Monday, February 16, 2004
[Presidents Day]
The Best President
One dozen Presidents have I seen:
FDR was worshiped as a Savior.
Harry Truman was called a failure.
Eisenhower ran things like an army.
JFK had vision but was taken from me.
The consummate politician was LBJ.
Nixon was cunning, but was a villain.
Jerry Ford had a natural, easy way.
Carter was kind but was not forgiven.
Ronald Reagan looked and played the Part.
While Bush the Elder was the true Patrician.
Bill Clinton was probably much Too Smart.
While Bush the Lesser has White House discipline.
But Harry had the Right Stuff, you see.
Moral Courage, and also Humility.
One to fill the sail of Ship of State,
The other a Compass to keep it Straight.
A few were larger than life it seemed.
Most were flawed like the rest of us.
Life-sized was Harry, now redeemed.
In the end, all will return to dust.
Some in stature were diminished.
Others were enhanced, or frozen.
Now my little history's finished.
And I may yet see a Baker's Dozen.
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