TR and GWB

Can anyone deny that the President's suprise trip to Baghdad was anything less than political genuis and personal daring? This president not only put himself in the line of fire in a hostile country, but managed to do so as a complete surprise to nearly all involved. This reminds me, albeit not on such a grand scale, of Teddy Roosevelt's dispatching of the Great White Fleet. To demonstrate American power Roosevelt ordered his fleet to begin a tour, traveling around the world from port to port, without making anyone aware of his orders. When Congress became aware of what Roosevelt had done, they threatened to deny him funding for his venture. Roosevelt balked, claiming that he already had the money and dared Congress to "try and get it back". Roosevelt understood the necessity of demonstrating American power abroad, as there was a growing fear of foreign powers eyeing America's foreign possessions picked up after the Spanish-American War. Roosevelt sent this fleet, painted all white except for "the guilded scrollwork on their bows," to begin a from port to port to demonstrate this American resolve in maintaining it's position abroad. Bush has pulled off a similar feat. By flying halfway around the world, with all but a handful of people "in the know" he has repeated the gutsiness of Roosevelts act. While Bush's trip lasted hours rather than a full world tour, certainly taking less in terms of men and material, it is nevertheless an appropriate expression of the lengths this nation is willing to go to. As Andrew Sullivan has said, "It's called leadership. And we just saw some."