then being
discredited once more forcing him to throw in the towel.
Personal relationships and loyalty to the leader have clouded the
judgements of both Bush and Blair and should serve as salutary lessons
for our own politicians
As the presidential elections draw near there are vital lessons
here for potential leaders from both sides of the political divide.
Cronyism might be a tempting prospect. But if those personal friends
become an embarrassment, are deemed to be corrupt and guilty of
moral turpitude, then there is no place for them in the echelons
of power and in public life.
They must not only be punished for their actions.
They
cannot be safeguarded and temporarily shunted away from the public
gaze. The fall from grace of both Bush and Blair, two leaders who
won their elections not too long ago, is because they let cronyism
and friendship overshadow the more important quality of a person
in public life, be they politicians or senior officials —
clean hands.
Manipulators, corrupt and dodgy businessmen, crooked politicians
and thugs in the garb of servants of the people are a menace not
only to governments in power but also to society. Clean politics
demands that they be eliminated. Leaders who surround themselves
with the crooked, the corrupt and the self- serving only display
their own moral vacuity and weakness.
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