Strength and Leadership: Robert B. Charles
We need solid, serene leaders in this new and crucial chapter of American revival.
“Evergreen” by Erin O'Keefe, uploaded on September 7th, 2022.
“It used to be said that “as goes Maine, so goes the nation”, and there was some truth in that. It has long been a poor state economically, its old manufacturing industries such as shoes and textiles all but gone and shipbuilding a shadow of its former self – but it is beautiful, has marvelous lobsters, and its politicians exuded the sort of Yankee sensibility that has served the country well over the years, regardless of party affiliation.”
Jurek Martin, “As goes Maine, so goes the nation”, Financial Times. September 2012.
“Here, we judge you by what you do, not by who your father was. Here, you can be something. Here is the place to build a home. But it's not the land. There's always more land. It's the idea that we all have value - you and me. What we're fighting for, in the end, we're fighting for each other.” - Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain (1828-1914)
Defining a man is always a complex task if we want to do justice to the person. This is especially true in the case of Robert B. Charles (Maine, 1960), known since his early days as “Bobby” to those who have the profound luck to call him a friend. A rural boy from Wayne, with an upbringing in the forests and on Maine’s lakes; a truly diligent student with little resources that managed to achieve an astonishing academic record: a JD from Columbia Law School in New York, an MA from Oxford University in the UK, and an AB from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.
Charles, a Maine lawyer, clerked for Judge Beezer in the US Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, worked as a litigator in New York and Washington DC, and served in the Reagan and Bush 41 White Houses, before spending a decade as a Naval Intelligence Officer at the ONI and in the Pentagon, with the Chief of Naval Intelligence.
He later worked as Assistant Secretary of State under Collin Powell, managed the Office of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, coordinating Police training programs in more than 70 countries, running a budget of $2 billion, and managing the State Department’s several hundred highly operational aircraft, from Blackhawks to C-130s, in the Bush 43 administration, before founding The Charles Group, a Washington DC-based consulting firm focused on national security, Law Enforcement, and helping non-profits. He is also, these days, the spokesperson for AMAC, the Association of Mature American Citizens, a nation-wide, non-partisan, but conservatively shaped group for citizens aged 50 and over.
With a little inquiry, it turns out Robert Charles is a highly respected author, and has been for years. Having written columns 30 years ago for Maine’s most relevant newspapers, he branched out and has made meaningful contributions across mainstream media, from Fox, CBS, ABC, C-SPAN and countless papers, to cable networks and 60 Minutes.
Having run dozens of high-intensity, multi-day congressional oversight hearings into Justice, Defense, State, and NASA for five years under US House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA), Robert Charles later testified countless times before Congress on oversight, narcotics, Law Enforcement and national security. He seems to be everywhere valued for his insight and expertise, as well as even-handedness, providing unparalleled advice to the younger generation of leaders and their new projects aimed at invigorating his home state of Maine, like the strategically groundbreaking Pro-Growth Maine (PGM), led by savvy tech-entrepreneur Justin Donnaruma.
This all sounds incredible, doesn’t it? How does he have time to breathe? I bet you are asking yourself. If Winston Churchill was known for sleeping 4 hours per night, Robert Charles must be close to that, because he shows up at 5AM on Fox and Friends every week or two, on Cavuto’s Coast to Coast business show middays, then attends to multiple other tasks and gives speeches evenings. While he speaks out of state, he also seems to have hit half of Maine’s GOP committees, Veterans’ groups, and even gave the keynote speech -featuring Jimmy Stewart and a recap of 9/11- at the State GOP convention in April 2024, where he showed again he can hold a room, let me tell you.
Time is always of value for him, and yet he seems a wellspring of good will, energy and resources for his beloved home state. While he is invited to speak countrywide and tracks security developments globally, as a former Naval Intelligence Officer, he seems most focused these days precisely on Maine, helping Republicans regain the Legislature to assure a sound, credible and hopeful economic future for the state. One is put in mind of the old Greek workers, thinkers and doers, and of Herodotus’ quote “a friend is the most precious of all possessions”, this is just a strong nod to a good man, who thankfully is back in Maine to help his home state sort out these tough times and rough waters. Watching him with countless friends, he somehow always finds that moment to hug a friend in need and to share a few minutes of personal heartfelt advice, which the receiver will never forget. Good people are all around us, especially in Maine, but good people like Bobby Charles are worth knowing.
Talking recently with him, it’s plain to see that his deepest inspiration, in addition to the Greek and Roman classics and the Founding Fathers, comes from his beloved mother, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, Ronald Reagan and Colin Powell, with whom he worked very closely as Assistant Secretary of State in the Bush 43 White House. Something must have rubbed off, since he speaks, writes and seems to channel the best leadership qualities of each one of them.
From Secretary Powell, he learned his famous “13 Rules” - which the US State Department has posted on their website as a tribute to this superb American leader: “1) It ain’t as bad as you think! It will look better in the morning. 2) Get mad then get over it. 3) Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position fails, your ego goes with it. 4) It can be done. 5) Be careful what you choose. You may get it. 6) Don’t let adverse facts stand in the way of a good decision. 7) You can’t make someone else’s choices. You shouldn’t let someone else make yours. 8) Check small things. 9) Share credit. 10) Remain calm. Be kind. 11) Have a vision. Be demanding. 12) Don’t take counsel of your fears or naysayers. 13) Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.”
