It may seem a bit odd to suggest that the President should visit an active war zone, but in this situation I think it would have a number of benefits for the President to visit there are show our support. And while we (rightfully) criticize the President a lot here, we can all hope for a good response from him to this situation, since doing so will help both the people of Georgia and the USA's standing in the world.
Briefly, the benefits are as follows. First, it will stop the fighting, as Russians will not risk putting the life of the President in danger. Whereas the normal cease-fire procedures, of UN peacekeepers and such, would take forever, if we intervene in this manner it will cause Russia and Georgia to want to cease fighting on a much quicker timescale. Second, it will signal our support of Georgia in a stronger way than the usual hand-wringing and foreign policy equivalents of sternly worded letters (we condemn Russia's actions and strongly urge them to stop eventually) without actually involving us attacking anyone. Thirdly, it signals our seriousness about the situation, as opposed to Bush's current ogling of our volleyball team. Fourthly, it signals our commitment to Democracy, national sovereignty, and all those values that the USA is supposed to exemplify.
One of the biggest problems with this plan is the logistics of it and the safety of our people. There is a reason that cease-fires are hard and complicated, and so just announcing that we are visiting and expecting them to stop fighting for the duration of our stay is easier said than done. I am not a security expert, and if it is impossible it is impossible. But that doesn't mean the possibility is not worth looking in to.
The other big problem, of course, is that this will really antagonize Russia. However, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, with such a move we are likely to have a lot of the international community on our side. This would be easier with a President other than Bush, who does not have as much credibility, but such a dramatic event to intervene on the side of the little guy, burgeoning democracy will surely score big with people. And if Russia is going to hate us either way, we might as well have everyone else on our side. In addition, such a defeat might deal a blow to the current leadership in Russia. My understanding is guys like Putin and Medvedev (aka Putin's puppet) are popular, despite their undemocratic ways, for making Russia strong again. If they fail in that, they will lose popularity, and hopefully their grip on power, as a result. And while a Jeffersonian Democracy might not emerge thereafter, the result has to be better than Putin has been. Of course, everyone ganging up on Russia might just cause a rally-behind-Leader reaction; I'll leave that up for debate among people more knowledgeable on the issue.
Thirdly, I find it hard to care. At the end of the day, we are the good guys, and stand for democracy, liberty, national self-determination, and Rock 'n Roll. If we want to reclaim our standing in the world we have to live up to those ideals. What better way to do it than defending the little good guys over the big bad guys? Even if it hurts our short-term interest? Russia is an important power to be sure, and we shouldn't needlessly trample over their ego, but I am tired of the USA bowing to petty dictators, of which Putin is just another, for reasons like oil and other natural resources, or vague geopolitical balance-of-power issues. It is time we take a stand to save lives and prevent more from being taken in the future. We should do that by taking positive steps to end the fighting, by visiting Georgia and declaring our support for them.
If you think I am crazy, say so - I am no foreign policy expert but wanted to throw an idea out there to see how people respond.