A man for all seasons

Why did we write a cover story on centenarian statesman George Shultz in 2020? It’s simple. He’s a builder – someone who searches for solutions.

Dear reader, let me implore you to take a good look at the man on the cover of our magazine this week. You won’t regret it.

I hope you were able to drink that in, because in one glorious, tweedy photo, photographer Tony Avelar has caught the essence of the story Howard LaFranchi tells. Who dresses like that anymore? Who commands such presence? Who so palpably radiates accrued wisdom? Who else could make heads of state feel like naughty schoolchildren by raising one august eyebrow?

One might call George Shultz a throwback. Of course, he’s not the only human to possess such qualities these days. But he wears the mantle of one of the greatest statesmen in modern American history with a bespoke blazer and an impeccably knotted Stanford tie. At a time when so much of world politics and policy seems unmoored and uncertain, Mr. Shultz is the living embodiment of the exact opposite – a reminder of the rock America once was in international affairs.

But nostalgia isn’t a reason to do a cover story. For a news organization that believes in the power of progress, the future is much more interesting. So, why George Shultz now in 2020? (Aside from the fabulous photo, of course.)

One reason, really. He’s a builder.

That was John Adams’ word as the founder looked for people who were not bystanders or merely critics, keen to point out only what was wrong. New York Times columnist David Brooks calls them weavers – people who forge connections, search for solutions, and help knit society together.

That’s something the Monitor stands for. Often, news organizations including the Monitor are judged by where readers think we stand on the left-right axis of politics. Fair enough. In a time of polarization, we all could stand some scrutiny on whether our personal political opinions are impairing our ability to cover the full spectrum of news – not just seeing through blue or red glasses.

But the Monitor seeks to be judged on a different axis. Who can look into the world’s most intractable problems – from nuclear proliferation to human rights violations to climate change – and not be forlorn or magnetized to partisan talking points, but rather retain a weather eye and a practical hope? Who can build respect, by showing respect, even in a rebuke? Mr. Shultz has spent a career seeking to do just that.

Take the example from Howard’s story in which Mr. Shultz, recognizing the power of the moment, saluted at a Soviet military graveyard, saying that these men – like him – had fought in World War II to stop Hitler. Years later, Russians still remembered that gesture.

“It teaches you that if you show respect to things that deserve it, then your criticisms of other things carry more weight instead of being just critical across the board,” he tells Howard.

Must that be a throwback? Or partisan? Have the days of the George Shultzes of the world vanished into the Twitterverse, where point-scoring and party purity often seem the highest standards for success? Mr. Shultz, for one, doesn’t think so.

Which is why he’s Mr. Shultz. And on our cover.