All his experience, profound knowledge and love of country are clearly visible in his book “Eagles and Evergreens: A Rural Maine Childhood” (North Country Press, 2018). In the words of revered Bill Cohen, US Secretary of Defense (1997-2001) and US Senator from Maine (1979-1997), “This inspirational book by Bobby Charles of stories honoring veterans from rural Maine speaks beautifully to America’s core values of both greatness and goodness. Bobby has captured the essence of small-town American virtues which we are losing too quickly and need to remember and appreciate.” Renowned US astronaut Buzz Aldrin (Gemini 12 and Apollo 11) wrote of Charles’ book: “Having gone to summer camp in Maine, 1939 to 1945, air combat in Korea, Nuclear alert in Germany, then to the Moon with Neil Armstrong, this book took me back again to the woods of Maine. In “Eagles and Evergreens”, I rediscovered why I love Maine’s own Sea of Tranquility.” And in the words of Tony Dolan, Chief Speechwriter for President Ronald Reagan (1980-1988), “Bobby Charles is well known as a thoughtful analyst, but who knew he had such a heart? His nod to America’s aging veterans and small town values – people and values he grew up with – is powerful. What a book! Give your life a lift, give this book a read. And fall in love with America, all over again!”
Now Bobby seems to have done it again. His soon-to-be-published book, potentially bigger in impact, is entitled “Cherish America: Stories of Courage, Character, and Kindness” (Tower Publishing, 2024). Excerpts show it speaks of the very essence of who Americans are, our virtues and values, as well as the need to actively love this great country, in order to engage in the much needed renewal period ahead. As my beloved grandfather used to say, “rough waters require good navigators”, and Bobby Charles is certainly one.
He has also a very deep understanding of the main threats to our national security in 2024, especially those posed by open borders, the international terrorist networks and the foreign drug cartels, having many years ago written “Narcotics and Terrorism: Links, Logic, and Looking Forward” (Chelsea House Publishers, 2004). That little volume spoke of the challenges facing Maine and the Nation, as well as the wider world. Precisely the challenges that the Biden-Harris administration has utterly ignored, with terrible consequences for the US as a whole, and turning every single state into a “border state”.
Having service front of his mind all his life, son of a Maine school teacher, Bobby Charles seems unusually suited to the moment - in Maine and the Nation. There is a quiet chorus of voices starting to speak up, and who think he might be an ideal candidate for returning sanity to a position like that of Attorney General of the United States or Secretary of State in the Trump-Vance administration, after the disgraceful tenures of Merrick Garland and Anthony Blinken. However, there are also voices who would rather see Bobby stay where he has replanted himself, right in his home state, perhaps serving as the next Attorney General, precisely at a time when Maine is being overrun by open borders, fentanyl and foreign organized crime; and maybe even running for Governor in 2026. That would be a perfect post from which to help all his fellow Mainers regain their compass, and to revive Maine’s economy, politics and society, helping his home state overcome that feeling of being “a shadow of its former self” mentioned in the Financial Times years ago, and that still persists in the minds of many a Mainer and many a visitor from away.
Bobby Charles’ understanding of the local political reality in 2024 comes from having grown up in Maine, gone away to work, come home and found the state he returned to is not the one he left. It is “more divided, unaccountable, power-centered than people-centered, less like the Maine that respected individual rights, more impersonal in a way”. As he explained recently:
“Maine is emblematic of a phenomenon occurring nationwide. States controlled by one-party Democrat governments, intent on pushing radical agendas, are simply ignoring the majority. They think they have license. That is why populism, distrust of government, and anger are growing. Hundreds of bills introduced, many passed during that one State’s recent sessions, contradict the majority’s values as well as testimony and polling of Maine citizens. Democrats do not care.
The state’s one-party legislature, governor, and attorney general act, as in other one-party states, like the majority is irrelevant. Once in power, they ignore The People, and focus instead on keeping power, big donors, political action committees controlled by leadership, special interests. Dozens of hours spent reviewing bills that Maine’s one-party government passed (in the past two years), changing words to trick the public – minimizing illegal aliens, drug trafficking, woke grammar, claiming higher taxes are lower, shifting burdens for law enforcement, drug treatment, new mandates to the local level – where people struggle to survive – only prove one thing: No accountability.”
There is no doubt that Bobby Charles is the kind of solid, thoughtful, but honest, calm and earnest leader Maine needs and deserves in the next chapter. His clear, accurate understanding of the challenges ahead, sheer likability and decency combine to motivate others, offering hope for a better reality for everyone. He is a breath of fresh air that inspires many, yours truly included.
For Maine. For our United States of America.
Remember: “as goes Maine, so goes the nation”…
“So, when the morning headlines and latest absurdity, some twist of facts makes you crazy, just look out the window, take a walk instead; study the fractal-like veins in a maple leaf, a spider’s delicate pentagonal web, ponder how a heron patiently awaits the sunrise, when the owl finally goes to bed. Remember the greatest joys in life are free. They greet us every day, a secret the artist knows, which is why artists are so often happy. They see what others don’t, revel in each day’s wonder as if were their duty, smiling easily on birds and butterflies, never losing a chance to understand beauty.” - Bobby Charles