When asked about how she felt about President Bush’s inaugural address, Kesha Carlis frowned painfully.
Carlis, a 33-year-old single mother from Tulsa, Oklahoma, said she was disgusted by second-term President George W. Bush’s speech, during which he spoke of freedom, ending tyranny and national unity – so disgusted, in fact, that she joined TulsaPeace, a local organization that held a protest during the inauguration.
“I couldn’t stomach half of his lies,” Carlis told BlackAmericaweb.com. “I think he is profiting from the war in Iraq, and the people are suffering.”
Carlis’ sentiments were felt by many blacks who said Bush’s inaugural speech meant back to business for this Bush administration globally and at home, particularly with the war in Iraq and his relationship with blacks.
“He ignores black people like they don’t matter,” said Carlis, speaking of Bush’s failure to meet with the NAACP last year. “If he’s ignoring our leadership then he’s ignoring our voices.”
Bush spoke for 21 minutes, about the work needed to protect America and of a world moving toward liberty. He mentioned overhauling Social Security and spoke in sweeping terms about keeping the world safe. Never did he mention Iraq or Afghanistan.
It was the first inauguration since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and the capital was enveloped in a security blanket of thousands of police and miles of metal barricades. Snipers lined rooftops, while bomb-sniffing dogs toiled down below.
“I know the spill,” said 30-year-old James Arnold, an independent record label owner from Atlanta, Georgia. Arnold said he only watched a few minutes of the address because he knew what to expect. “I’m not trying to hear nothing Bush is trying to say. It’s all propaganda and lies.”
In Washington, D.C., author and professor Catherine John said Bush’s comments about democracy and progress were hypocritical. “No one holds them accountable for that rhetoric,” she said. “I don’t believe him.”
With his oath, Bush began a new chapter in a presidency transformed by the 2001, terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. What was an unremarkable presidency to that point, preoccupied by tax cuts and education initiatives, found its purpose.
A president who had come to power in a disputed election and had battled low expectations became a symbol of confidence and resolve in the war against terrorism.
But Bush also angered many allies with what was perceived as an arrogant approach to foreign policy and an unwarranted war in Iraq, based on the erroneous belief that Saddam Hussein was harboring weapons of mass destruction.
The president did not mention Iraq in his inaugural address, but he said the United States had helped tens of millions of people - in Afghanistan and Iraq - achieve freedom.
He said U.S. efforts have lit "a fire in the minds of men. It warms those who feel its power, it burns those who fight its progress and one day this untamed fire of freedom will reach the darkest corners of our world."
