Defense Secretary Robert Gates gave a commencement address to the U.S. Naval Academy last week.

In it, he highlighted and reaffirmed basic principles of our democracy – the importance of Congress, a free press and a nonpolitical military.

What he said should not be newsworthy. But it is, simply because it is impossible to imagine anything remotely similar passing the lips of his boss, President Bush.

Regardless of the context, we feel the speech is important enough to reprint an excerpt from a May 26 Associated Press report on the address:

“Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates encouraged the U.S. Naval Academy’s Class of 2007 yesterday ‘to remember the importance of two pillars of our freedom under the Constitution: the Congress and the press.'”

“‘Both surely try our patience from time to time, but hey are the surest guarantees of the liberty of the American people …’

“Gates told the freshly minted Navy and Marine officers that they will have the responsibility to inform people below them that the military ‘must be nonpolitical’ and to recognize the obligation to truthfully report to Congress, ‘especially when it involves admitting mistakes or problems.’

“‘The same is true with the press, in my view a critically important guarantor of our freedom,’ Gates said.

“Gates cited news reports of poor outpatient treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as an example of the role of the press.

“‘When it identifies a problem, as at Walter Reed, the response of senior leaders should be to find out if the allegations are true, as they were at Walter Reed, and, if so, say so,’ Gates said. ‘And then act to remedy the problem. If untrue, then be able to document that fact.’

“Gates said the Founding Fathers wisely understood that Congress, a free press and a nonpolitical military are needed in a free county.

“‘The press is not the enemy, and to treat it as such is self-defeating,’ Gates said.”

We hope Secretary Gates’ message echoes throughout the land.