Frank talk: Bush and Blair

Your obvious bias against President Bush disgusts me.
You show a total lack of respect for our President.
If this had been a Democratic would you have reported "he can be heard chewing while he talks"?
I doubt it.
I am ready to cancel my subscription to the Chicago Tribune.
It is no wonder the Tribune is losing circulation and money.
Try reporting without bias and remember there are people like me out there who love our Country and President Bush.
Loretta Miner
Hoffman Estates IL

get over it loretta.

Bush is a complete embarassment. This candid exchange shows once again the disconnect between the actual power in his hands and the sad reality of his inability and unwillingness to rise to the occasion. The real mystery is the blind loyalty by so many Americans to this charade.

It seems to me that we've reported about the last Democratic president doing worse than chewing while he talks.

More liberal bias from the press - big surprise. The weight of carrying more and more deadbeats through life is finally becoming too much for hard working, thinking conservatives.

Our President is overheard discussing important thoughts on world problems and your reporter says he thinks he could hear the President chewing his food. It appears you, as usual, have captured the story fairly. Nice job!

Imagine complaining that the Chicago Tribune favors the Democratic Party. This has to a first. Most demigods have their core following no matter what. This is more important than the original story.

When are you Republicans going to finally just admit that we have a sow's ear representing the US as President, not a silk purse... The only people in the entire world that have any respect for our President are the blind following Republicans in this country... Open your eyes...

Poor Loretta obviously has a short memory, like the rest of the "blind allegiance to Bush" sheep out there. Perhaps she doesn't remember the miles of ink the Trib, Sun-Times, and every other newspaper and talk show wasted on the Lewinsky affair. But, oh wait, I forgot. That was important. It was an affront to the family values crowd. The thin-skinned bunch who can't accept the well-deserved abuse (not enough, in my eyes) Duh-bya gets for totally screwing up the entire planet in 5 short years.

Your doing your job by reporting that a candid conversation was caught on tape. However, your unnecessary comments about the President chewing his food through the conversation is remarkable. Its almost as if every liberal reporter has perfect manners. I've had enough of your obvious and blatant left sided politicking- report the news and leave the commentary to Jon Stewart.

Loretta is just angry because he's a moron and she hates when the moron reveals himself as a moron. Sorry, Loretta, he just can't help himself. Moron is as moron does.

Why is it, now, that conservatives can take pot-shots at the media when "their" president embarasses the country with bufoonery and ill-mannered behavior before international leaders? Accept the fact you voted for him, and try to learn from your mistake instead of sticking to the party line.

The story is being covered worldwide, but Bush supporters want some parts of this worldwide story suppressed.

This is an important case study of pro-Bush life: 1) pretend adverse events are not occurring, 2) try to stifle adverse opinion, 3) make claims about the patriotism of all who disagree.

Way to go, guys! Keep showing the world what you're made of.

The comment about chewing, while gratuitous and not strictly necessary, does accentuate the difference between the style and manners of the two men. One is a well-bred Englishman who understands and appreciates the need to follow the rules of civil discourse and the other is an archtypical Texan who cares little for anything but his own opinion and everyone else be damned. This difference is visible in their public personnae as well as in this tete-a-tete (pardon my French).

Clearly Bush does not know what to do exactly. "I think Condis gonna go pretty soon." There are not many exactatudes in his speach. He seems to want to have control but at the same time have that control supported. I see a huge lack of leadership qualities.

Unfortunately, our President does do worse than talk with his mouth full and it's not about his table manners. (How does he get his foot in his mouth anyway?) He doesn't think very well either. Listen to him! How can anyone not be embarrassed by this yahoo?

James P, similarly out of touch with the world media, claims it is "your reporter" who "thinks he could hear the chewing". Hah, crazy little thing called LIVE WORLDWIDE SATELLITE TV, everybody who wants to can hear and see the chewing.

Forbes magazine, that hotbed of communism, even reported the obscenities spewed by Our Fearless Leader.

Finally, the funniest thing of all, is: why are Bushies so uptight about a) cussing, and b) talking with a full mouth? Do you think your hero the President is worried about this? Children are burning to death in the middle east today but you are moved to write in about biased reporting of a dinner roll? Strange folks...

Loretta- Go ahead and cancel your subscription with the Tribune. I cancelled mine when they endorsed this Mr. Bush for a 2nd time. Why should anyone respect Bush, he doesn't respect other peoples and cultures or our own allies. He has desecrated the Office of the Presidency. His State of the Union address was a travesty. He is incompetent, woeful, and a moron!!

I can appreciate this kind of reporting. We need to hear what really goes on between the power elite. The irony of it all is that the fate of the world is nothing more than dinner table small talk, banter amongst equals. While the powerful quip away in the safety of their inner (g8) circle, the decisions they make over dinner affect those without power and without much of a choice.

What's with adding that Bush was chewing his food and that Blair was not? Is this a transcript or a editorial on table manners??

I do agree that the mention of the President chewing was extraneous information but it does give you a picture of what was happening at the time and that it was a very informal conversation and not on the record (but it was recorded!). Don't Kill The Messenger! Mark, keep up the good work.
If you conservatives are so hard working and thinking how can you possibly support all of the mistakes that this administration has made. My politics would be considered middle of the road conservative and I think our government has gotten us into a situation that we cannot get ourselves out of. I don't know what kind of "Hard Work" you do but my husband is out right now driving a Semi in almost 100 degree heat after having a hip replaced and artificial bone put in his foot that causes him relentless pain. He can't afford to retire because of the way the economy has been going: down. And we can't afford to pay for health insurance.

Bush is awesome. I didn't vote for him, but now I love him.

loretta, ken, and james have a gift for comedy, accusing the consistently right-leaning chicago tribune of liberal bias.

It seems republicans are fixated on "Why the trib is reporting....". This conversation was recorded by Russians 'blame them'...
This president is disgrace to our country,period.

Why is this a big deal?
Actually, it's rather reassuring to know that our President and Mr. Blair are human just like the rest of us and don't mind a frank conversation between friends.

After reading this report from Silva, I fail to see how Bush embarrassed the country? What because at lunch he was eating while talking? Geez, who has never done that? I know the looney lefties have the best manners in the world, don't they?

While noting that Bush was eating was pretty ridiculous on Silva's part, the overall story is a candid conversation between Bush and Blair about the situation between the Israelies and Hezbollah, Palestinians, etc. A conversation between two friends who happen to be world leaders.

Both are in agreement and both are right. But somehow to the looney lefties, this new flare-up in the Middle East is also Bush's fault (I mean EVERYTHING that has gone wrong in the world in its entire history is Bush's fault, right guys??).

More and more it is so obvious that the one-note looney lefties really are the most uninformed, uneducated, hysterial group of people in the history of mankind.

A message to Loretta:

Since when does loving "my Country and President Bush" go hand in hand? Get a brain--you're not a wind up toy. Just because you have probably been a loyal Republican all your life doesn't mean that you have to support this unusually immoral and incompetent individual.

The real story here is not the Iraq War, Israel, Hezbollah, Bush's lack of competency, media bias against Bush, or how great of a job our President is doing. Nope.

It's the fact that leader after leader can't seem to remember to check and see if those mics are on before opening their traps.....

Now THAT is scary.

The commentary on the President chewing while talking -- by the reporter, the Trib, Loreta et al and her critics -- is just silly. Who cares? The substance of the Blair/Bush conversation was important, interesting and very newsworthy. We should be focusing on that instead of nonsense. Instead, everybody is talking about chewing. No wonder the world is messed up.

Loretta apparently hasn't seen this same exact story carried by many newspapers, both U.S. and international. She may also want to lookup the words "factual" and "biased" in a dictionary. Apparently she is confused about their meanings.

As I read the various comments I can't help but wonder if any of the liberals even try to understand the world around them (or if they earn a living other than on unemployment). I have almost 300 of these losers working for my company (yes I started it from scratch in 1990 and have built it with 80 hour weeks - and yes I am sure the Oprah crowd here wouldn't like what I pay myself). They have no idea how transparent they really are to someone who listens. They have no clue that Clinton with Lewinski was HIS CHOICE (and very newsworthy). Bush has had all this thrust upon him (partially because Clinton was busy with Lewinski rather than proactively taking care of issues like the bombing of the World Trade Center, bombing of the USS Cole, etc). Mark my words from someone who employs many of you losers, "The weight of carrying more and more deadbeats through life is finally becoming too much for hard working, thinking conservatives".

Of the 17 comments that were available to me, 15 dealt (directly and otherwise) with Bush chewing his food. The potential beginnings of an entire region, or greater, going to war over religion, e.g. as in the Middle Ages and we focus on mastication? Unbelievable! ..And some are still proud to be an American and not embarrassed?

Hardworking Thinking Democrat,

I would love to hear the Democratic issues that you don't follow the party line on.

James P, your absolutely right! Who should care about the President saying a curse word and speaking with his mouth full when the Middle East is close to all out war. But then again, the writer did choose to make that an important part of the story.

The bottom line is that the US (and President Bush) are in a very tricky situation. It would be unfair and a mistake to tell the Israelis to not protect themselves. And if we moved our troops into Lebanon to secure the peace, all hell would break loose. The UN is impotent and it is pretty obvious to me that the conversation between Bush and Blair indicated that they are aware of that fact. I look forward to the day when this country can have a civil inteligent conversation on any important issue without turning it into personal attacks on our leaders. It goes both ways.

It's probably the fact that most Conservatives regard everyone else as deadbeats that is getting a bit old. It may have something to do with the ease at which this administration drops bombs on "collateral" targets. Or as you might call them, "deadbeats".
Lewisnski is ancient history. Clinton can't be blamed for anything that has happened in the last 6 years. As an aside, it is quite a well known fact that Liberal states have higher average IQ's than Conservative ones. Maybe you don't understand the world around you.

"I look forward to the day when this country can have a civil inteligent conversation on any important issue without turning it into personal attacks on our leaders."

That day will come when we stop personal attacks on ordinary citizens and groups of citizens who disagree with the party in power. When people called godless, un-American or unpatriotic simply for disagreeing, they fight back. We are fighting back.

Forgetting and liberal or conservative bias, one thing becomes clear from the conversation. Bush, chewing or not, is 'to the point' with a finger on the pulse of the problem (Syria) where Blair is bumbling, at best.

BLAIR: "Well, it's only if it's, I mean, you know, if she's gotta, or if she needs the ground rule there, as it were."

What was that? For those who think Europeans are "classy" and "well bred", having great speaking powers; it seems the proof is fairly weak.

