Doug Cartland's Four-Minute Leadership Advisory
Doug Cartland, Inc.
11/06/2012

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The greatest moment of this bombastic and largely ridiculous political season came last week. Unfortunately, it came in the wake of the devastating Super Storm Sandy that raked our northeastern seaboard.

 

It came from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a republican, when he was asked how well President Barack Obama, a democrat, had responded to the emergency.

 

"I have to say, the administration, the president himself and FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate have been outstanding with us so far," Christie said on "Good Morning America". "We have a great partnership with them."

 

Concerning the Major Disaster Declaration that assures federal money for recovery, the governor said, "(President Obama) worked on that last night with me...offered any other assets that we needed to help. I want to thank the president personally for his personal attention to this."

 

And then a day or two later, President Obama walked the devastation with Governor Christie.

 

Soon after his words of praise and the announcement that Obama would be visiting the state, Fox News asked Christie if Mitt Romney would be coming to New Jersey also. Christie was visibly put off.

 

"I have no idea," he responded. "Nor am I the least bit concerned or interested. I've got a job to do here in New Jersey that's much bigger than presidential politics and I could care less about any of that stuff. I have a job to do. I've got 2.4 million people out of power. I've got devastation on the shore. I've got floods in the northern part of my state. If you think right now I give a damn about presidential politics then you don't know me." 

 

Well done, Governor. Well done.

 

Catastrophe brings the honest out in us. It humbles us. It reminds us that we are all frail and human. It gives us more empathy. It makes us reach out with an open hand instead of a clenched fist. The desperation of the moment tends to lower the barriers between us. It opens up lines of communication we thought were shut forever and hushes the histrionics.

 

Governor Christie has his priorities straight. Even as a republican governor who gave the keynote address at Governor Romney's republican convention; and even within a week of the election, Christie knew that it was more important to be straightforward, that that would better serve his people and the people of America than playing politics.

 

I shut my eyes and took it in like a cool breeze on a really hot day.

 

During this rankled, partisan bloodbath of an election (not to mention the past two years of increased hateful and strident partisan buffoonery in Washington), when my phone wouldn't stop ringing with robotic messages telling me who to vote for, where ad after TV ad defamed and mocked opposing candidates, where trees were consumed one after another for campaign literature that filled my mailbox and quickly my recycle bin with rancorous accusations, it was astonishing to hear the gentle calm of honesty.

 

Someone saying something nice about the other. Two leaders of opposition parties looking to work together to overcome a horrendous state of affairs. How novel.

 

Sad it took a Super Storm to bring it out. But, alas, there it was.
I'd love to hear from you. Reply to this email and let me know your thoughts. 

 

Doug

 

Doug Cartland, President
Doug Cartland, Inc.

 

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