For what it's worth, I delayed my retirement plans till' 2012 so his name isn't on my retirement certificate...
MR-
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POTUS at Commissioning
- Thread starter Deror
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For what it's worth, I delayed my retirement plans till' 2012 so his name isn't on my retirement certificate...
MR-
Dude, I don't think there's any doubt on this issue. Overwhelmingly conservative - Officer, Enlisted, Air Force or Marines. Fact of life. Bottom line - having ANY POTUS swear you in SHOULD be an honor to you. If it's not, then you should probably reexamine your reasons for serving.
Brett
Just curious, and if he gets a 2nd term?
I'm with you as far as your political leanings. I've known President Bush since I was a little kid (same hometown) and I would still take a bullet for him. With that said, go ahead and have President Obama swear you in if you get the opportunity. Even shaking ANY President's hand is an opportunity that most people don't get, much less, to get sworn in at a commisioning. Raising a stink about it in an attempt to "make a statement" probably won't go well for you in the end.
After 22 years, I got a cush enough job I can out wait him...
Agreed; however if he were walking with Nancy Pelosi, I'm afraid even the mighty GW would have to sacrifice himself for the team...
Xtndr50boom
Voted 8.9 average on the Hot-or-Not scale
Very classy.
Would you have the same opinion if it were Glenn Beck or Sean Hannity next to the democratically elected Speaker of the House? Or have you not thought it through past "Me hate pelosi. She should die. Others die same time ok collateral damage"?
phrogpilot73
Well-Known Member
She may be democratically elected as a representative of California, but that does not mean she is a democratically elected Speaker of the House.
I would tend to agree that the military as a whole is conservative, though I'm not so sure about "overwhelmingly". I've found officers I've served with as a whole to be very conservative, but in my 10+ years of enlisted time I found it about 40 left leaning to 60 right leaning, but it depended on the unit. As a rule, sports, pop culture, latest news, and bitching about work are discussed waaaay more than politics wherever I've served.
In answer to the OPs original question; I don't lean right but I would have been happy with any president commissioning me. I haven't agreed with all of them, hated some of their decisions, but I can't say I've every felt personal animosity towards them and I still respected them and their position. This whole "I don't respect Pres XXXX because of this policy" seems a bit immature. But that is just me.
I'm too lazy to look this answer up, but CAN he swear you in? I thought (and perhaps mistakenly) that it had to be done by an active or retired officer..? Or does he get the nod on it since he's the CinC?
If he's gonna take the time to swear you in, maybe you can get 15 minutes of his time for a couple of WTFs? Respectfully of course.
If he's gonna take the time to swear you in, maybe you can get 15 minutes of his time for a couple of WTFs? Respectfully of course.
That's just it, he didn't earn his position. His claim to fame was being shoved into the public light during the 2004 elections as a Democratic party spokesman since he was a young, articulate black man. The press loved him and he could do no wrong in their eyes. The US public was ready for a younger generation of politician and his being black was the icing on the cake from the Democrats and liberals.
Being elected to the position doesn't mean he earned it. Having the best marketing team of all the candidates doesn't earn anything.
The position is to be respected. The person holding the position has to earn respect.
Then he won't have to worry as the country will be bankrupt and won't be able to afford to pay his retirement anyway.
They would understand and agree completely.
Well, you can look at it this way. When your commander awards you something, he is the one to pin that award on your chest. He doesn't give you the option to choose that person to pin that award on you. I know commissioning is a little different where you actually have a choice to request someone special to commission you by rendering the oath of office. However, when the Commander in Chief visits your commissioning, and offers his services to commission you, you need to think of this as the Commander in Chief of all the Armed Forces, The President of the United States. In keeping to the fact that we are the most powerful nation on earth, and this man does a much more difficult job than you will do in the military overall, you have to ask yourself, would I shake this mans hand if I had the chance to greet him. He is our elected official, and is to be respected. I would wager to say that he respects your decision to have a special family member, respected official or friend, and that is your freedom and your right that generations before you have fought for and you will fight for. That being said, the reasoning should not be that you don't agree with his policies or his administration, as you are entering an office where you have to obey the orders of his office, I think it needs to be what you feel in your heart or maybe you have a retired officer/ active officer in the family or friend that had great influence on you, from one American to another and you'd never want to deny them the opporunity to commission you. In the name of Patriotism, Tradition, Code, and the Ideals of this great nation, do not make this personal as you enter an office where you must function as a distinctive team in command of soldiers/sailors/troopers who take a similar oath to obey the very orders of the Man standing in the room. You have the Freedom to chose, and that man respects that. There are so many reasons that you can choose anyone over the President of the United States to commission you, but in keeping to the Traditions, Code, Patriotism, and Ideals of this great nation, I bet are are not many Commissioners, who if they knew the President was present, wouldn't yield their right to the Man himself because of his presence. In keeping true to the Oath, and keeping true to the country, regardless of who it may be, it is something you may ponder.
It's not "His Royal Majesty the President of the United States". We swear to protect the country and Constitution, not the President. The President is just one more leader in the chain of command. Just as I've served under many leaders that I respected, I've served under many leaders I did not. Not respecting someone in your chain of command does not mean you can't honorably and professionally serve. It has no bearing on the reasons someone decides to serve his country in the military.
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