All of you arguing about "chewing" or displaying your "liberal" or "conservative" flags should be ashamed. I, for one, display my American flag, which is both liberal and conservative. It is big enough for all of us.

Dear Ken,

If liberals are such bad news I'd be interested to hear whu you hired 300 of them, is it perhaps because they add value to your flourishing business, Sir?

I find it incomprehensible that Republicans are upset by the conservative Trib's reporting on the president's eating habits. Don’t they remember getting a lot more detail of a much more personal nature from the so-called "liberal" media about the last (Democratic) president?

Conservatives yelling “liberal media bias” remind me of the trained sheep in Animal Farm drowning out any rational, thoughtful discussion by chanting “four legs good, two legs better!”

This is a time when people need to put their personal political sensitivities aside and focus on what is happening on the world stage. As a nation we are confronted by North Korea's potential for targeting west coast cities, from on-going threats of terrorist attacks in all our major cities, from an endless war in Iraq and Afganistan, and from serious threats to all of us if our supply of oil is cut off. Newt Ginrich says that what is currently happening in the world may be the start of WWIII. I hope he is wrong but one thing I do know is that all this petty talk offers no solution to the problems facing the United States. It is time to get serious and it is time to demand action.

Well, the sound of Bush chewing made more sense than the sound of the words he used. He should do it more often.

I just saw the video, and Blair was talking to Bush from a standing position over his shoulder while Bush was eating lunch...this is casual conversation during a luncheon. I think that since he was being interrupted while eating by someone who was not only reflects the candid nature of the moment, and if anything, Blair was the rude one for interrupting.
Bush bugs me, and I don't like him any more than other thinking individuals, but I appreciate the fact that he's actually out there talking to world leaders and is too busy getting things done to squeeze in a meal. It show the kind of effort that his typical routine, ie. reading storybooks to schoolkids after being told about the towers and taking long vacations on his ranch, does not.
How's that for a backhanded compliment?

Hey Ken, how have you been so successful employing liberal losers? Does your loser workers not earn a paycheck or do you just pay them to do nothing? Your viewpoint is illogical. You tout your success riding on the backs of those you criticize. Are you better then them because you employ them? Such a compassionate Christian you are.

Can you definitely prove that all liberals are unemployed and or never reach any financial success? Your sweeping generalizations display your weakness. You will never be able to back them up with facts.

Remember, Bush is the decider, not the "I'm stuck with this".

Ah, Loretta, your blind love for our country and President Bush is the kind of thing leading this country into the toilet. Keep the faith!

I find all the anti-food chewing comments quite interesting. Why do right wing reactionaries always seems not to want to discuss the material facts and focus on the irreleevant?

Miko F. says:

"loretta, ken, and james have a gift for comedy, accusing the consistently right-leaning chicago tribune of liberal bias."

M.

Good point about accusing an obviously conservative entity of being 'liberal'. It's a tactic the right developed way way back in the 70's.

It works this way. If someone in the press criticizes you, the public should discount it because it's just a liberal attack, yet if the press agrees with you, well looky there! Even the left leaning press agrees with us (the right) on this issue!

The tactic basically supercharges their position no matter what.

As far as the thin skinned crying over all the unfair treatment of Mr. Bush, I submit the following little morality play.....

*************
There's a group of kids playing in a neighborhood sandbox. (This is back in the dark ages.) They get along fairly well with only an occasional knocked over castle.

Then one day the neighborhood bully shows up, wrecks the whole construction and starts throwing sand in everyone's eyes!

The other kids take it for a while, trying to explain why the spoiled brat should stop his behavior and play 'fair and balanced.'

But the sociopathic little monster just keeps it up, so finally one of the other kids picks up some sand and throws it into the eyes of the bully!

Well, the bully suddenly starts to cry, wets his pants, jumps up and runs home to mommy to tattle!

***************
Here's the point, conservatives:
You have never shown to anyone else the respect and honorable treatment you demand.

Conservatives crying liberal media bias agian?
If only that were true.
This was a conversation that was recorded, & a transcript that is verbatim. Verbatim means every word the president said was put in print & that is what's being reported. Conservatives desperately want to spin their message every which way they can, which is why they cling to Rush & Fox. They will create their own biases & ram it down our throats. Just listen to them "report" the conversation GWB had. Rush will say it was brilliant, Fox probably won't even report it.
For the benefit of this country, we all need to counter any attempt by the conservative minority to allow their lies go unquestioned & challenged.

Nice job, Bill. Usually, the only compliments I'd ever give Bush are backhanded, but I think he has taken the correct stance on the Israel issue at the moment, and I'm glad to see him discussing it thoughtfully with world leaders (which is the least you could expect from a U.S. president at this juncture, of course).

There - that shows all of you conservatives out there that a Democrat can acknowledge Bush doing something right. That's one more compliment than I heard from any of you people about our previous president during Clinton's 8 years in office.

A voter,

I find this frank conversation very enlightening. I often feel like the vindictive, hateful ("false Christian"), and greedy side of the president's supporters steal his thunder (like Ken 8:28am). His father was a fine man and W. probably is too. But we never get to see that side of him anymore because of the right wing fascism that has overwhelmed his party. This recording doesn't expose him unfairly. This is how he got elected, by talking frankly about serious issues. W. is great at making the everyday person think that we too can understand the issue and what is at stake.

The food chewing was unnecessary to report. Will the world end if Bush has non-British table mannors? But Bush was having an exploratory conversation with Blair. Is it the expectation of liberals that he automatically have a solution, proper and defined syntax, and a complete grasp on who's at fault and who's not? No! Bush was very unbiased in his conversation; he is trying to converse with another world leader and ally to explore the beginnings of our response to this issue (which isn't our problem in the first place). He wants the countries in the region to solve their own problem. What's wrong with that??

The reality is that this administration is completely out of their depth, that we're bogged down in a useless war in Iraq and therefore can not respond in any way to this crisis. Instead of "reshaping" the middle east, to make it more democratic, we have totally destabilized it. Whatever leverage we had in the area has dissipated, as islamists and jihadists watch our resources get sapped and our energy drained.

Iraq as an experiment for exporting democracy is a failure, both because it's intrinsically impossible to install a democracy, and because of the ineptitude of this administration. Every single worry and warning given by thinkers (including conservatives like Scowcroft) has come true. (If anything, this adminstration has proven that our intelligentsia is very smart.) It's like a laundry list of what not to do.

Then add to this, the loss of standing in the world that the US has suffered because of the attitude of this administration regarding treaties, such as the Geneva Conventions. "Too vague" to follow, is the latest mantra coming from the White House. Words such as "Civilized Nations" are too slippery to interpret, they say.

What this really has done, aside from making me ashamed of my country, and ashamed of some of my countrymen and women, is eliminate any kind of moral authority that we may have in the world. On top of that, now that we have realized again that Cowboy foreign policy doesn't work, and that diplomacy is better are getting us what we want, we are realizing that we need all those nations that we pushed around earlier in Bush's presidency.

And finally, I have a hard time listening to conservatives complaining about personal attacks—in the last 7 years that has been pretty much the only way they have defended themselves against any kind of criticism. It really isn't the Democrats that need to rethink their stand on things, its the Republicans who need to. They need to come to terms with the abject failure of some of their ideas, their lack of will to reign in an out of control presidency (fiscally and foreign policy wise) the bankruptcy of their moral leadership (Geneva what?), and their program. They have had all the marbles, all the cards for the last six years and this is where they have taken us?

"... what they need to do is to get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this s---." Exactly the right policy! And also very appropriate to use the word "s---" for what Hezbollah is doing. The world could use more of this kind of candor.

cant a president be human .lets all think of what we say everyday when stressed out

I agree with John D & twerp. So he forgot to turn the mic off, and spoke with Blair candidly expressing views that really, no one should be surprised that he had. And he even said "s---"! For 7 years Clinton forgot to do anything about the first bombing of the World Trade Centers by Al Qaeda in 1993. Years of tedious planning leading to 9/11 largely occurred unfettered and undisturbed while the Democrats were in power. That to me, though less exciting, is an omission that is more alarming, of greater import and more deserving of recriminations than say, Bush and Blair talking candidly over lunch.

I think that our liberal friends should concentrate on actually formulating long term policies about pressing issues such as security that make sense, instead of seizing onto Bush everytime something happens (or in this case, doesn't "happen"), whether he had anything to do with it or not. We have the Middle East about to erupt in a fiery conflagration...perhaps we Americans have better things to worry about than the President chewing while eating. We have a dearth of fresh ideas from the left today: they would better spend their energy trying to devise and propose cogent, concrete potential solutions to real world problems, rather than bleating the same old blind rage against Bush that has become, sadly, boring and pedantic.

I'm not sure about the relevance of presidential chewing noises caught on tape, but I am sure that the hateful, condescending tone in most of these posts is a much more disturbing indicator of our political health.

In my work I try to think of ways to teach children who grow up with the Internet to understand and appreciate the power and reach of these kinds of technologies and to use them responsibly and respectably. With few exceptions, these posts are setting a very poor example.

How pathetic we have become. The majority of comments about chewing?? People - let's stop worrying about who wins - Liberals or Conservatives - and at least see our leaders do have real converstations during lunch about a horrible situation, rather than the fluff they often officially say during debates or news conferences. No wonder they do - and no wonder the Tribune reported it - based on the comments about chewing - it appears that is all we as a Nation are are interested in discussing! No one even commented that the liberal biased Tribune, or conservative Fox News -reported what type of shoes Blair and Bush were wearing! Impeach them both!

cant a president be human .lets all think of what we say everyday when stressed out

The fact that the Tribune transcribed the conversation between Bush and Blair does not in any way underscore partisanship. Such things are done everyday in countries where free press exist and we shouldn't view this write-up as uncommon. To suggest that the Tribune publishing the transcription as partisan and unpatriotic is both ridiculous and ignorant. Bill Clinton experienced his share of published bungles and just because you like a certain president, doesn't mean you can pick and choose what gets published about him.

Someone made the comment, "Your obvious bias against President Bush disgusts me.
You show a total lack of respect for our President. If this had been a Democratic would you have reported 'he can be heard chewing while he talks?' I doubt it."

For the record, I am an Independent and when I read Bush was chewing, I got this image in my mind of how this conversation was taking place. I think that was the reporter's intentions-- He was only describing the scene. You can see Bush was chewing in the video. If a conservative were describing the video to a blind person, would they have left out the fact that Bush was chewing because it would be disrespectful? Why?

