Where I Stand — Brian Greenspun: President worth the effort

Friday, March 26, 1999 | noon

PRESIDENT BILL Clinton didn't make it to Las Vegas this week. Kosovo got all his attention. And rightly so.

Clearly, for the hundreds of Las Vegans who were part of the planning for his visit here, the cancellation comes as a bit of a disappointment. It would have been far more upsetting, though, had President Clinton followed through with his plans to head out across the country in the midst of airstrikes in Yugoslavia. It was clear when Slobodan Milosevic told the NATO allies to pound salt that the bombs would fall and everything else would be put on hold. It became clear, of course, because for myriad reasons there was no other choice.

The protests of a few malcontents notwithstanding, many Las Vegans looked forward to welcoming the President back to our city. Not only did Nevada support his election and re-election efforts, but we have long recognized and appreciated his unwavering support of our needs by thwarting the Congress' continued efforts to dump its nuclear waste problem on us.

Since my wife and I were to be honored by hosting the President of the United States in our home, we were among the first to be told that he would have to delay his trip to our city. It was our job, then, to notify all those people who had committed to attend the two planned functions that they could dress up but that there wouldn't be any place to go -- at least not this week.

To a person, while there was a temporary letdown because of the excitement that had been building, there was universal recognition of the seriousness of the endeavor our country has undertaken and the need for our president to remain focused on the events as they unfold halfway around the world. For this is the kind of decision-making that, at its core, is the reason a person of wisdom and intelligence must always occupy the White House.

I am not smart enough to sift through the political rhetoric that has been spreading across the airwaves to understand all of the facts upon which this decision should turn. Nor am I presumptuous enough to believe that even with those facts, that I would have sufficient additional information upon which to act. In fact, I am not so sure that most of the people who are clamoring for air time to criticize our nation's actions have any better idea than I do about what is really at stake.

What we do know is that what President Clinton, Secretary of Defense William Cohen and others have been sharing with the American people the past few days makes a reasonable case for the actions he has ordered. A snapshot of the killing in 1999, regardless of who did what to whom during the last few decades, makes Milosevic's Serbs the bad guys and should cause people of conscience to react. Those who appear too quick to secure political points by taking the cover afforded Monday morning quarterbacks, well, there will be time later to discuss them.

Right now I'd like to reflect on the party planning. It is no small task to prepare a welcome for the President of the United States. Hundreds of people are involved in making sure his safety is addressed, the press is accommodated in the manner to which they have become accustomed over the past few decades, and that those people in each city he visits have the chance to meet him as appropriate. When a trip is canceled, all of that time and effort appears to be wasted, but it is not.

When I called one of my guests -- her name is Karen -- Wednesday night to thank her for her planned attendance, I asked, "Doesn't it feel a bit like college when you crammed all night for an exam only to learn that it was canceled?"

Her answer stated the case for most Americans whenever a president comes a calling. "No, it didn't feel anything like that," Karen told me. "I never looked forward to any of my exams and none of them got me as excited as I was to meet the President."

Karen's comment summed up the feelings that I believe should be and always has been a typically American one. I realize that is a bit naive in today's world in which political differences equate to hateful speech and irrational animus, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't strive to put more civility in our ongoing political disagreements.

After Karen, I called two of Las Vegas' more prolific fundraisers -- for all manner of good charitable and political causes -- Jody and Elias Ghanem. As close friends of President Clinton's, they had opened their home to a great many Nevadans who were looking forward to his visit. When I asked Elias if he was disappointed, he told me that he was. But, he was quick to add that the events surrounding Kosovo were so compelling that any personal disappointment was fleeting.

He did wonder, however, what he was going to do with all those trees he was planting when the cancellation notice came. I told him to wait, he'll get to use them soon. That's because when this mess is over -- and we all hope it will be soon -- the other business of the country must continue and that means President Clinton will return.

Elias' question did make me think about the efforts Myra and a host of other people had undertaken at our house. There have been landscapers, party planners, caterers, painters and probably poets, too, working without pause to make sure the President felt as comfortable as possible. Some would consider the expenses we have incurred as a waste. I have a different thought which may explain why optimism is far more satisfying than the pessimistic point of view.

If it hadn't been for the President wanting to come back to a city he enjoys a great deal, my wife would not have entertained the idea of Spring cleaning, at least not this year. Because he did and she did, I awoke this morning to the beautiful scent of a house full of fresh flowers and finally lacking the smell of a freshly painted home.

It was home sweet home at my house and, considering what is happening near Kosovo, I trust everyone in America feels the same about theirs.