There is an old saying made famous by General Douglas MacArthur in his 1951 goodbye speech to Congress, "Old soldiers never die, they simply fade away..."
I couldn't help but think of that, and be moved by its sentiments, as I watched what was perhaps the final public act of Robert Mueller, himself a decorated Marine who served heroically in Vietnam.
If anyone deserved a grand goodbye and thanks for service to a nation it was Mueller, but that would never have been his style. He would undoubtedly have preferred to "fade away," a graceful exit from the stage of action. Instead, what we witnessed was a dedicated public servant thrashed against the shoals of our political sea of discord.
Mueller's career deserves nothing but respect, and certainly not the snitty judgments of shallow politicians and puffed-up pundits. From his youth, he has been guided by a strong moral compass that pointed to a long and distinguished career of service to country.
Much also has been made of the "optics" of a man clearly halting and more aged from his earlier forceful presence. But that should not distract from the report he and his associates produced. The service he performed, in this chapter of life, and in the past, should elicit our compassion as well as our gratitude.
We live in an age where the term patriot is tossed around like a marketing campaign and is often used as a cudgel of political expediency. By all of my measures, however, Mueller has earned the term, not by pounding his chest or attacking others but by the dignified nature of a life dedicated at personal expense in service to country.
When the truth of this age is written, when it is separated from the cacophony of the moment, I suspect Robert Mueller will tower above those who now seek to taunt him into oblivion. His will be a name that will be remembered, and honored.
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