A Presidents Day Message: The Cost of Leadership
Presidents Day is more than a date on the calendar. It is a reminder that the highest office in our nation has always carried a price, sometimes the ultimate one.
Four American presidents were assassinated while serving the people: Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy.
Others survived attempts on their lives, including Andrew Jackson, Harry Truman, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and Donald Trump.
These are reminders that leadership in America has always demanded courage, sacrifice, conviction, and a willingness to stand firm even when the nation is divided.
Lincoln understood this. His decision to issue the Emancipation Proclamation and push for the 13th Amendment was met with fierce resistance. Many political leaders of his time, especially within the Democratic Party, fought against emancipation, federal enforcement, and the restructuring of the labor system that had benefited them for generations. Lincoln moved forward anyway, knowing the backlash could cost him everything. And it did.
Today, many Americans see echoes of that same dynamic. President Trump is facing intense pushback for confronting illegal immigration and the instability, exploitation, and chaos that come with it. Whether one agrees or disagrees with his policies, the parallel is clear. When a leader challenges entrenched systems, the backlash is fierce.
But I believe that just as history now honors Lincoln’s courage to end slavery despite the fury it unleashed in his time, future generations will look back on today’s battles and recognize our current president for standing for human dignity, lawful order, and the long‑term good of the nation in the same way.
I am in no way trying to divide us by writing this. Presidents Day is about the unity that comes from shared sacrifice. It is about honoring leaders who stepped into the arena knowing the risks and remembering that doing what is right is often harder than doing what is popular. And it is about recognizing that America moves forward when leaders, past and present, choose courage over comfort.
This year, as we reflect on the presidents who have carried the weight of this nation on their shoulders at great personal sacrifice, may we recommit ourselves to the ideals that bind us. Freedom, opportunity, unity, and the belief that America is worth fighting for.
Carol Pefley
Candidate for Ca State Assembly
