Congratulations, Mr. President-Elect!
I apologize for not using your proper noun designation, but you'll understand that I had a deadline to meet, and I wasn't quite sure who you'd actually be today.
You can bet that wherever I am right now, assuming that you have been elected president, either popularly or electorally (whichever one matters most this time around), I will be giving you a rousing ovation for your efforts. Three cheers for Mr. President-Elect!
Let's brush this annoying partisanship business aside for a moment. From what I have seen over the last year, running for the presidency is hard work. Sprinting around from swing state to swing state, kissing funny-looking babies and treating ugly strangers like they're your best friends can really take a toll on a candidate for the most important job in the world. So please, have a seat for a minute and take a load off... you've earned it!
Refreshed? Great! I'm sorry to rush you, Mr. President-Elect, but a minute of rest is all you get-important work is to be done!
With all due respect, sir, please allow me to be frank: I know some people who don't like you. To be more precise, there are quite a few people who don't like you... about half the country.
Though I don't always agree with what my friends think either, I feel it's in your best interest to start mending the fence, so to speak. Mr. President-Elect, it is up to you to suture the gaping wound you and your opponent's) have been ripping open for the past two years.
We have to come up with something great for you to win back America's trust. Perhaps you could offer a free bacon cheeseburger for every American-something we can all agree on. Well, everyone but the vegans... and Greenpeace. Maybe you should try something else. Free barrels of oil? LiveStrong bracelets? Bin Laden's head on a barbecue skewer?
I'm not sure what you had in mind, but you get my drift-the American people need a strong leader to rally behind, one that not only promises great things but delivers them. Mr. President-Elect, I think you could very well be that leader... though it's going to take a lot of work.
A great place to start is trying to make a good impression with real, everyday Americans. Forget about the movie stars, the pro athletes and the Puff Daddies. As our most prestigious civil servant, you'll have to answer to the needs of regular citizens just like me now. And trust me, sir, regular citizens like me want all kinds of things: a solid economy, rewarding jobs, ever-increasing quality of education, a relatively clean environment, world peace, a Star Wars prequel that doesn't stink, drink specials every day of the week and John McCain in 2008.
Mr. President-Elect, your \moment of accountability"" is soon upon you. Change this great nation for the better, or prepare for the searing pain of derision and the deafening echo of the historian's pen. Your ""Dare to be Great"" opportunity is here, yet it doesn't end with 270-plus electoral votes in your favor. Nor does it conclude with the Oath of Office, or subside with your first address to the nation.
Whoever you are, Mr. President-Elect, I am behind you 100 percent. Every single day of the next four years will count, so get out there and show the world why you are the best man for the job!
writePNL@yahoo.com.