Bush and Blair were having lunch and talking as they were eating. Blair was standing over Bush while they talked. I've seen this kind of lunch conversation happen 1,000 times by all sorts of people. I didn't think it put Bush in a bad light. I think the whole conversation helped show his human side. I for one, after reading this thought how likable Bush is. I may not agree with his policies all the time, but stories like this make me like him as a person.

There was nothing biased about this article... you conservatives are so sensitive about that, you see bias even when the reporter was just trying to give a detail which describes the scene.

I don't know what everybody is whining about. I'm British, can't stand Blair but neither he nor George Bush said anything bad. Bush said Hezbollah is the problem and the Syrians back them - what's wrong with that, its true. He thanked my PM for a gift - pretty polite, said that he had to leave on time so Russian security men weren't inconvenienced - pretty polite too. He wants to get the UN involved (I thought US democrats liked the UN), he thinks it's serious so he's sending his Secretary of State. The only thing you could call him on was not saying please to the waiter when he got the wrong drink served. Oh and he didn't know how long it took to fly to Moscow from St Petersburg. How many people know how long it would take to fly from London to Glasgow or Rio to Sao Paolo.

I don't know what's worse: the fact that our President is handling the conflict in the middle east (which he has barely a clue of what to do), or the fact that his failure of both table manners checking the microphones. Oye!

Then again, if I was that frustrated of the situation, I would've used the s-bomb myself.

Now keep in mind, that the point of the matter is that the administration is in deep s--- about their handling of foriegn policy. We're stuck in a mindless war, we're not all that popular within the Global East, and that we've got a whole other ballgame in the Far East. You would think that the administration in the 6 years they have been in office (5 since that fateful morning), things would change for the better, but come to think of it, it has gotten worse.

And to cry and complain that there is liberal bias in the media, let alone this story? I scoff at that. The point is taking a story (which is both trivial and informative), and that it tells the story of our president (obviously not mine) in a bind. Had this been a problem with a democratic president, I am sure that there would've been as much coverage here as it was with Bush. And I for one, seeing that I am an independent voter (moderate at best in this system), I would be moaning just as much if a dem. president would be in the same situation with the same issue with the same way of handling it.

I personally think we have a long ways to go before we can enjoy the stability and peace of both domestic and foriegn policy in the states and abroad...especially with such a incompetent administration.

Reading through most of these comments (I had to stop b/c of all the idiocy) really paints a dim picture on the future of this country.

People complaining about reporting that the President talks with his mouth full. People complaining about the people complaining. People complaining that GW is the cause for all that's wrong in the world. Republicans complaining about the Democrats, and vice versa. Blah, Blah, Blah!

All these labels, liberal, conservative, right, left. All of them are pointless. We are Humans first, and Americans second. All the other labels are pointless. The best thing we could do for this country is to get rid of Bi-Partisan Politics. Vote for the best person for the job, despite what party they follow.
We all need to work together to make this world a better place. We need to respect the rights that every human has, and work together to provide and protect the rights of those who are being trampled on.
Despite what reservations you may have, we should support the man in charge. He may not make the best decisions, (he's human and makes mistakes too, no one is perfect) but he is responsible for them. If he fails at his job, he will be held accountable. History will judge his actions and ours. Let's work to make sure that our decendents will judge us properly, and give us a good review.

So stop bickering that the Pres. talks with his mouth full, and be glad he is discussing the condition of the Middle East with his fellow world leaders, trying to find a solution. Only by working together can we help solve this problem.

Has it occurred to noone, what an incredible piece of diplomacy this could be if the microphone was not "accidentally" left on. Bush and Blair are both very seasoned politicians with very seasoned support staff. How likely is it that with a room full of media, they didn't check the mic.

This stament provided an incredible vehicle for laying out the groung work of an approach to the situation. This is stronger talk than the leaders could have made iin official statements, and by the nature of it being a Candid private exchange it carries more weight as to the true intent and feelings of these leaders.

The statement also reinforced a power block a power block in the G8.

The statement puts presure on Syria and the UN to do something, and do it soon.

Honestly, I think that this was a perfectly crafted press release. The people that needed to get the message have gotten it, while the rest of the world is caugt in a discussions of polite table manners.

Americans right now are so caugtup in the emotion of whether this is a national embarassment that they have overlooked the content of the discussion and the real diplomatic implications. Wake up America, you just heard a policy brief.

Kudos to Bush and Blair for a job well done.

You know what little experiment I'd like to try... I'd like to show a video of someone to Conservatives and Liberals and have them both describe the events on the video (they do not know the political party of the person in the video).

Then I'd like to show the conservative description to another group of conservatives. Garuanteed they'd say it was a liberal bias article.

Liberals might do the same thing in reverse...

...This is stupid!! The fact he was chewing was just a detail of the story... a detail you can see if you watched the video. Since you are not watching the video and are instead reading about it, the author is describing the scene so you can picture it in your head.

And it doesn't make Bush look bad that he was chewing anyways, it just shows the true candid nature of the lunch-time conversation.

I like the fact that Bush was...well..normal. And didn't beat around the damn bush (no pun intended), h spoke his mind

"See, the irony is that what they need to do is to get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit, and it's over"...that fricking great.

Knick

"You show a total lack of respect for our President.
If this had been a Democratic would you have reported "he can be heard chewing while he talks"?"

Sure, Loretta. And the Republican congress publishing graphic descriptions of Bill Clinton's sex life on the Internet is OK. The hypocrisy of people like you is pathological.

Republicans, you got lucky and you voted this dimwhit to lead this great country. You voted for a frat boy, because he said he is for some of your useless issues. Well he is running a country like a drunken frat boy.
I bet there were other more fit republicans who could represent this country much better, but no, you had to push this dimwhit.
Now we are paying with thousands of deaths and embarrasement.
I can't believe we still have to put up with him for many many months and years to come.

CONCERN about what is right or wrong. PASSION in presenting one's feeling's on the issues. A FREE people, able to express themselves without fear of reprisal. Add some silliness, a little lunacy, a bit of irony, and a flair for finding comedy in tragedy...YOU GOTTA LOVE IT! The AMERICAN WAY at work.

My suggestion: Forward these comments directly to the President. He needs to see them. He needs to know how his fellow countrymen feel about the issues at hand. And he needs to respond to them, all of them. Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and liberals, young and old, black and white, and everybody in between. Because THAT is the AMERICAN WAY, as well.

The future of our nation, and the world in which we live, is at stake.

Bruce,

Yes, targeting Hez. is legitimate.

But events are outrunning even this blog!

Lebanon is being shattered, destroyed. It will be worse than, than,,, Iraq! when Is. finishes.

The destruction of Lebanon and the restart of the Leb. civil war is not in our or Israel's interest.
Yet it looks like it could happen.

The reinstatement of democracy in Leb. was a success story. Much more successful than say, Iraq. They need some TIME.

We encouraged the creation of the current Leb. gvmt. by putting pressure on Syria to leave the country, and so did Israel.

The more his presidency goes on, the better he gets. If liberals would look past the hate and see his actions and actully listen to his words we would all be better off.

A new Bush supporter,

Eric

I really think tht one must pay close attention not only to the I think that people should pay attention to not only what is being said, but how it is being said. I noticed the food chewing. OK, so what? They were eating lunch. The food chewing is light in comparison to how Bush aggressively dominates the conversation, cutting off Mr. Blair in the middle of the conversation only to reiterate what his own desires of the situation are. This is where the food chewing becomes obvious and disturbing. I think the reporter in the above article was pretty easy on our leader. What would you think if the roles were reversed? If Blair or any world leader spoke to our president in the manner that Bush did? All in all, doesn’t this conversation seem a bit disturbing to anyone? What is the relationship between the world’s two greatest leaders? What does our current administration really feel about the UN? Does it not leave anyone with questions as to what kind of game our world leaders play while we (liberals and conservatives) try to determine what is right, wrong, or indifferent? I think it is remarkable that if the press only reports the obvious, that it is deemed liberal junk. Yes, we had a democrat in office that did worse than food chewing. However, in comparison, I think we need to examine the difference in atrocities committed (especially severity and number of). Our government has set a dangerous precedent that is coming to fruition now, as we can see with the current conflict. Does the rhetoric in the news sound familiar? Well, I suppose my observation and comparison is just liberal junk. I am disturbed and feel the media is doing a great job by holding back on this one. They could really go after Mr. Bush if they wanted to. Wait a minute! That’s what the conservative press does! They go for the jugular, but only if it’s a democrat in office. Maybe our media is liberal after all.

I don't like the President but his statement was not wrong.We are on the verge of World War Three we do not have the troops power are Military is exhausted and broken. We can not afford for the whole Middle East to go to all out war.People our troops would be caught in the Middle.Heck I say we got to stop this crap myself.

I appreciate the fact that these guys appear to be saying the same things off the record that they say officially. Well, with a bit more colorful language.

I think the reporter mentioned the chewing to add color and demonstrate the candid nature of the conversation, not to insult anyone.

One shouldn't judge the general population by the small sample that posts on web sites, but boy we sure do seem to have become a shrill and argumentatitve people.

It's hardly fair to criticize Blair or Bush for speaking style at lunch. The mic was supposed to be off. We all talk differently, less clearly, we all "bumble" more in such situations. Later will come the well thought out presentations.

I thought it was an interesting opportunity to hear what they're thinking, "off the record".

Ken N.,

Words can't express how happy I am that I don't have you for a boss. Seriously, what a megalomaniac.
But hey I'm just a liberal loser. I don't know the meaning of hard work. They just gave me an engineering degree when I asked for one. Same with my house and car. You're missing out on all the handouts, Ken. Join the dark side.

Get a clue, dude. Bush is a moron, talking with his mouth full or not.

Loretta,

Please stay out in the Suburbs with your "close" minded self.

As a full fledged liberal I have many reasons to be embarrased by this President but this incident is not one of them. Who cares if he was chewing, he was eating lunch so of course he was chewing. Plus he was actually engaged in conversation dealing with an important issue at hand. There are many many reasons to dislike Bush and his administration but this is just not one of them. It sure is funny to listen to him chew though.

IT WAS A PRIVATE CONVERSATION. HAVEN'T ANY OF YOU EVER HAD THEM????? yes, even powerful people need to have them and are HUMAN. Disgusting that we as a civilization do not realize when and when not to BLAB everything....

Did anyone happen to notice what the President had for dinner? I think that's the real question. What do these guys eat at these regal events? To me it proves that the guy isnt' completely braindead which I'm sure is comforting to my fellow Americans!!!

