Above All Else, Jared Schmeck Was a Bad Dad

His kid is gonna realize what his dad did some day.

I’ve never met a President. Most people haven’t. How many people do you think have met the President of the United States? I don’t mean people who knew the President when he was in high school, or went to watch one of his speeches, or saw his motorcade drive by one time. I mean actually seeing the man while he’s president, shaking his hand or speaking directly with him, whether at a fundraiser or being hosted at the White House, exchanging a dialogue that he’ll never remember and you’ll never forget. 10,000 people? 100,000 people? I’d guess roughly 50,000 people: 50,000 people who have looked the leader of the free world right in the eye, or spoken to him. (I’m open to adjustments to that estimate.) That is, essentially, 1 out of every 142,000 people on earth. You’re four times more likely to have leprosy.

This is to say: It’s an honor that a vanishingly small number of Americans ever have experienced. I think about my grandfather, who fought in World War II, or my father, who served during Vietnam. I think about men and women who lost their lives defending their country, standing, and falling, for the ideals this country, at its best, stands for … and the men (and only men so far) in the Oval Office sworn to defend them. Those people never met a President…