By Congressman Tom Cole
One of my cardinal rules in politics is to never offer anyone unsolicited political advice. It is seldom taken and usually resented. But for once I am going to break that rule and offer President Joe Biden my thoughts on what he ought to say in tomorrow night’s State of the Union address:
Dear Mr. President,
By happenstance, your State of the Union address comes at a time when the leader of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has decided to invade an innocent and weaker neighbor in order to terrorize it into subservience and submission. But Putin has another aim. It is to reverse the victory of the democratic West in the Cold War. As President of the United States, you must not let that happen.
At this moment of supreme international crisis, you should eschew discussions about domestic politics where Republicans and Democrats understandably differ. Instead, focus on something that unites us — opposing aggression against an innocent democratic neighbor and protecting a rules-based international order that protects the weak against the exploitation of the strong.
Mr. President, don’t waste your time talking about issues like the American Rescue Plan, H.R. 1 and the Build Back Better proposal. No Republicans supported nor will support any of those proposals. But the entire country will support a robust response to Russian aggression.
To rally America, Mr. President, you need to focus on things that unite us rather than divide us. Specifically, you should announce still tougher sanctions against Russia, suspend the purchase of Russian oil, propose more lethal and humanitarian aid to Ukraine and continue to bolster the forward deployment of NATO forces in NATO front line countries.
Mr. President, you should also ask Congress to immediately pass a budget with a robust increase in America’s defense budget and a commitment to build on those increases in the years ahead. The fact is we live in a world that is eerily similar to the 1930s. Great powers in both Europe (Russia) and Asia (China) are intent on overturning the current rules based international order. You have rightly talked about the global struggle between democratic and authoritarian powers. To deter those hostile powers, America will have to maintain a military posture that credibly discourages aggression both in Europe and Asia.
Mr. President, you should also declare your determination to pursue policies that make America and the West energy independent from authoritarian powers. That need not be at odds with your determination to pursue green energy policies. But it is time to stop vilifying America’s oil and gas industry in an era in which over 70 percent of our energy is carbon based. Russia’s most potent weapon is not its military but its importance as a source of energy. We must counter that weapon by restoring America’s energy independence and helping our allies and friends do the same. Such an approach can also help mitigate some of our own domestic economic challenges.
Mr. President, the enemies of democracy are challenging us in a way which we have not seen since the conclusion of the Cold War. The brave people of Ukraine have shown us the power of freedom loving people resisting a brutal dictatorship. As the leader of the free world, you have a unique opportunity to unite our nation in a worthy cause and rally people all over the world to resist aggression. I humbly suggest that you use your unique “bully pulpit” to do just that tomorrow night. God bless and good luck.
Sincerely,
Tom Cole
Member of Congress
