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Presidential Rhetoric and U.S. Military Intervention: Where Have Appeals to Heroism and Sacrifice Gone?
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“What is our aim?...Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival…” “We shall not flag or fail. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender…” “Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say: ‘This was their finest hour’”.
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“We’re a peaceful nation and moving along just right and just kind of having a time, and all of a sudden, we get attacked and now we’re at war, but we’re at war to keep the peace.”
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“Other wrong turns, however, were chosen because of a fundamental flaw in the character of this White House. Despite his tough talk, Mr. Bush seems incapable of choosing a genuinely tough path, of risking his political popularity with the same aggression that he risks the country’s economic stability and international credibility. For all the trauma the United States has gone through during his administration, Mr. Bush has never asked the American people to respond t new challenges by making genuine sacrifices.”
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After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the American public was told
by its government that the world was now different, and that it must awaken to the
realization that there were evil terrorists who could strike at their vulnerable homeland. In
the wake of the Bush administration’s initiation of a “global war on terror” (a war that
has, so far, resulted in regime change in two nations and has ushered in an unprecedented
responsibility for nation building), what contribution to the war effort has the
administration asked of the American public? In this essay, I examine the rhetorical
arguments employed by the president in a selection of national press conferences and
1
Winston Churchill, before the House of Commons, 13 May 1940; 4 June 1940; and 18 June 1940. Cited
in the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1999 (5
th
ed.), p. 215.
2
George Bush, March 13, 2002, “President Bush Holds Press Conference.”
3
“Presidential Character,” New York Times, 9 September 2003.
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2
“What is our aim?...Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long
and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival…” “We shall not flag
or fail. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with
growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever
the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we
shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never
surrender…” “Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if
the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say:
‘This was their finest hour’”.
1
“We’re a peaceful nation and moving along just right and just kind of having a time, and
all of a sudden, we get attacked and now we’re at war, but we’re at war to keep the
peace.”
2
“Other wrong turns, however, were chosen because of a fundamental flaw in the
character of this White House. Despite his tough talk, Mr. Bush seems incapable of
choosing a genuinely tough path, of risking his political popularity with the same
aggression that he risks the country’s economic stability and international credibility. For
all the trauma the United States has gone through during his administration, Mr. Bush has
never asked the American people to respond t new challenges by making genuine
sacrifices.”
3
After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the American public was told
by its government that the world was now different, and that it must awaken to the
realization that there were evil terrorists who could strike at their vulnerable homeland. In
the wake of the Bush administration’s initiation of a “global war on terror” (a war that
has, so far, resulted in regime change in two nations and has ushered in an unprecedented
responsibility for nation building), what contribution to the war effort has the
administration asked of the American public? In this essay, I examine the rhetorical
arguments employed by the president in a selection of national press conferences and
1
Winston Churchill, before the House of Commons, 13 May 1940; 4 June 1940; and 18 June 1940. Cited
in the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1999 (5
th
ed.), p. 215.
2
George Bush, March 13, 2002, “President Bush Holds Press Conference.”
3
“Presidential Character,” New York Times, 9 September 2003.
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