WHy is anyone surprised. A day doesn't go by that he hasn't screwed up in some kind of way. Any time a President of the US (an entire country filled with different ethnic groups), yet he as a President can favor one ethnic group over all others, only shows how biased and twisted he is. But hey Bush thinks he can say and do anything. Have we forgot the election? Have we forgot the weapons of mass destruction? It's no wonder he didn't talk in Spanish, forgetting he is in America. I would like to know more about the details of Rice/Blair. Where was Homeland Security when he was disclosing/talking? I guess wire taping can go both ways huh?

There is an element of protocol which gives respectability to countries through their leaders actions. Madeline Allbright crossed the line with her theatrics in Malaysia.

Bush remaining seated and stuffing his face during an important discussion with a Head of State, makes one wonder where his manners and priorities are.

The sanctimoniousness of both sides is accomplishing nothing other than the reinforcement of each person's view. Please...for the sake of humanity, it is imperative that we focus on HOW to diffuse the current situation in the middle east instead of on irrelevant details that have no value.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who remembers that the Tribune endorsed Bush twice - to say it Dubya style, "that there's good bias!"

If a world leader, discussing a crucial foreign affairs matter with another world leader, is doing so with food in his mouth, it should be mentioned. End of story. Especially when millions worldwide will hear it for themselves. Failure to include that one sentence would not be doing your job.

Two soldiers, protectors of women and children, were kidnapped. Isreal escalated the violence. The Tribune reports on a candid conversation between two world leaders in an adolescent manner. Tribune readers respond in kind with “…my party is better than your party….”

This is a poor reflection on the American public, self centered and ignorant of the fact that the world outside our borders is rampant with violence and misery and only getting worse. By God, doesn’t anyone realize the Tribune’s Cubs are twenty games below five-hundred!

The best part is the clueless zombies spitting out rote phrases like "liberal media" and "if you love your country, you shouldn't criticize the president."

Calling the Tribune a "liberal" paper shows a complete lack of knowldege, since the editorial board of the Tribune has endorsed a Democratic candidate for President or Governor exacly how many times? Never? Once? In how many years? But, it's part of that phantom "liberal media."

The issue here isn't whether what Bush said as much as the fact that, being President of the United States and sitting on a dais with a microphone in front of you, one would hope the President of the United States would have a little bit more on the ball than to say very obviously private remarks about sensitive issues and lambast the leader of the UN. I mean, honestly, don't we train our small children better than that?

"United we stand divided we fall."
"We the people......."
We the people have the power. It's called voting.
Next election know who you are voting for listen and ask questions. Vote for people not a party that is the lazy way out. Don't let the emotional issues swerve your vote, abortion, gays, guns those are all smoke screens to divide us. Know the real issues that affect us every day. Put as much effort into knowing who is running and what they stand for. As much effort as was put into the voting on american idol. Another smoke screen for "We the people..."
It is our government they work for us. One of the reasons the revolution war was fought to get rid of aristocrisies. We have gone back to it, kennedy's, clinton's and the bush's. Next time you talk to a politician ask them if they know what a loaf of bread cost? why don't your kids or grandkids go to public school's? Why are you not in the social security program? Why do we have to pay for your health insurance? Why do taxes go up and services and programs get cut?

I am sure you have questions to. Ask them.

A. Lincoln

At least he didn't throw up like his dad did. He's just a guy trying to make sense of nonsense in the middle east. The Middle Eastern people like to fight. That's what the problem is. Maybe if they blow up their own infrastructure, they'll develop a middle class which is the missing piece. They have no beer, no air conditioning and only use coffee and tobacco. No wonder they're always angry.

Apparently many of the liberals sending their emails today are still upset that our president has won 2 elections fair and square. It's time to move on people! For any of the people complaining about what the president said must be very prudish and just don't like the president anyway. Get a life people! I'm glad we have a president who realizes right from wrong and won't take anything either from hezbollah or kofi "do nothing" annan! Keep it up George!!! Real patriotic Americans are behind you!

one more thing... it really is incredible how much hatred exists out there - on both sides... I just want leave with a quote...

"Cccccan't we all just get along?"

Oh my! Our president cussed and carried on a conversation while eating? Let ME be
"frank": Get over it. Will the nit-picking ever end? Here's a little insight: Non-biased reporting no longer exists in this country whether it comes from the left OR the right.

Oh, and, believe it or not, Bush is NOT to blame for all of the world's problems. It has taken poor decisions and lack of judgment and action on the parts of MANY MANY of our current and past leaders that has brought us to this juncture in history. You're giving the man entirely too much credit for the downfall of Society as we know it. This has been a long time in the making; acknowledge it.

On another note, this 4th grade maliciousness between far-right and far-left is disgusting. How old are you? You want to know why our country in falling apart? Listen to yourselves. We are a Nation that is divided over BS. Stop flinging dirt from the past and waiting anxiously for new ammo. Start focusing on the real issues and thinking of ways to remedy them. You're all too busy focusing on who's right and who's wrong to actually accomplish anything. We’re hated as a culture because of our in fighting and self-righteousness. While we bicker amongst ourselves our enemies are watching and enjoying every second while they plan their next attack.

I guess the real irony of it all is that 'The Decider' can't seem to decide how to handle both his food and a crisis at the same time.

What do you expect from an individual who is all hat and no cattle! He is not my President as I did not vote for the ...!

From a british perspective, it's far more interesting for us to see how Blair stays in character as the consummate lickspittle. He'd probably chew George Dubya's food for him, if he asked.

Dai James.
South Wales
UK.

What are you going to do? Boycott the Chicago Tribune? Send death threats? This crap with "disrespecting the President" is getting old. I wonder if it would be an issue if it were Clinton or a democrat in office. Speaking out is the MOST patriotic thing you can do. That is what democracy is. This president has no class and is an embarassment to the American people.

The world is plunging into disastrous chaos and you people are worried about a newspaper report that mentioned the president was chewing his food. The thread here might have been about America's leadership responsibilities as the world's sole superpower, but the conversation that developed instead is just one more small piece of evidence that we probably won't be burdened with those responsibilities much longer.

Someone should tell Mr Bush that not only is it impolite to talk with food in your mouth, he could choke to death doing that!

Who cares what side of the aisle the Trib sits on..this is how s@#t gets done. I think it is interesting that we get a quick listen on how things happen in the executive level of our government...not much different than corporations or Bob's Auto Shop. At the end of the day we are all Humans. We all speak informally in front of friends and coworkers. Yeah they should have noticed the mic was on..but does it change my opinion of Bush or Blair, not whatesoever. I don't care if it was JFK, Clinton, Reagan, anyone. It is nice to see that our leaders are human.

"...with Blair apparently speaking rather than eating as he stood and leaned over Bush's shoulder. "

How can you tell?

There's no food on Bush's shoulder.

Ohhh, I see.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

But seriously, I wonder how Kerry would have handled this?

Kerry: "I think, as you know, and as I've said before, which reminds me of when I shot the 32opt buck in my pajammas (what he was doing there I can't say because it's a closely guarded secret which I will leak at the inappropriate time) as I landed an Israeli jet upside down on my way to the moon..."

Blair: "What's your POINT, d***n it?"

Kerry: "oh, yes, I think we should give the Iranians MORE Uraniam.
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/sokolski200410050924.asp
That should test their honesty, and fill my campaign coffers,
http://frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=12411
...and... what was the question again...?"

Too bad Bush won (and he really DID win) and Kerry didn't.?

Oh, please!

Liberal media out of control again. The President didn't do or say anything we hadn't already thought of. He may not be a knight in shinning armor but he is our President. I do not like his stand on Illegals but he does represent us no matter what.
Loretta is right Tribune start counting your pennies, papers that are biased are old hat. I cancelled long ago and read on line so I can save money and fund better candidates.

The Tribune is conservative? Wow, how skewered we all are in opinions. I imagine anyone who thinks the Tribune is conservative also thinks Dick "the Turban" Durbin is a moderate. Still, nothing like a little red meat journalism tossed to the masses for a good rip and feeding.

It makes me laugh at how desperate those on the Left are that they grab onto something as trivial as this and make it into a gigantic case against Bush. Believe me, some of W's policies are disappointing to a large population of us who voted for him, but if the Democrats would have put up anyone... and I do mean ANYONE worth voting for in 2000 and 2004, then maybe things would be different now. I'm so sure that Al Gore's presence in the Oval Office would have been just the trick to avoid 9/11... but I digress...

Quite honestly, all lack of tact aside, Bush's assessment is pretty much spot-on. Maybe he's not as eloquent as those of you who bleed blue would like him to be, but then again this conversation was captured completely accidentally.

Get over it you whining Lefties...

And Trib - you make me want to puke. For shame... "Bush could be heard chewing throughout the exchange while he was speaking..."

Real Pulitzer material... not.

Anyone who has never swoare please step forward. Anyone who has never sworn at work step forward. Being a world leader is a job, just like ours. We express frustration, and nobody prints it in papers around the world. Why are we obsessing on this ?!

I never knew he could do two things at once.

How in the world did Bush have Iraq "forced on him" by Clinton?

As to the chewing reference, Carol N. has it right when she notes that it provides useful context, demonstrating that this clearly was an informal conversation between world leaders. Only if you're overly sensitive do you get offended that Bush was overheard chewing.

The content of the conversation indicates that neither Bush nor Blair has much of a clue about what to do. Their preference is to pass the buck to Kofi Annan to get Syria to pressure Lebanon to pressure Hezbollah. But it doesn't appear that that is going to happen, so maybe Bush will send Rice, though he's not really sure when or what she can accomplish.

The mess in the mideast is complicated and tricky. But this situation is not new, and the President should have more than a vague notion, he should have a clearly defined strategy for asserting U.S. power when, where and how needed to bring about the best possible result.

What a waste of everybody's time this editorial (not so cleverly disguised as a news article) was! It wasn't even a newsworthy publication!

Why doesn't the media just come clean and admit that they hate any Republican holding public office? Haven't you people ever used explicatives before? You and the Democrats are nothing but a bunch of yellow, nit-picking hypocrites! The moment you begin to OBJECTIVELY state your observations is when you'll have any real credibilty!

I agree completely with the President; the events occurring in the Middle East are a total crock (decided not to offend your virgin ears ... yet). The Hezbollah is simply another Islamic extremist organization that cannot stand the idea of peace with Israel, much less its existence, so they'll do anything they can to agitate an already tense situation and attempt to make Israel look like the aggressor. I hope Israel pounds the S--- out of Hezbollah!!!! There, I said it!

Don't blame the press for writing about an unscripted conversation - there have been very few unscripted moments in this President's tenure. The press conferences have been seeded with supporters, and the news we get is no more than PR. So this is pretty refreshing, actually! Yes, it confirms his unclear thinking and boarish behavior, but we already knew about that, didn't we?

