Obama's Big Day, By George!

Yesterday's handoff from George Bush to Barack Obama was really something to see. But it was an earlier George who deserves credit for drawing up the play.

George Washington, our first president, was also the first to voluntarily relinguish power after two terms. There was nothing in the freshly minted Constitution that forced him to do so. In an era when kings and queens dominated the political landscape around the world, Washington's decision to retire after eight years as head of state represented his young nation's first step toward greatness. Like yesterday's inauguration, it was a giant moment in history.
 
Unlike George Bush, Washington was still the most popular man in America at the time he chose to step aside. He easily could have been reelected to a third term in 1796 and likely would have served until his death -- as many Americans expected at the time. In peacefully handing off power, he did something that was likely unprecedented in history, and he established a tradition that future presidents would follow voluntarily. The constitutional amendment that limited presidential service to two terms was not enacted until almost 150 years later, after the death of Franklin Roosevelt -- the only president who broke the voluntary two-term limit by seeking two additional terms.
 
Washington did something else unique back in 1796. Rather than insist that his party choose a candidate like himself -- a military man from Virginia -- old George willingly handed off the reins to John Adams, a career politician and diplomat from Massachusetts. In an era when people strongly identified with their home states, this was no small thing.
 
So while Obama was right to thank Bush yesterday for his service, the bigger thanks must go to the father of our country. He wrote the playbook that made Obama's day possible.
 

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Tags: Washington, George | Obama, Barack

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