What If Obama Made 'The Call'...?
What if eventual-President Obama, after some months probing society’s ills away from the obscuring effect of campaigns, climbs up to a podium and tells us with characteristic rhetorical flair and urgency: we are in serious trouble.
A sober review of his various policy points convinced even him: they won’t be enough. The best laid plans, in the face of an ambivalent nation, won’t guarantee no child goes to bed hungry and uneducated, no homeless person involuntarily endures another night’s sleep on pavement; no senior withers under the burden of indignities large or small; no soldier returns, hurt to a neglectful nation; no woman experiences life as a commodity…
And so, Obama takes pages from JFK and Roosevelt, pleading (hypothetically):
“…the era of celebrating unchecked excesses in one quarter while poverty wracks another must end. The housing and credit crises, rising gas prices, sluggish natural disaster responses and faltering infrastructure make plain that America cannot function when ‘rational self-interest’ is interpreted as release from caring for the most vulnerable among us. Nor can we buy an arm’s-length reprieve from facing society’s problems by creating a social welfare state administered from Washington.
For my part, I’ve ordered Vice President [sic], and my Cabinet, among others, to draft plans of unprecedented scope for America’s future - detailing areas where we can make progress on everything from community organizing to major public works projects - and we’ll be hiring.
But, as I’ve told you so many times before: this Presidency isn’t about Obama or what Obama can do. It’s about all of us, not just those who voted for me, but now all Americans. [Pause for inevitable ’Yes, We Can’ chant.] For your part, I’m asking every able-bodied American to stand up and help bring about that change we seek.
I know how hard many of you already work, and the responsibilities you have at home. Trust that gestures as small as regularly checking in on elderly neighbors or spending a few hours one day to help renovate your child’s schoolhouse are meaningful.
Yet, for those who can give more, especially younger Americans, I’m asking for sacrifice on a scale not seen for two generations: full-time service for 2 years or longer. It can be in the Military or Federal Government if you’re willing, but just as well in AmeriCorps, the Red Cross, Teach for America, [etc].
If necessary, we’ll work with local government and the private sector to appropriately equip, feed and shelter you, and, just maybe, to keep student loan officers at bay. [Nervous laughter.]
It won’t be easy, but these efforts will add up. They’ll spread hope; hope that, yes, we can improve our lives, and yes, we can improve the lives of our neighbors, and those of our families, and our friends, and all our fellow Americans. [More chanting and speechifying…]
Thank you for listening, and get a good night’s sleep - we start tomorrow.”
Could it start the next movement?