WS Chronicle

By Dr. James B. Ewers Jr.

The truth has been missing in the White House for four years. Lies and falsehoods permeated the atmosphere. The previous president and his lie carriers felt in no way tired in giving out misinformation.

They did it on a regular basis and they had no shame. Those misfits spewed out information that damaged our country. However, we survived the onslaught on our democracy.

Now there is a new day.

We have a president of the United States of America who is a truth-teller. Don’t you think we should take telling the truth for granted? I believe this is a fundamental tenet of America.

The truth has a history. It has been in our homes, our neighborhoods, our places of worship and our schools. Truth has always been the bright light of decency that has guided us along the way.

Truth has sometimes been sidetracked, but it always comes back stronger than ever.

While temporarily sidelined, it came back on Nov. 3, 2020. On January 20, 2021, it took its place in the White House. President Biden said, “Our better angels have always prevailed.”

Having a president who will be honest with the American people will be a welcome relief. The road ahead is daunting, but we can be daring because truth and honesty will be with us.

Reports say there are over 418,000 Americans that have passed away from COVID-19. Our fellow Americans have already received over 20 million doses of the vaccine. More people must receive the vaccine if the goal of 100 million doses is to be achieved.

At this moment, it is too early to tell if this goal will be met. We are hopeful.

Having students return to in-person learning within the first 100 days is also another of the administration’s goals. I do think it will be interesting to see if the environment is safe enough for their return.

The president has already signed more than 20 executive orders. Chief among them are orders to implement more food assistance programs and to enhance the system for sending out stimulus checks.

“We have to act now,” said President Biden prior to signing the orders. He added, “We cannot, will not, let people go hungry.”

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) maximum benefit will be increased by 15%. As a result, according to reports, a family with three children could receive an increase of $100 per month. 

The most recent stimulus checks were simply not enough. The President will ask the Congress for additional money so that families can get back on their feet.

In the coming days, Senators Shumer and McConnell will have to figure out how to handle the power struggle. While the Democrats have the tiebreaker in the Senate, Republicans have not gone away. For example, Wisconsin Republican Senator Ron Johnson is still chairman of the Homeland Security Committee.

He said, “I’m still chairman. They haven’t hung my picture in the cloakroom yet, so that’s a good sign I guess.”

The president said, “Politics does not have to be a raging war.” We can all agree that it has been. It is time to turn a new page and to close a dismal chapter.

Amanda Gorman, National Youth Poet Laureate, gave a riveting poem entitled “The Hill We Climb” at the Inauguration. She said, “We close the divide because we know to put our future first, we must first put our differences aside.”

Let’s help our president set a new course based upon the truth and high ideals. Ah, the truth! It’s a beautiful thing.

James B. Ewers Jr., Ed.D., is a former tennis champion at Atkins High School in Winston-Salem and played college tennis at Johnson C. Smith University, where he was all-conference for four years. He is a retired college administrator. He can be reached at overtimefergie.2020@yahoo.com.