Let's just clear something up. Bush is an ignorant cowboy from Texas who doesn't have much of a vision for world politics. Sounds like the typical American.

Let's clear something else up. Bush isn't responsible for the plummeting economy. Come on, do you seriously think that one person is responsible for the rise or fall of a multi-trillion dollar economy? Sure the president is a powerful man, but not as powerful as you may think.

And as for this article...perhaps the journalist was a democrat, and perhaps that had something to do with the way he wrote it. But I think that the bigger factor is that he is someone in a position of power, and is therefore subject to intense scrutiny. When he slips up, it is big news and worth exploiting, no matter what political party he belongs to.

Most Americans get so caught up in party politics that they can't see clearly what is going on around them. That's exactly what politicians want--their people to be passionately, and blindly (ignorantly), involved. Republicans, Democrats: Drop your weapons and look around. This country has been sleeping.

First of all: what we have is part of a conversation. If anyone wants to judge the conversation on its policy/diplomatic merit, they need to hear the whole conversation. What can really be determined, without knowing what else was said?

The only thing that can be definitively said is that the president is probably embarrased about being caught at unawares. Thus, the Tribune and the Today Show bring it up. I don't suppose anyone likes to be broadcast talking with their mouth full of food. The president is no doubt embarrassed about being caught on tape when he thought no one but Tony Blair heard--would he normally take a bite before walking up to a microphone in front of cameras to use a vulgarity? Probably not. Vulgarity is generally the sign of a lazy attempt at expressing oneself forcefully, and it generally only works with people who are (at the moment at least) listening lazily. So the man is going to be embarrassed, because like him or not, no one gets eight years in the White House by being all stupid. Pity that people in Hollywood can make millions by acting so on camera, and that they pat themselves on the back for it with Oscars.

Hard working, thinking conservatives? Quite the contradiction in terms.

What a non-issue this is. The real insight here is that we have real moments where Blair & Bush are, through their speech patterns and mannerisms(rather than measured words written by some speech writer), are displaying the lack of trust that they both have in Kofi Annan, and his one-dimensional view of the world.

Do I care about the President cussing at a situation as grave as this? No. As a matter of fact, I'm glad he's passionate about it. On other threads here, he is accused of being too dispassionate about this conflict. I think it just goes to show that, no matter what your political inclination, people who have a different ideology will always look for some way to discredit you, even if they agree with your actions.

Wake up, people. This is not a liberal/conservative issue. This escalating war is an American and global issue, and our troops in Iraq did not cause the 24 years of attacks by Hezbollah on Israel. These two groups, Jews & Arabs, have been fighting since the beginning of recorded history. Surely, Bill Clinton & George Bush could have taken actions to "circumvent" this (and some did, as in Clinton, who convinced Israel to give up land for peace - only the peace that was promised has not materialized). To trivialize the issue by poking fun at our President because of the way he spoke while eating lunch, or because he cussed out of frustration that hundreds are going to die, is ludicrous. (Not that I'm against this article - it's more the ignorant responses, on both sides, that seem stupid to me in light of the seriousness of the issue).

So he said sh*t. This is a complete non-story. Its only purpose is to embarass the President. I think the space could have been used for something more important.

I am a liberal citizen. I look at this event and laugh. Bush is human, I understnad that. However, being in the public eye, or ear, as it may be, and being criticized for what was overheard shouldn't be shocking. Political leaders have to be aware that they are their NATION'S spokesperson. Regardless that this was overheard; this is an event in Russia with various foreign leaders...this might not be the right time to "chat" about this.

I can't wait for the next president to come around just so we can talk about someone else and their inadequacy.

Maria,
Sure, security is an important thing. But there are other important things. The Clinton administration may not have pushed for security-on-steroids, but it did push for a universal healthcare system. Unfortunately, congress and many American companies put their capitalistic objectives before ensuring that everyone in the wealthiest country in the world could get healthcare. As it turns out, well over 40 million Americans (about 15%) don't have health insurance. And conditions are getting worse, with rising costs and companies cutting back on the coverage they offer to employees. September 11 was horrible--no one will deny that. But there are thousands who die daily because they don't have health insurance. Stop letting the paranoia and the headlines blur your vision. The U.S.'s biggest threats are internal.

I don't think innocent people on both sides being killed, should be considered 'shit' or casually discussed while having dinner.

Unfortunately, our current 'leader' does not realize the seriousness of this and other violent situations.

I think this was a good story. Very candid, very true.

Ken Nachreiner...what is the name of your company? How soon do you plan on downsizing those reported "losers" you employ?

How many of the posters above feel that with or without the Bush administration's policies being employed, the Middle East would have gone into the toilet or the **** would have hit the fan sooner or later anyway?

Isn't it correct that bin Laden's planning efforts to attack our country go back as far as the late 80's and early 90's?

If the above is an accepted statement, it kind of negates the conservative v. liberal arguments. Doesn't it?

Sure. Maybe we shouldn't have gone into Iraq for the obvious reasons (what's happening now). On the other hand, I've heard other opinions that seem to allude to the fact that strategically, it was a good move to make in the sense that it sure seemed to draw alot of jihadists to the country from all over the world thus taking the focus away from attacks on our soil. Could that be valid as well?

Bush embarrasses himself almost every day, and if that were the worst thing he did I could live with that, and accept just having a laughingstock for a president. But noooooo. What we have is a puppet for big business, the mascot for class warfare and a goof who has single-handedly tipped the world upside-down and has made America one of the most despised countries on the planet. The next president whoever that is, will have their hands full just reversing the damage Bush has done.

The conversation recorded shows two heads of state taking advantage of an opportunity to discuss foreign policy candidly. I will go so far as to say that Bush's foreign policy ranks amongst the worst in recent times - but here he is addressing a grave and growing problem with diplomacy towards the true aggressors. His comments are to the point and he is looking to help save lives - this is a move in the right direction. This situation is very pressing and very dire, and to be frank, I don't give a s___ what language he uses - I'd rather the substance of his conversation be something other than the usual tripe that he is spoonfed by his advisors.

This is a great country - but it is being dragged over the coals by liberals who do nothing but disagree with and attack the conservatives and by conservatives who do nothing but toe the republican party line, which in recent years, is nothing the conservatives of yesterday would stand. I am a liberal - I think Bush will go down in history as a very poor President, but that does not mean that I find it acceptable to attack conservatives because they hold the opposite opinion. I will remind all people that there the extreme of leftism and rightism are equally and unequivocally horrid.

To attack someone's intelligence because of their political affiliation is sound proof of the author's lack thereof. To shout liberal bias whenever something less than favorable is printed about a leader is to ignore the hundreds of thousands of times that reporters and copy editors correct grammatical errors or spelling errors in official's statements when reprinting - it is also to ignore the talk radio circuit (almost entirely conservative) and the Fox News network. To accuse someone of being unpatriotic or a coward because the voice opposition to current policy is utterly ridiculous - there are men and women in uniform that are serving despite their belief that this war is a grave error. Conservatives and liberals only become the insane, stubborn zealots that the opposing side fears when that side assumes that all conservatives are hawkish, unsympathetic rich snobs and that all liberals are baby-killing, poor, elitist hippies.

To commment on the substance of the aritlce - Bush is right - Syria, if it intends on playing a part in the peaceful global society, must aid in stopping a situation the Hezbollah militia, that they fund and support, has created. Bush, if his legacy is to include anything positive in the middle east must make strong, quick and definite progress in the Israel/Palestine and Iraq situations.

Let's get back to the real substance of what Bush was saying and forget about the trivial partisanship. Syria needs to stop this sh--! The are about to start WWIII and have entered into a fight that we must win for the sake of civilization. We should really be talking about Bush's and Israel's response to terorists versus the response put forward by Kofi and other foreign leaders that will bring us back to this same fight in future days, weeks and years! It is time to talk about reality and end this fight once and foreall! All Americans should agree with that... who cares about food and how you eat it if you are dead!!!

I'm not a Dubya lover, but to hear this man speaking normally and correctly about a situation gives me some confidence we'll it through somehow.

a democrat

United we stand.......

The rest of the quote is: Divided we fall......

That's a serious thing to consider. Divided we fall!

So, all of this over a few seconds of conversation? Ridiculous. Seems to me we all have more serious issues to consider. Both Cinton and Bush are responsible for foolish mistakes. Both are responsible for commendable achievements. No president should be blamed for all that goes wrong in the world. So, let's quit the name calling and the tit for tat comments and engage in intelligent conversation with one another and strive for sound solutions. The liberal and conservative viewpoints expressed in these comments reflect a kind of check and balance among the the governed. It is somewhat similar to the checks and balances that were designed by our forefathers in setting up our government to keep it balanced and stable. All of us can learn from one another while not having to agree on all issues. Respecting one another and respecting the office of the President of the United States of America, regardless of the party holding the office is imperative. If we can get past all the name calling and prejudice toward one party or the other, then we can listen and learn from one another and elect the right person for whatever political office they are running for. Yes, I have voted for Democrats and Republicans for various offices in the past. My choices didn't always get elected and sometimes when my choice was elected, the performance was not always what was promised. Following a leader blindly is not a very good idea, I believe we learned that about Germany and a few other countries during WWII. However, to insult and ridicule a person for their support of the president of their country is very wrong, whether it was Bush or Clinton or any other Democrat, Republican, or Independent. Let's work together to straighten out the mess we're in and hold this great nation up and not let it fall. Divided we fall are the sobering consequences we will all endure together, whether we are liberal or conservative or anywhere in between. Thank you for your time.

I guess Momma Bush never taught Dubya any manners--you don't talk when your mouth is full of food.

Dear Ken -

It was so nice of you to use your full name in your wonderful comment. Wouldn't it be funny if only half of those 300 "losers" you employ read your comments about how much you value their hard work to help your pockets grow.

You neo-cons are all the same: All you care about is how big you can make your pockets swell and don't care how many people get hurt/bombed/raped and tortured in the process.

I don’t think this report was distasteful. I think it is a news-worthy story of our leader discussing major crises with another leader off the records. I also don’t think the president chewing his food while talking was a big deal. He didn’t know he was being recorded. If anything, he might have been trying to keep the appearance of a casual conversation since he probably knew he was being photographed. As for the substance of the conversation, there are no surprises there.

