George W. Just Leveled Barack’s Administration With 1 Brutally Honest Sentence
Bush gave his first commencement address since leaving the White House.
Randy DeSoto May 18, 2015 at 1:03pm
Former President George W. Bush gave his first commencement address since leaving the White House on Saturday to Southern Methodist University’s class of 2015. He used the opportunity for some light-hearted moments, including some jokes at his own expense; but he also had a serious message to deliver about religious liberty in America.
SMU president R. Gerald Turner introduced the former Chief Executive as the “husband of SMU trustee Laura Bush… and the 43rd president of the United States George W. Bush,” who received a standing ovation as he came to the podium.
Laura is a class of ‘68 graduate of the university, and George chose her alma mater as the location for his presidential library and leadership center.
Bush continued in Turner’s jocular vein for a few moments, noting his decision to agree to give the address was quite practical. He said, “So I got a call from my landlord – (laughter) – Gerald Turner. (Laughter.) Rather than raising the rent or threatening to withhold our security deposit – (laughter) – I was relieved to hear President Turner ask if I believed in free speech. (Applause.) I said yeah. He said, ‘Perfect. Here’s your chance to give one.’ (Laughter and applause.)”
Shortly into his remarks, Bush offered the encouraging words, “To those of you who are graduating this afternoon with high honors, awards, and distinctions, I say, ‘well done.’ And as I like to tell the ‘C’ students: You, too, can be President,” referring to his well-publicized less-than-stellar academic record as an undergraduate student at Yale University (though he did better as a graduate student at Harvard).
Bush exhorted the SMU graduates not to give into the pessimism that in some ways marks the times, but offered that one of the main reasons he looked to the future with optimism was his faith in God–which, he reminded them, was one of their fundamental rights as Americans.
“You can be hopeful because there is a loving God,” he said. “Whether you agree with that statement or not is your choice. It is not your government’s choice. It is essential – (applause). It is essential to this nation’s future that we remember that the freedom to worship who we want, and how we want—or not worship at all—is a core belief of our founding.”
His brother (and likely presidential candidate) Jeb Bush also highlighted the principle of religious liberty when he gave the commencement address at Liberty University earlier this month, stating: “I don’t know about you, but I’m betting that when it comes to doing the right and good thing, the Little Sisters of the Poor know better than the regulators at the Department of Health and Human Services.” Bush added: “From the standpoint of religious freedom, you might even say it’s a choice between the Little Sisters and Big Brother. And I’m going with the Little Sisters.”
As reported by Western Journalism, the topic of religious freedom has been in the public dialogue often recently, with the Supreme Court taking action for the sixth time-in-a-row to uphold religious liberty against the HHS’ Obamacare mandate and with the controversy surrounding the passage of the Religious Freedom of Restoration Act in Indiana and Arkansas last month.
George Bush urged the SMU graduates not to shy away from the public arena as the nation debates the issues of the day, but to engage in their spheres of influence. He offered the example of Moses, who, at first, did not want to answer God’s call on his life.
“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt? Oh, my Lord, I pray, send some other person. I have sheep to tend. And the people won’t believe me — I’m not a very good speaker,” Moses asked, as the Almighty spoke to him from a burning bush.
The former president took note that “Moses wasn’t the only one who could mangle his language,” which drew laughter from the crowd. “Fortunately, Moses recognized the call to serve something greater than himself. He answered the call, led his people, and history was made,” he added.
Bush also offered the example of Winston Churchill, Time’s man of the first half of the 20th century. In the fall of 1941, when Great Britain stood alone as the bastion of freedom against Nazi Germany’s onslaught in Europe, the prime minister gave a short address to the students at his alma mater of Harrow.
Bush quoted the most famous line from that speech, which Churchill identified as the main lesson to be learned from Great Britain’s stand against tyranny: “Never give in … in nothing, great or small, large or petty. Never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense.”
The former war-time commander-in-chief went on to cite Churchill’s great words of confidence from the Harrow address. “These are not dark days. These are great days. The greatest our country has ever lived; and we must all thank God that we have been allowed, each of us according to our stations, to play a part in making these days memorable in the history of our race.”
Bush said: “Today, some doubt America’s future, and they say our best days are behind us. I say, given our strengths—one of which is a bright new generation like you—these are not dark days. These are great days.”
Bush closed his remarks, sounding some themes similar to those spoken by General Douglas MacArthur in his final address to the West Point Corp of Cadets in 1962. He said:
I believe that the Almighty’s grace and unconditional love will sustain you. I believe it will bring you joy amidst the trials of life. It will enable you to better see the beauty around you. It will provide a solid foundation amidst a rapidly changing, somewhat impersonal, technologically-driven world. It will show you how to love your neighbor, forgive more easily, and approach success with humility—and failure without fear.
It will inspire you to honor your parents and eventually be a better spouse and parent yourself. It will help you fully grasp the value of life—all life. It will remind you that money, power, and fame are false idols. And I hope and believe that God’s love will inspire you to serve others.
I want to thank you for letting me share this special day with you. I wish you all the very best. Stay in touch with your friends. Love your family. Treat this day as a step toward a lifetime of learning. And go forth with confidence. May God bless you.
He left the podium as he came to a standing ovation.
http://www.westernjournalism.com/george-w-just-leveled-baracks-administration-with-1-brutally-honest-sentence/
