1. In honor of George Washington's birthday, let's consider statesmanship (something severely lacking in the political landscape of the United States today) and Washington's final address. #PresidentsDay2023 
2. How can we define statesmanship and separate it from mere leadership or leadership's lazy cousin, management? While leadership is the foundation of statesmanship, statesmanship separates itself from leadership due to the following...
3. The additional requirement to have good character, a grasp of what is good for society regardless of personal desires, conviction, selflessness, and an understanding of the processes that are involved in actually getting things done, aka statecraft.
4. Put differently, the late J. Rufus Fears identified a bedrock of principles to live their lives by, a moral compass, a vision, and the ability to a consensus to achieve that vision as the four attributes that make the difference between a politician and a statesman.
5. Chief among the attributes that Washington possessed which made him a great statesman were a sense of duty to serve the nation and do so selflessly as was evident in his reluctant acceptance of the presidency with the stipulations being that he not receive a salary and...
6. Only that his expenses related to the presidency be paid. Throughout his presidency, George Washington maintained focus on what was best for the nation and avoiding being pulled into the political debates of the day, always seeking unity...
7. This was clear in his cabinet selection which included political rivals such as Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. However, in a world where most changes in leadership of states took place in a violent, disruptive manner for the nation...
8. Perhaps George Washington’s most selfless and important action in statecraft was among his last as president when he choose to step aside after eight years as president and provide the nation with his farewell address.
9. In his farewell address George Washington emphasized numerous topics that would frame the norms and traditions of the American political climate for years to come...
10. including unity of the nation, the need to be weary of political parties, foreign entanglements, the importance of virtue and morality in the populace, and respect for the authority of the constitution.
11. Most importantly though, George Washington provided future presidents with an example of humility and statesmanship to follow and American citizens with a guide for what to expect out of their future leaders...
12. At the time the precedents and norms we can take for granted did not exist, and George Washington refused to become a king to the young nation. #PresidentsDay
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