Ken,

You must be living on a different planet than the rest of us. I think the issue in IRAQ was totally a choice made by Bush and his cronies. Last I checked, the intelligence wasn't there to support the decision, he was advised by others (Colin Powell) that it was a bad idea and yet, here we are. Personal matters in the White House or 3,000 U.S. troops dead for no reason....hmmm, which is more damaging to the country?

Unfortunately, some village in Texas is missing its idiot and, some of us would like to see that he gets home soon so that the rest of the world will start respecting us and our President again.

intriguingly, either ken wants all "liberals" to stop buying from http://erichindustries.com/

or someone who really hates ken and http://erichindustries.com/ wants all "liberals" to stop buying there.

or at least that's what a quick google tells me.

I don't quite understand what all the fuss is about. A) This is not a normal "news story" this is a Washington bureau blog. B) This is a transcript of a recording that we cannot hear. Mr. Silva is simply transcribing what happened and bringing audio to life on paper. Even if this WAS a news story I see no real bias or disrespecting of the president.

I think everyone in this country needs to take a DEEP breath and stop straining the gnat while swallowing the camel. We're all looking SO hard for some little word, phrase, or comment so we can go off on a news story, columnist, or opposite party politician. Unfortunately the American public is only following the lead of their elected representatives as every other news show is peppered with partisan attacks about the STUPIDEST things. This country is so concerned with assigning blame whole throwing the true principles of responsibility and accountability out the window.

This country is at war and our main weapons are rhetoric. This war keeps escalating and escalating and escalating with no end in sight. We have a choice. It's time to put away the politics and see the gravity of all that is going on in this world. Right now the stability of this world is much more important that this November's election. Now if only congress could figure that out.

another embarrassing moment for Bushes legacy!

Good for President Bush! I would have said a lot worse. It is obvious that these extremist groups will stop at nothing to destroy all what is good about a democratic society, ie, capitalism, freedom of speech, security, properiety etc.
I hope Israel clobber these TERRORISTS as well....it's about time someone put their money where their mouth is!

Fascinating exchange.

What kills me is the fact that Republicans are upset over his chewing with his mouth full, not the fact that our so called "christian" president swore. Now that shows real "family values" to me. Granted I swear but then again I don't do it in the same sentence "claiming" I am a good christian. It seems to me if Bush were a real "christian" he wouldn't be swearing would he?

OK, I'm a "leftie." I loathe what Bush has done to our country.

But this entry was written badly and seems to be beating a dead (lame) horse. Mark, I wasn't really sure if you were saying Bush was chewing while speaking, or simply that you could hear him chewing because of the open mic. Clearly Blair wouldn't be chewing, because he was leaning over Bush's shoulder. And the fact that Bush used an expletive is hardly a big deal in a private conversation.

On the other hand, I wonder if Ken Nachreiner's eployees know how he feels about them? I googled on his name, and it wouldn't be too hard for someone to contact a certain company in Streamwood which apparently has hired 300 useless left-wing workers... Not too smart for a genius who needed to let us know how big his penis was!

The problem isn't the liberal media because if there were a liberal media then even the conservatives would realize what an embarassment Bush is as a President. The real problem is we have a President who never takes the opportunity to use the power he has as the leader of the most powerful nation in the world to be Presidental. He could talk to Syria himself. But here he is sending Condi, or wishing Kafi would, even the most ardent Bush support should be able to see that the President has to have the backbone to do something. And please you republicans don't point to the Iraq Conflict and his stance on terrorism as an example of his ability to take charge of a situation. The Iraq war is our generation's Vietnam and if your children could be drafted to fight this war or we were losing hundreds of civilians a day you might be able to see beyond your own self interest. We need a President who can be one.

Adults swear sometimes. Who cares. Get over it. It the big picture, does using a word that some have declaired "bad" really matter?

Bruce let me be the first to congratulate you on sticking to the issue and not just attacking the media. I find myself (for the first time) agreeing with you on the point of diplomacy with other nations to try and solve a difficult and dangerous situation.

A poster said,"At least he didn't throw up like his dad did." That's so true. He makes everyone else throw up everytime he opens his month.

He we are commenting on what was supposed to be a private conversation between the only two leaders of the world who have any guts. President Bush is refreshingly human and shares the views of a lot more people than those who comment realize. The UN is nothing but a debating society, Condi Rice does not have to tell the President EXACTLY when she is leaving (maybe arrangements were still being made?) and Israel does not have to explain itself after having two of it's soldiers kidnapped from their home territory.
I wonder what expletive Bush will utter when one of the WMD's that was moved from Iraq to Syria is launched toward Tel Aviv on an Iranian missle?
Wake up people! There are people out there who want to hurt us and they do not care who is in the White House.
As for the story, it clearly states that the "context of the conversation is" and then goes on to use quotation marks followed by several "..." indicating there was conversation going on that could change the whole slant of the story. I cannot wait to read the transcript and fill in all the blanks that you left out.

People are missing the point. Reporting that Bush could be heard chewing, and that he used a cuss word, isn't a criticism, or evidence of bias. They are factual details included to underscore the point that the president was speaking informally and was unaware that his microphone was live.

Which by extension makes their conversation that much more significant, because it's reasonable to assume that what two world leaders say when the microphones are (presumed) off is closer to what they truly believe than the carefully worded statements they issue publicly.

Anyone who detects bias and a liberal agenda in this factual reporting is demonstrating a hypersensitive that precludes rational thought.

Having heard "frank" conversations between pesidents, cabinet members and advisors on domestic and foriegn policy issues, it seems many have used rather "colorful" language when expressing their frustrations about various situations they were trying to sucessfully resolve. Some of the exchanges are not that different than one might hear in the local barber shop or diner.

There is nothing inherently wrong with anything Bush said or did. The problem is the whole exchange simply underlines the fact that Bush really is as simple-minded and dolt-ish in person as he comes off in the public eye. No, there's nothing wrong with speaking with food in your mouth, making painfully obvious observations, and speaking to people like you're at a drunk fest. There IS something wrong when you do this and you're representing the United States of America diplomatically.

That some Bush backers don't see the problem is a testament to their own poor cognitive capacities and social manners.

Let me get this straight: You lefties are upset Bush was caught saying the s word? You folks are really, really sad!! How about this: When Slick Willy was president, he was caught on tape castigating an aide and repeatedly dropped the F bomb. So what!! Get over it. He said the s word!! Oh my, let's impeach him!!

Two issues (and neither about food):

Blair says, in reaction to Bush's assertion that Rice will be sent: "Obviously, if she goes out, she's got to succeed, as it were, whereas I can go out and just talk…" That is the most fascinating part of the conversation to me--it's an amazing look at either how Britain and America are willing to cooperate (and too bad their hand is so easily revealed) or it's a shocking admittance that Blair will give up a little British international credibility in order to protect Rice's credibility.

Second, since this conversation has become one on journalism, the whole thread accepts that the immediate Israeli/Gaza/Palestine conflict started a few weeks ago with two soldiers being kidnapped. Haven't we been watching the news? Prior to that, Israel had arrested scores of Hammas leaders, in reaction to something else in reaction to something else. When did we start swallowing such a simple explanation as one dramatic crime started the war?

Too bad hardly anyone responded to this article. What really surprised me was that a God-fearin' man like our President would use such a dirty, filthy, gross, unseemly, foul, uncouth, base, trashy, and definitely "not nice" word. Now, if Nixon had used such a word, well, there...there...I can understand that, but not such a man as our current President. Oh my...oh my!

By the way, is this Comments Board on?...Tap...Tap...Tap.

I despise this idiot and everything he stands for, but I have to admit, I found this exchange strangely charming. For the first time, he gives the impression of actually having some knowledge of, and independent opinion on, world events. I dunno, I kind of liked the guy for a few seconds there. He comes across as a human being, for starters.

Afternoon all, I think is funny how you can’t have an opinion on your presidents table manners without people interpreting political bias. I’m sure our prime minister was not impressed with the view of Mr Bush’s full mouth.
D Herbert, London, UK

Print does not due this justice. Visit cnn.com for the video.

The chewing and the apparent aggravation that the Prime Minister dare interrupt Mr. Bush's meal, my friends, is key. It's not the mild expletive--if I was in his position the language I'd be using would be much worse.

This man is and has been in WAY over his head. Unfortunately he's dragging the world down with him and folks who apologize for him (or the loser Democrats who can't campaign their way out of a paper bag)scare the s#%t out of me daily.

It seems we have greater problems than food chewing, the situation in the Middle East, and Condi: grammar and spelling.

Folks, YOUR (not you're) writing takes away from the points YOU'RE (not your) arguing. IT'S (not it is) sometimes hard to think about these things on the fly, but that's the way IT IS (not it's).

As many have stated, the idea of "liberal bias" in the Tribune is absurd. This is one of THE MOST CONSERVATIVE papers in the country (they have NEVER endorsed a Democratic presidential candidate). For sheeple like Loretta, the truth equals bias.

What wrong with this scenario?
Two low level Israeli soldiers get captured in a continuing warfare between Hezbollah and the Israeli Defense forces.

Israel's reponse--destroy the infrastructure of Lebanon, its airport, its seaports, and kill innocent civilians. Then, go arm-in-arm with Bush and claim you are defending youself.

Defending against what that should cause such destuction?

Perhaps the time has come to look as Israel in the same way the US and other countries insist on looking at other so-called terrorists--as armed agressors who use extraordinary force with the slightest provocation, and the least real reason. Israel seems to bew no different--attack and destroy without reason those who are harmless against them, then claim everyone is a terrorist.

Hey it was all for desperate housewife Laura. "Talk dirty to me George. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

I have long believed (since 1984 campaign comments against Ferraro by Babs) that W qualifies for the SOB title but I don't give a damn about his eating habits , just his total lack of brains. I did admire the Welsh guy, Dai James, for nailing Blair with "lickspittle". Our fellow anglophones across the pond can teach us how to use our supposedly common tongue. Hail St. David and his troops.

Regarding Brad Smith posting. What train of thought did you arrive. One is patriotic if they condone profanity????? Did you read all of the postings? Who cares that the moron got caught swearing again. Remember Naperville???? Us liberals think it is hysterical. Just more substansiation that he is indeed a moron. Us liberals will get over Bush stealing both elections when you conservatives get over Clinton beating the pants off the morons daddy!!!

But looks what the American-hating liberal New York Times wrote:

"Leaning over the back of Mr. Bush’s chair, Mr. Blair first brought up trade discussions, as the president chewed thoughtfully on a roll."

Is there any doubt that the Tribune is in the hands of the evildoers?

