Respecting the public's choice

Andy Butfoy is wrong. The leaders he refers to have earned 'our' trust – whether Bush, Obama, Howard or Rudd. The fact that they were elected is proof of that trust. It is a factor of democracy and the universal franchise for citizens that still applies in the US and Australia (as Winston Churchill said, 'the worst from of government, except for all of the others').

And as for Petraeus and his ilk? Once again, they only serve at the pleasure of the executive government, which is elected by the people, for the people.

To my mind, Butfoy's issue is less to do with his concerns about Bush, Obama or any other elected leader (or their military, cabinet or civil service appointees), and is more about his contempt for the democratic choice of the citizens of the US and Australia.