The Trouble with Optiimism by Michael Kinsley

[Eric J in MN]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59149-2004Jun21.html

Washington Post op-ed, June 22, 2004

Could there be an emptier claim made on behalf of someone hoping to lead the United States of America than to say that he is "optimistic"?

Optimism may well be part of the American character, but it is pretty insufficient as either a campaign promise or a governing principle. If the objective situation calls for optimism, being optimistic isn't much of a trick or a distinction. If the objective situation calls for something closer to pessimism, the last thing we want is some Micawber whistling past the Treasury Department.

It's a bit of a cheat for the incumbent to accuse his opponent of pessimism. By the very nature of elections, the side in power is going to argue that things are going well, and the side in opposition is going to argue that things are going badly. It is awfully convenient for the side in power if the canons of optimism forbid any assertion that things are going badly -- even if they are. That, of course, is the whole idea of Bush's optimism offensive. Kerry has brought up the Great Depression to point out that Bush, as of now, is the first president since then to suffer a net loss of jobs. Bush says the important issue here isn't the loss of jobs, or even the truth of Kerry's statement (which he doesn't challenge) but the very reference itself.

No one starts out as an incumbent. In 1980 even Ronald Reagan saw bleakness and defeat everywhere. The greatest alleged success of Reagan's presidency -- victory in the Cold War -- is widely misrepresented as a triumph of optimism. Even if you credit Reagan for that victory (which I don't), the rhetorical theme of his military buildup was pessimism, not optimism. It wasn't that communism just needed one last push, it was that communism was triumphing throughout the world. Democracy was in peril. The Soviets were on the verge of nuclear superiority. Complacency -- misplaced optimism -- is what the Reaganites accused their critics of.
-----------

Michel Kinsley also writes, "We don't want a president who sees the silver lining in every cloud. We want a president who sees the cloud and dispels it."