Yesterday I was in the vicinity of Barack Obama's house in Chicago—where he lived before becoming President and where he and Michelle still stay when coming "home" to Chicago.
My route was going to take me within two blocks of Obama's house (which I had seen before he became President), so I asked the friend who was with me if he wanted to see Obama's house, and he said Yes.
Well, when Obama became President—and even before, when he was merely a candidate—the Chicago police blocked off the street near his house. The house faces a side street, but it's the second house or second lot up, so it is only a few hundred feet from a more major street, and you could see it from that major street as you drove by.
Well, you can't see it anymore, because it's screened from view by tall trees (I'd say they're arborvitae, maybe 8 or 10 feet tall (2.5 – 3 m)) that are planted thickly.
Earlier, when Obama was at home, there would be many Chicago police cars parked along this major street to provide security, but you could still get a glimpse of the house as you were traveling along the major street: you just had to look off to the side (left or right, depending of course on which direction you were traveling in), up the side street, and it was fairly plainly visible.
Of course the security, when Obama is in residence there, is understandable. After all, the United States has had several presidents assassinated.
But why is it necessary to screen his house from public view at all times?
When the President or Vice President (or even a lesser official like the Secretary of State) is coming to town, their motorcade from the airport gets exclusive use of the road. That is, all other traffic is barred from the road, and damn the inconvenience to the public.
A few months ago when Vice President Joe Biden was arriving in town and, again, all other traffic was barred from the highway—and this was during the rush hour—a radio DJ said, "Why can't Biden get stuck in rush hour traffic like everybody else?"
It looks as though we have gotten an Imperial President (and Vice President and maybe more, such as cabinet secretaries). This is not what the founders of our country and framers of our Constitution envisioned. The wanted the President to be a normal, everyday guy, accessible and approachable. In fact, up until some point (and I don't know exactly when), any ordinary US citizen could visit the White House and get to speak to the President.
Copyright © 2013.
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Years ago I was waiting to get my driver's license at the Secretary of State's office downtown. The clerk called each applicant's name, usually mispronouncing it. I was surprised when he called the name of John Swearingen, then CEO of Standard Oil. It impressed me that a guy that important was waiting in line like the rest of us.
ReplyDeleteIt's probably impossible for the President to do that sort of thing today even if he wants to.
Well, if we want to talk about public officials who were in some way relatively simple and/or unassuming, two examples from my experience: The former US Senator from Illinois, Paul Simon, was standing in line to board a flight to from Chicago O'Hare Airport Washington--standing in line with the hoi polloi, rather than using some VIP lounge.
DeleteSomewhat similarly, Harold Washington--the first and so far only African-American mayor of Chicago--was seen (by me) in a deli. He rode in a normal sedan, a Ford (albeit with a driver) and sat up front. Unlike the famous Mayor-for-Life of Chicago, Richard J. Daley, who rode in the back seat of a big Cadillac limousine.