See the video for yourself over at CNN and see if he is talking with his mouth full (he is), and if he cusses (he does). Furthermore, he interupts Blair as he talks on several occasions. All around bad table manners from the leader of the Free World.

http://www.cnn.com

(mirrored at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jj7r53zCzs )

I want to compliment the teachers who got their 10 and 11 year old students to write so many of the letters that I just finished reading. " From the mouths of babes....".

Table manners aside, the two leaders don´t seem to have a clue as how to solve the ME crisis. That's a scary thought.

All that mumbling and hesitation only indicates that they are addressing very explosive issues on a day-by-day basis. I wonder if the desision to invade Irak was also a jerk-nee reaction.

Nobody cares.

So should only positive stories be published concerning our leaders? Hell, no! Hold them accountable - Republican or Democrat, or British or whatever. They all speak with forked tongues, so by all means let's catch 'em when they talk out of the side of their mouths! They're not like us, I'm telling ya. Pay attention, and you will see their true skin.

I am from Texas and like the Dixie Chicks, I am embrassed to have this transplanted, half-baked Texan [sic] as our president. Where did he think he was?; at a Bastrop, Texas barbeque stand!!

I saw a TV clip of the Bush-Blair impromptu. It didn't change my view of either man one way or another. Since I am not a citizen of the UK, I'll say nothing about Blair; let someone from over there do so. As to Bush: my grandmother once said that if I hadn't anything nice to say about a person, I should say anything. I don't and I won't.

Unfortunately, the facts speak for themselves. People like Loretta just can't see it. I have a bumper sticker that says "Blind Faith in Bad Leadership is not Patriotism". Bush tries to make us believe if we are against him, then we are against the USA and our troops. He is wrong. I am a registered republican who is EMBARRASSED by Bush. I am embarrassed to state that I voted for him the first time....but I woke up and saw what was really happening....I see more of it everyday....how sad that he has divided this country the way he has...

President chews his food while having a casual conversation. Is this a crime?

As an outside observer I marvel at the Bush backers stress that its correct to talk with your mouth full just because the president does . With the bit that came through with the recording makes one know that someone else must be looking after things because their conversation seemed more like undecided sand lot bullies

Get real! All of you. All politicians lie. Consequences vary. Be honest in your comparisons of the last six years vs the eight preceding. Apart from a wasted $30mil+ so that Ken Starr could get his jollies listening to 'evidence' that would have been thrown out in regular court, how many deaths of loyal American citizen-soldiers resulted from the Lies of the previous Administration?
What a laugh, the knee jerk responses of avowed Conservatives. You are not 'conservative', you are emotionally, morally and intellectually Constipated. You would be the only ones to accuse the Trib of being liberal. Beware, you may be sued for defamation of character. The Trib has not published the July 15 article by Uri Avnery entitled The Real Aim. We know why. It does not mesh with the image propagated by our government and their lobbyist/financiers/publishers. Poor Jack Abramoff, he got caught.
Wise up, all of you. Think. Don't merely react. The politicians and their media are all yanking your collective chains. See the real issues, get past the 'red herrings', see beyond the smoke and mirrors.

As an outside observer I marvel at the Bush backers stress that its correct to talk with your mouth full just because the president does . With the bit that came through with the recording makes one know that someone else must be looking after things because their conversation seemed more like undecided sand lot bullies

HOW IS REPORTING THAT BUSH WAS EATING WHILE TALKING A LIBERAL BIAS? He was, wasn't he? Can't anyone see that from the video...? Isn't this just stating the obvious?

I don't even see why it's a bad thing... hasn't everyone had a conversation while having lunch?? That's pretty weak if the reporter was thinking, "ewh, I'll get that Bush and put in this here article about him chewing while talking to Blair!!"

This is NOT an example of an article with a Liberal Media Bias. The reporter was just stating the facts. He was just describing the video!

On the flip side, the US Congress released a public report stating in detail what Bill Clinton did with a cigar. I'm no Clinton-Lover... in fact, I'm an Independent.. but I can't help think how ironic and hypocritical it is when conservatives think it's ok to embarass our country by releasing THAT information and NOT ok to say that Bush was eating while he was talking in a video anyone and everyone can see for themselves??????

It's not like there was a readily available video of the Clinton Cigar incident(thank god) and reporting about it was just re-stating already known public facts.

Whether you agree with releasing the Clinton/Cigar info to the public (and world) or not, you have to agree that the liberals have a better example of hateful malicious disclosure of information for the sole purpose of humiliating and degrading. I don't think saying that Bush was chewing as he talked was the same.

You are an idiot if you want to boycott a newspaper over this article!

I would say the same things no matter who the politician is... would you? That is the question... if this was Ted Kennedy who was caught on tape in a lunch-time conversation and Fox News reported he was chewing while talking, would you think Fox had a Conservative Bias against Ted??? No way! And if Liberals said Fox News was biased over that, you'd call them hysterics!

If anyone is interested, a simple google search for "Ken Nachreiner" will direct you to his company: Erich Industries, Inc. They have offices in Illinois and Wisconsin. You can go to www.ErichIndustries.com and learn some interesting facts about automatic door openers. Or you can contact them directly and maybe direct his deadbeat employees to his comments. I just did. I'm sure with a little research it wouldn't be hard to find his customers and vendors as well. How does such a brilliant entrepreneur such as Ken succeed in any business with such a lack of decency, professionalism or understanding that, just like Bush, you should be careful what you say?

It's an interesting snapshot of a world leader working out very difficult issues with his most important ally. Bush has some very heavy lifting in order to set the world to rights. Sadly, over the last six years he's demonstrated no such apptitude for power politics. The next leader we elect had better be smart and experieneced or the world will pay the price.

I'm sure it would make the employees of Erich Industries, Inc. very unhappy to know that the owner, Mr. Nachreiner, considers them to be "losers." That knowledge would probably have a negative impact on productivity. Thankfully, the "losers" aren't collecting a fat paycheck for sitting around all day reading and responding to blogs.

I wonder if Mr. Ken Nachreiner would like his employees at Erich Industries to know that he considers them all "losers"? "I have almost 300 of these losers working for my company". I wonder where you would be without those 300 losers? It is blinders on conservatives like you that have a hard time differentiating between important events...Middle East Wars and superfluous events...Lewinsky. On has an effect on more than 10 people. You chose!

Bush actually is not a Texas cowboy; he is a very highly educated, pampered eastern brat who has been coddled by His daddy and his friends forever. Poster named Cathy has an excellent point, this president has had so few press conferences other than the staged ones where Helen Thomas has to sit in the back, that its pretty interesting when we hear him say things off the cuff. Poster Kenneth Larsen, this newspaper has endorsed Republicans in almost every presidential election going back to 1980. I think they endorsed CLinton once. Poster TimHowe, you're pretty much right on the money.
And finally, to Ken Nachreiner, intelligence and wisdom are not judged by your balance sheet, this is a country that is for all the people, and if you need me to explain to you how having a large economically impoverished population actually helps business owners, than you aren't an 8th as smart as you presume to be.

Interesting...haven't any of the Trib readers ever had a private conversation in which they said things or phrased things in a way that they might not have if they were speaking in public? That is the crux of the story. Republican or Democrat...stop whining about the injustices of journalism and get back to work.

*** W. is great at making the everyday person think that we too can understand the issue and what is at stake.

Posted by: Corrado | Jul 17, 2006 9:05:38 AM

Well golly gee. I'm just so grateful that I've got W. here to explain things to me. I guess as an everyday person I'm just not smart enough to think for myself and form my any of my own opinions. Please, if you need W. to explain things to you, you should do a little more reading (not just the comics) and you certianly need to pay closer attention to what is going on in the world around you.

Um.................... another example of Bush the puppet getting his strings in a knot. This guy has zero class and dignity. Read My Life by Bill Clinton and see how foreign affairs should be handled. Can anyone say Clinton (Hillary) and Obama in 2008

This private exchange does nothing but give me more respect for both Blair and Bush. Bush is 100% right that Syria needs cut out this (stuff). To all the whiners out there saying Bush is uncultured for using such salty language in a PRIVATE conversation, I say grow up. If you want to hear some real, no BS, Texas politician language I suggest you look up the tapes of LBJ in his private moments.

This must be a slow news day

Big deal, George Bush said a "naughty" word. I have used plenty of curse words on a daily basis when I am referring to Bush. If fact, the "dirty" word Bush is accused of saying is exactly the thing I did in my pants the day the Supreme Court appointed him president in 2000.

Conservatives never cease to amaze me. Always moaning about objectivity, oblivious to the fact that no less than laws of mathematics- Gödel's incompleteness theorem- and scientific discovery- Experimenter's bias- rule it out as a possibility. And what do they hold out as an example? Fox News. Fair and balanced. Perhaps if Joe Lockhart wrote this article, the Tribune would be fair and balanced as well.

So what's the problem then? That a reporter reporting on an audio and video tape reported more audio than befitting a Top Gun Harvard executive? Should it have been sanitized and airbrushed so the plebs would get the sanctioned image? You people don't deserve democracy. Fitting seeing as your man is working to see we're all denied it.

Why does it matter whether Bush is a Democrat or a Republican. Make the other nations of the world be more responsible and find a way to end this situation. America did not go into the middle east and carve it up. The Europeans did the carving hundreds of years ago. They are ultimately responsible for this mess. The English, French, Spain and Russia need to solve this problem. We can assist them when they make a true effort to fix this issue.

Bush looked, sounded, and acted like a two year child chewing and smacking away, mouth full of food, during the exchange (all unfortunately visible and audible on the videotape). The mention here was not gratuitous, it was a significant part of painting the picture. They actually didn't paint it well enough. Watch the video. It doesn't have anything to do with "liberal media", idiots.

Loretta implies that if you disagree with Bush you don't love our country. That's the conservative refrain.

Here's another thought: if you think liberals hate the U.S. and want to see it suffer, then you'd think liberals would love Bush in the White House. Gas prices are going through the roof and everything else seems "out of our control."

President Bush fell for Al Qaeda's trap and have gone down the path of an endless war on terror. If liberals hated America so much, they should be overjoyed with Bush's performance.

The Tribune article was much more detailed then the NYT article. I was looking for complete and correct information, and found it. I was not looking for an op-ed article.

Some of you need an emergency brain transplant.

Hey, Americans, has anyone of you actually thought about what a co-incident the taping was?

Of all microphones at the round table, just the one where “the leaders of the western world” sat/stood was switched on???
Bloody oath, I can smell a rat, even if you can’t.
Doesn’t it hit you, this was a set up you are falling for it?

