I am asking the living and healthy past presidents of the United States, except for Donald Trump (a presidential candidate), to step up, help, and contribute to America again as advisors or as prominent and experienced Americans who can influence others. Unconventional times warrant unconventional solutions.
Long after leaving office, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger continued to advise our nation's leaders until his death last year at the age of 100. He did so privately, at times publicly, and always respectfully.
Some of the lyrics to Simon and Garfinkel's hit song Mrs. Robinson go like this, "Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you." Where have you gone, former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama?
Admittedly, each of you has had your detractors, but the following two things are undeniable about you:
1. You kept us from being on the verge of World War III. We did not have two areas of the world with conflicts that could easily escalate (like we do now - Eastern Europe and the Middle East).
2. When you all were in office, we did not have a total disaster at our southern border with Mexico. From any objective observer's perspective, that border is like a Trojan Horse, disguising an unarmed but war-like invasion today.
The record is clear. Since President Joe Biden entered the White House, an unprecedented number - millions perhaps - have crossed over our border illegally. Fentanyl has killed more than 100,000 Americans in a single year because of drug trafficking along the border. Gang-related activities in our cities, fueled by what's happening on the border, have taken the lives of countless people as well.
Let us not forget that the cost of caring for illegal immigrants comes from money we do not have. Funds are borrowed and added to our $34 trillion national debt and are crippling our major cities and border states.
Unlike any other time in U.S. history, we have challenges before us that drastically need all the talent and brain power we can muster.
Seeing these problems and doing nothing makes us all complicit.
It cannot be any clearer. Help is needed for the Biden administration. Octogenarians like Biden and Senate Republican Leader Senator Mitch McConnell, along with a Congress that believes the tail should be wagging the dog, are all not what they used to be.
Biden's cabinet members are a mere reflection of Biden with a few independent thoughts. Mostly, they wait for directions from Biden, who reportedly holds meetings only from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For example, it took three years before Biden sent his top officials to Mexico to discuss the border crisis with that country's president.
This begs some questions: Is Biden faithfully executing the office of president? Is he preserving and protecting America?
He may be working up to the best of his ability, however, as America's oldest president.
Where are we today? I am concerned about our national security. Terrorist threats to America are at remarkably elevated levels, as recently reported by FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Last year, while Russia was fighting Ukraine, it was reported that more than 7,000 Russians illegally crossed into America via our porous border with Mexico.
Last year, while China was spying on America with an air balloon, which our government allowed to travel across America (as the Chinese have been trying to establish a base in the Western Hemisphere), it was reported that 24,000 Chinese nationals crossed illegally into America from Mexico.
The solution is to be like a plumber. Shut off the water. We have a broken pipe, a broken system. Stop the flow of people and then fix the problem - at its source. We should be prepared to use our troops to stop anyone from entering America at the southern border until new legislation is adopted. Letting the water flow while we try to fix the overall problem (which could take a while) is irrational. Not a plumber on the planet would do that.
Part two of the immediate solution: strictly enforce the law that penalizes employers for hiring illegal immigrants. We should substantially increase the penalty against employers who break the law.
As for illegal immigrants, why reward them for breaking the law when we treat them better than Americans or those attempting to come to America legally?
If we took this aggressive approach, we would have positive change.
Without jobs, most illegal immigrants would want to exit America as quickly as they entered. Giving illegal immigrants jobs or welfare only encourages more illegal immigrants to come to America. We must remember that the workforce participation rate for Americans is only 62% - far worse than it was in the last century. Americans need training and work. The unemployment rate only measures those who are actively seeking employment (leaving out many others).
Relatively speaking, all other issues are merely simple politics. We have had high (and burdensome) inflation, resulting in a 20% increase in the cost of goods and services since 2021. Our interest rates have doubled. But both issues can be corrected in the November election.
However, preventing World War III and protecting our border cannot wait until November. We have to correct these elephants in the room now and fast. These threats will not go anywhere unless we remove them.
Past presidents, we need you now, at least as much as we needed you when you served in the White House. Your talents and abilities have not measurably waned. For starters, you are all younger than Biden, and your mental acumen is far sharper.
Gary Franks served three terms as U.S. representative for Connecticut's 5th District. He was the first Black Republican elected to the House in nearly 60 years and New England's first Black member of the House. Host: podcast "We Speak Frankly." Author: "With God, For God, and For Country." @GaryFranks
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