It’s a Tie

It’s June 6. D-Day Plus 23,742. 65 years ago the largest single invasion during war took place on a 50 mile wide strip of beach on the coast of Normandy. Many lost their lives on that day.

The day is commemorated at Pointe du Hoc on what was then called Omaha Beach and this year veterans who are getting up there in age are going to make the trip back perhaps for the last time.

So it’s a little poignant.

Also in the news is that our master orator, Barack Obama will give a speech there during the memorial ceremony. A speech that will be compared to arguably the most eloquent speech Ronald Reagan ever delivered, a speech that took place on the 40^th anniversary, back in 1984.

So we have playing out today a battle of the communicators, so to speak.

But I believe that the playing field isn’t exactly level. Back in 1984 America had a degree of respect in the world. We were the good guys. We proved we were by opting out of a war in the Middle East after being severely stung by the group Islamic Jihad which planted two truck bombs in front of a marine barracks in Beirut on October 23, 1983.

Had George W. Bush been president then, I truly believe we would still be fighting a war there even now.

No, Obama goes into this competition with a disadvantage. America shamed itself by becoming the world’s bully and by throwing the world into a global recession because of naked greed. Reagan had the high moral ground. Obama is still on the slope of it.

So he actually has to deliver a speech that is better than Reagan’s (or really, Peggy Noonan’s) in order to even come to a tie with Reagan’s delivery.

And I think he did and I think they did.

Tie, that is.

Don’t take my word for it, though. See for yourself. I have two embedded videos below. One is of Obama’s speech as shown on MSNBC, and the other I found of Reagan’s entire speech at You Tube courtesy of the Reagan Library.

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