Joe Biden Stands at a Pivotal Moment in His Presidency
Every president wields a certain level of power. Irrespective of their party affiliation, their background, their training or their political ideologies, these elite individuals will always have bestowed upon them a unique ability -- and even understanding -- that with the office comes a level of power they can use to advance a good greater than themselves.
I'm not referring to authority, defined here as the duties, roles and tools of the office holder by sheer virtue of the office itself. That is clearly delineated by Article 2 of the Constitution, federal laws and other statutory instruments that set out those duties reserved only for the commander in chief.
No, I'm talking about raw power -- the unspoken influence that every holder of the highest office in the world possesses. An undefined yet potent and palpable sense to steer the body politic as he discerns.
What that individual chooses to do with power is the X factor that makes a good president great, or even a bad president good.
Washington, Jackson, Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Kennedy, Reagan ... These presidents, and many more, knew the intrinsic value of the power that came with the office, and they used it to change the course of history.
So what can be said of today?
Joe Biden stands at a pivotal moment in his presidency. One in which the initiatives he's decided to pursue -- or not -- will shape how history writes his chapter in liberty's great narrative.
I'm not convinced he is up to the task, largely because he has used the power of his presidency to advance causes and programs that present a position of weakness instead of strength, of regression instead of advancement, for our great republic.
Biden's State of the Union address punctuated what I had quietly lamented for months. Aside from the fact that it was a classic nod to special interests that have crowded the smoky halls of Democratic circles for decades, Biden's remarks failed to signal any show of force and dominance that America's interests will always be the lens by which he makes his decisions.
Nowhere is this failure and weakness more prevalent than his remarks on China. A communist, totalitarian regime that is hell-bent on destroying any competitor is caught red-handed spying over American soil. Biden's response? Tepid, underwhelming, modest -- bare minimum. His remarks before millions of Americans on the one stage where his power should have been on full display were even more forgettable: past tense pabulum about how threats to America will be dealt with. I'm sure that sent chills through the spines of the Chinese politburo.
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