A bipartisan approach to security
Washington,
Jan 26 -
Congratulations, President Obama. Your election as America’s first African-American president is a historic milestone for our nation. I wish you a successful presidency, especially in confronting your two most important tasks: protecting our nation from harm and addressing the economic downturn.
Now it is time for you and Congress to address the many daunting problems facing our nation. To do this, we need centrist policies that take into account mistakes made by the past two administrations.
In confronting national security threats over the past two decades, we repeatedly engaged in short-term responses that failed to take into account long-term consequences and opportunities. Although America was repeatedly attacked by radical jihadists in the ’90s, we failed to take this threat seriously. Hence we responded with half-steps until the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks taught us how deadly serious this threat is.
In response to the 9/11 attacks, dramatic and risky steps were hastily implemented. We set up a Department of Homeland Security. The position of director of national intelligence was created. We went to war in Afghanistan and Iraq. Although these initiatives were implemented with the best of intentions, each suffered from a lack of vision and long-term goals.
The same is true for the current economic crisis. After missing years of obvious warning signs, such as too-good-to-be-true home mortgages, U.S. automakers losing market share and growing government debt, we responded with obscenely expensive bailout packages. We now know that much of the hundreds of billions of dollars allocated for these bailouts either went unspent or did not go toward the purposes Congress intended. What lessons will the Obama administration draw from this fiasco?
Whether it is national security or the U.S. economy, political divisions makes it harder for government to do the business of the people. I regret that congressional Democratic leaders do not share your interest in centrism and inclusion. For example, in the House, a 100-year-old rule on rights of the minority was recently curtailed by Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The speaker also plans to gut a key recommendation of the 9/11 Commission by making the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence — the pre-eminent House committee charged with overseeing national security — more partisan.
We can do better. Mr. President, here are five steps we should take together to address the serious issues facing our nation.
First, we must commit ourselves to taking action on major problems before they spin out of control. We must exercise the courage to move against serious problems before there is a popular outcry for action, at which time solutions are usually more difficult and expensive.
Second, we must realize that many daunting problems facing our nation are bigger and more complex than they appear. Problems such as Al Qaeda or the banking system have international roots and cannot be solved by the U.S. alone.
Third, it is unlikely that any single person or group will come up with the answer to the major problems facing our nation. Difficult issues can only be solved through broad participation and different points of view.
Fourth, we need leadership, not partisanship. Once partisan bickering begins, progress against the hard problems confronting our nation will stop, leaving our nation less secure. To unite our country, Democratic congressional leaders must move to the center and agree to work with the Republican minority. By including your loyal Republican opposition in problem solving, we will both celebrate successes and share the blame for failures.
Fifth, we need to be patient and realistic. The problems facing our nation will not go away overnight. The situation in Afghanistan is complicated and has no easy answer. This recession will take time to resolve. Any proposed solutions will need to be tweaked or undergo major overhaul. We must accept the fact that some solutions will not work.
Mr. Obama, your presidency presents a real opportunity for us to learn from past mistakes and move beyond partisan divisions. Republicans are prepared to work with you if you and congressional Democratic leaders will give us a chance.
Rep. Hoekstra's Op-Ed recently appeard in the Politico.
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