Editor's Desk: Setting the Tone

By Michael F. Flach
Herald Editor
(From the issue of 4/10/03)

A briefing of Catholic and religious journalists by the White House staff was held last week in Washington (see story on page one). Karl Rove, senior adviser to the president, was among those who shared some insights into the inner workings of the Bush White House. "People (at the White House) are very calm," said Rove, who has known Bush for 30 years. "They are focused and disciplined. That starts at the top."

President Bush has had some extraordinary days since Sept. 11, 2001, said Rove. "It’s amazing how many decisions he has to make every day. There are lots of highs and lows. He sets a great tone for the rest of us.

"If we did not take this step (the war with Iraq), we would leave a much more dangerous world for our children," Rove said.

Gordon England, deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said terrorism is a greater threat today than Fascism and Communism were in the past because of the availability of weapons of mass destruction.

"The war on terrorism is not going to end in a hurry," England said. "It will go on for a long time. It’s a daunting challenge." He said 500 million people come and go every year in the U.S., while 90 percent of the country’s goods and products arrive by sea.

The White House staff reminded the audience about some domestic issues that appear to be getting lost amidst all the discussion about war.

Jim Towey, director of the Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives, pleaded for support of the president’s efforts to open federal funding to religious groups for housing and other social welfare programs. "There is incredible religious intolerance in society today," Towey said.

Jay Lefkowitz, deputy assistant to the president for domestic policy, said in the discussion on partial birth abortion and human cloning, the president always asks, "What is the right answer?"

There has been great progress in Congress this year regarding the ban on partial birth abortion, he said. "The president will sign the ban this year. It’s the right thing to do."

Lefkowitz said legislation to ban human cloning is more problematic, mainly because of the language being used. A law to permit "therapeutic cloning" (that is, clones that could be used for research) would be tough to enforce, he said, because it would put pressure on law enforcement agencies to determine the motivation of women who are pregnant. It also could lead to more abortions.

"The fundamental public policy objective of the Bush Administration is to save as many human lives as possible," he said.

Clarifications

A reader pointed out that last week’s Editor’s Desk column ("Differing Opinions") incorrectly stated that Pope John Paul II called the war with Iraq a "crime against humanity." This assertion was initially made March 21 by The Wall Street Journal. The Journal printed a retraction on March 28, indicating that what the Holy Father actually said was that war is always a "defeat for humanity." The pope earlier used the phrase "crime against humanity" to describe terrorism.

The HERALD was castigated this week by some readers for printing letters that were critical of President Bush and the U.S. war with Iraq. As we’ve stated before, the "Letters" page is an open forum that represents a small sampling of letters that we receive. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the HERALD or the Catholic Diocese of Arlington.— M.F.F. 

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