I am inviting you so to sit with me at my table and talk about the many domestic and foreign issues which concern me. Actually, we would not sit at my table, we would sit at the American people’s table. What I am asking you to do has been done, in various ways, by several past presidents. Although their platforms were far different, their motives were the same, “Reassurance and provide up-to-date accurate information…i.e. Effective Communication!
Let us take a few minutes and open a history book: President Washington delivered the first-ever State of the Union address. President Hayes, the first to use a telephone from the White House. President Harding delivered the first radio address. President Roosevelt used his fireside chats to effectively talk about pressing national issues and to reassure my grandparents that America would recover. In 1994 Bill Clinton sent the first-ever presidential email to John Glenn. George W. Bush became the first president to appear in a three-episode arc of NCIS to promote his No Child Left Behind act. And, although you have taken presidential use of Twitter to unprecedented, if not controversial levels, you were not the first… President Barack Obama used Twitter to communicate with the public during the first-ever Twitter TownHall @ the White House in 2011.
My point is: Our former presidents have found an effective way to communicate with the people. In my opinion, your use of Twitter is like walking through an oil refinery carrying a flame thrower to remove weeds – perhaps effective, but the potential for damage is way too great. Plus, it is one-way communication. And, there is something else to consider. There are unsubstantiated rumors that you are not really behind the keyboard – it is Jared or Ivanka or another trusted unnamed family member located in the depths of the White House basement.
Setting all this aside, there is a better way. At least I feel there is a better way. I am inviting you to a monthly round table press conference which would be held at various locations around the country. Although your golf courses would be convenient, I suggest a more real-people location. A church in Selma. A native American Indian reservation school. A bank in Manhattan. A vineyard board room in California wine country. A factory in Detroit. Perhaps a school in Puerto Rico, if there is electricity. Perchance, Keesler Air Force base. Each month, the Presidential Round Table would be held in a different location.
I know, you have held very few press conferences…for various reasons, but this one would be different. No crowd of reporters shouting questions. No domination of what you call “Liberal Fake News” reporters. It would just be you and two journalists sitting around a table talking. For objectivity, you and your ‘people’ could choose one journalist, with the other selected by the National Press Club. Each meeting would feature two different reporters.
Topics for the one-hour discussion would be provided by your team and the two reporters. My suggestion is one topic from each participant. Of course, respecting your office, you would open and from that point forward, there would be no formal format. Just three people, one of which is the President of the United States, talking, asking and answering questions about where we are, where we are going, and how we will get there. At the end, each would provide a wrap-up, if desired.
Not complicated. Very straight-forward. And certainly, an effective way to communicate with the people. Franklin Roosevelt held his fireside chats. Ronald Reagan's success was tied directly to his ability not just to speak to the American people, but to communicate with them. You, Mr. President, would have your American Round Table.
My personal observation: The history books will say, “Donald Trump, originator of the American Round Table, one of the most effective ways (ever) to communicate with the American people. He connected with the public and as a result, his popularity soared.” There would be an asterisk beside this quote saying, “Although he continued to use Twitter, it became a tool for the conveyance of important information, not an instrument to float ideas or attack opponents. One-way communication is seriously flawed.”
Mr. President, I look forward to hearing your thoughts concerning my proposal. If you reject this suggestion, I would like to know you reasoning. If you accept, please consider using my hometown as the site for your first American Round Table. As West Virginians, we are fiercely loyal to the Constitution and we have a growing thirst for knowledge.
(fstoppers.com)