Kansas City News Blog

Catching up on my reading over the weekend, I spent some time with The Kansas City Star's 14-page special section commemorating Barack Obama's inauguration. Headlined on the cover "For America, a New Day," it contained reports on the historic day in Washington, a transcript of Obama's speech, comments from random Kansas Citians, an Associated Press report on the first couple's fashion choices and lots of cool photos.

I was most interested, though, in the thoughts of a handful of leaders that the Star had asked to write essays for the occasion. U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver remembered his own history as a way of showing how far the country has come. Harry Truman's grandson, Clifton Truman Daniel, emphasized the differences between his grandfather and George W. Bush. Richard B. Myers, the former chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who now teaches military history at Kansas State University, suggested a strategy for fighting terrorists. Denise Low, the poet laureate of Kansas, reminded our new president that funding the arts makes good economic sense.

Then there was the piece by Sam Brownback.
The senator from Kansas noted the historic aspect of Obama's election (i.e., going from Rosa Parks and Linda Brown to President Barack Obama in one generation), offering "heartfelt congratulations to President Obama and his family" and acknowledging that it was a moment to "suspect policy disagreements and unite as one people." Then he reminded us of America's greatness before recapping the challenges we face -- two wars against "Islamofascists determined to destroy us" and a serious economic crisis.

It was pretty standard stuff from the not exactly creative Brownback. But then it seemed to get a little weird. See, most of the essay writers -- like basically everyone else in the country this past week -- used the history-making occasion to look ahead. To the future.

Senator Sam, though, couldn't seem to face that future.

"Our current situation is indeed serious," he wrote. But "it pales in comparison" to the problems faced by the Greatest Generation, the Americans who lived through the Great Depression and the Second World War.

There seems to be widespread acknowledgment that what allowed us to get through these adversities as a nation and prosper as never before was not so much policy, but character. What we saw in the 1930s and 1940s was an unmatched example of the indomitable American spirit, the spirit that made America great.

Uh, maybe he should try out those misty memories on Emanuel Cleaver's grandparents, who might have a different perspective on certain aspects of the American spirit in those days.

But Brownback wasn't finished. On a day that belonged to Obama, Brownback just had to invoke the name of a different president.

"I believe, along with Ronald Reagan, that America is an exceptional nation, a shining city on a hill..."

OK, Kansans. This man wants to be the state's next governor. You really gonna let him?