The moral and symbolic power of the president

One contributor to the website fivethirtyeight invoked Henry’s speech on St Crispian’s Day: “That he which hath no stomach to this fight, Let him depart; his passport shall be made, And crowns for convoy put into his purse.” Even for a cynic like me, November 5 was a day like no other, where the invocation of mythic themes did not seem at all misplaced; a day to be recounted to our children and grandchildren.

In his campaign speeches, Senator Obama constantly reminded his supporters that the election was not about him. “It is about you,” he would note. That is, he argued that the measure of his leadership is not what changes he is able to impose on others, but what he allows others to be, and to accomplish in their own lives.

There is little doubt that in the course of his presidency Obama will disappoint some or even many people’s expectations. But when his presidency is assessed, it is not only his policies, but his use of the president’s moral and symbolic power that need to be taken into account: what does he allow people to be by who he is?

The President is the image of America to the world, but he is also the image of America to itself. And Americans are, even now, seeing the reflection of a very different self in that image.