Now who get’s away looking really human and easy going, doing the buddy-thing and not putting blame on any nation? All nations mentioned. Not a bad word was said about anyone or any country. Condi chips in as the long arm of Bush, big Mama Syria just has to sort out the naughty Hezbollah, then Lebanon shall be all hunky dory, and Kofi should just fix a 60 year dispute/war!!! between Israel and Palestine and after that’s been sorted quick-fast – well it’s only a short way to get Iraq under control…

Look, they cant be so bloody naïve – therefore we have to look at who is getting away in this charade best?
Bush and Blair.
Why? Because this clip is broadcast all over the world incl. the Arab Channels, as well as your CNN and all European News channels. What does it convey? We are good boys, we don’t want war (in our fuel-stop middle East) with you.
It wouldn’t surprise me if Putin supported this Bush and Blair special. Honestly, microphones on-air in Russia by accident???

I can't believe this is such a big deal. Didja ever hear about how other presidents talked? How bout Lyndon Johnson, Truman, Nixon, Grant, to name a few. And then there was General Patton. This country could learn a few things - from people like Lee Kuan Yew, for example, saying, "I am not interested in being politically correct. I am interested in being correct. - I do not want to sound like a hawk or a dove....I would like to think as an owl. - One value which does not fit Singapore is the theory that the press is the fourth estate... We cannot allow them to assume a role in Singapore that the American media plays: that of invigilator, adversary, and inquisitor of the administration. - If you do not understand that you've got to defend this country, then I say in the end we will lose."

Hi all,

It's good to read antagonistic democracy in action, but it is interesting how both our countries have an incredible ability to disect our own leaders (not just their views) and resist forming strong opinions about overseas leaders.

In the UK, remember that Blair is seen as on the left. (but only in comparison to the likes of Thatcher!). He is bright, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if he got Bush with his mouth full at an open mike on purpose. Any NLP experts out there capable of telling when he first realised the mike was on?

We live in countries where people have a right to different views and we abide, grudgingly, by the majority vote. Of course it's our right to be forever indignant with those that had the nerve / stupidity to vote in a different way than we did.

The events happening in the middle east apppear to be taking place out of a country which has not approved them through the ballot box. In fact the direction for the action may well have come from other countries with a larger agenda than we yet know.

The dillema is similar to others we have faced recently.

I read your views with interest. I'm sure others do too! Better luck in the next election.

Do you morons actually think that he "accidentally" left his mike on? It was totally staged, and the "media coverage" of it today should be perfect proof.

Give it a rest, Sheep. Baaahhhhhhhhhhh...

There are many Americans who agree with Loretta and Ryan. Unfortunately, it's only the condescending Liberals that are responding to this story & their views. Thank God we live in America where we can all speak our minds. It would be nice if the Liberals were at least polite. Oh yeah, the Clintons proved that's impossible.

To Jon D. (and all liberal bashing conservatives)

A not so surprising attack on liberals. I am sick and tired of hearing that liberals are idiots. Liberals (liberal media) rarely makes a name for themselves by bashing and insulting the intelligence of conservatives. It is not the true nature of being liberal! Liberals are about (look up the definition) "favoring proposals for reform, open to new ideas for progress, and tolerant of the ideas and behavior of others;".
And as far as the idiot-thing is concerned, research shows that liberals, as a group, are more educated than conservatives. See the Pew foundation research below:

http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?PageID=945

Sorry Jon. An overwhelming number of liberals are not uneducated idiots. Maybe we have Fox News and Rush because we, the liberals, true patriots of our country, are a threat. We will dare to criticize the job of our leader. We will stand up for what we believe in. We do not like compromising our civil liberties for a false sense of security because we know that this weakens the masses and strengthens the powerful. And finally, we make note of the obvious. I wouldn’t refer to the most educated group in America as idiots. I won’t even call the second most educated group of people idiots. But I will criticize our government and our leader when it is obvious they are doing idiotic things.

OK Mark, explain this!

Could someone explain these things? Why did the European Union find WMDs? Why did they watch as Syria tested them in Sudan during the summer of 2004? Why did Libya admit to many tons of WMDs materials in 2004? Some of these may require a registration, which is not malicious, but allows you to access their web sites.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Syria's recent testing of chemical weapons
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/106666/1/.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

European Union versus Syria over chemical weapon WMDs?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?node=admin/registration/register&destination=register&nextstep=gather&application=reg30-nation&applicationURL=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59724-2004Apr7.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A59724-2004Apr7?language=printer
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L28606670.htm
(just how did Syria get chemical weapons to begin with?)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Al Qaeda's poison gas in Jordan (next to Iraq -- western border):
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110005016
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/22/AR2005062202501_pf.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Moving banned items across the border
http://washingtontimes.com/national/20040816-011235-4438r.htm

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Iraqi Engines in Jordan?
http://daily.webshots.com/content/ap/current/h52393407.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

UN's own report on things leaving Iraq:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/10/international/middleeast/10nati.html
Printer-friendly
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/10/international/middleeast/10nati.html?pagewanted=print&position=
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,158470,00.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Europeans' admission to uranium claim:
http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1087373295002&p=1012571727092

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Uranium in Iraq:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/07/politics/07NUKE.html
printer friendly:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60910FB3F5F0C748CDDAE0894DC404482

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Dutch role in nuclear deals with countries such as Libya
(and the article mentions Iraq)
http://www.expatica.com/source/site_article.asp?channel_id=2&story_id=4878

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

CIA recruited Saddam's foreign minister
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=UVDDPCMUIOQZJQFIQMGSFFWAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2006/03/22/wirq22.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/03/22/ixworld.html

(what's this about chemical WMD stuff?)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Sarin WMD warheads:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,124576,00.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Al Qaeda and Iraq:
http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=Terrorism&loid=8.0.169852178&par=0#
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5326544/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7369892/site/newsweek/
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,1-1167096,00.html
http://www.memri.org/bin/opener_latest.cgi?ID=SD91205

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Syria and nuclear scientists
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/09/26/wiran26.xml&sSheet=/portal/2004/09/26/ixportaltop.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

1998 article from Bulletin of Atomic Scientists
on Saddam's secret program
http://www.thebulletin.org/article.php?art_ofn=so98hamza

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Libya's 22 tons of Mustard Gas (may have to look in archives for this):
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-gas6mar06,1,1493912,print.story?coll=la-home-world
(just who were they going to kill, and just who supplied them with the materials to make them?)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Libya's plutonium:
http://portal.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/02/21/wlibya21.xml

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Libyan missing nuclear devices:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A63785-2004May28?language=printer

Original URL:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63785-2004May28.html
(just who taught the Libyans to make these?)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Iran with weapons grade uranium and plutonium (Iran is just east of Iraq):
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/11/international/middleeast/11NUKE.html?pagewanted=print&position=
http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=42DF9A83-393D-4255-815D684FE624E594
http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/jdw/jdw040810_1_n.shtml
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5802133
http://portal.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/07/27/wiran27.xml

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

WMDs lost or found:
http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Printable.asp?ID=13168

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Sudan orders Syrian WMD out of country
http://www.menewsline.com/stories/2004/april/04_23_2.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

WMD plans and preparations:
http://news.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=383842004
http://news.scotsman.com/print.cfm?id=383842004&referringtemplate=http%3A%2F%2Fnews%2Escotsman%2Ecom%2Finternational%2Ecfm&referringquerystring=id%3D383842004

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Did bunkers hold WMDs?
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/03/31/1080544556813.html?from=storyrhs

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Rape photos:
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/articles/10775392?source=TiL

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Why UN Inspectors stopped WMD hunt
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/politics/story.jsp?story=633667

Not the first time the UN Inspectors have been threatened, as was the case some times in the 1990s:

Right on. Way to go. We need a freer press in the U.S.

Simple Things Amuse Simple People

I'll bet no OTHER president ever used strong language, (giving comfort to those of us who share his thoughts, and are encouraged by his straightforward honesty).

" [In a campaign when most everything is canned or scripted for a particular kind of political impact -- even how a candidate kisses his wife -- it's a relief to some of us to hear a spontaneous outburst of male anger. George W.'s contemptuous put-down of a reporter famous for his whining ways, was reminiscent of Harry Truman who said what he thought and peppered his speech with "damns'' and "hells,'' and who once shocked a demure lady Democrat by describing a foe's speech as "horse manure.'' When the lady suggested to the first lady that she ought to clean up her husband's language, Mrs. Truman replied: "My dear, You don't know how many years it took me get him to say `manure.' ''] "
http://www.jewishworldreview.com/cols/fields091200.asp

Will the Leftists EVER grow up?

As a liberal Democrat who voted against Bush twice, I want to congratulate Bush on a frank, honest summation of the Israel vs. Hezzbolah & Hamas situation. Bush expressed what most people are thinking about the terrorists and the governments that harbor them.

I may not agree with 98% of what Bush stands for, but I applaud his comments overheard at the G8 luncheon and his restraint thus far on this issue alone.

If you ask why I would send something like this, my friends and family lost loved ones in Clintons' wars of Kosovo / Bosnia and also Somalia. NO ONE protested those wars and the lost of many young soldiers. The blood of our kids is not worse than those lost in Iraq!! There is a word we have for people who only protest certain wars, and it's at the bottom

Some Senators, like Kerry, believe that Bush was misled. Listed below are some quotes that I received from people about things that were stated in the late 1990s, including statements from John Kerry:

"One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line."
- President Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998

"If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program."
- President Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998

"Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face."
- Madeline Albright, Feb 18, 1998

"He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983."
- Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998

"We urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs."
- Letter to President Clinton, signed by Sens. Carl Levin (D-MI), Tom Daschle (D-SD), John Kerry ( D - MA), and others Oct. 9, 1998

"Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process."
- Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998

"Hussein has ... chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies."
- Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10, 1999

"There is no doubt that ... Saddam Hussein has invigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies."
- Letter to President Bush, Signed by Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL,) and others, December 5, 2001

"We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandate of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them."
- Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002

"We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country."
- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power."
- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction."
- Sen Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002

"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons..."
- Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002

"I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force—if necessary-- to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security."
- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

"There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years ... We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction."
- Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D, WV), Oct 10, 2002

"He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do."
- Rep. Henry Waxman (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapon stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons."
- Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002

"We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction."
- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002

"Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation .. And now he is miscalculating America's response to his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction... So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real."
- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003

Clintons' Wars are OK?
Bush's War is NOT?

Hypocrites......

Scott, Scott, Scott:

Deep breath buddy. Al Gore won the popular vote in '00.

Now easy does it, back away from the keyboard.

Give me a freakin break. Enough said.

It seems to me that there is an "Entire Lot" of PEOPLE who are clearly more concerned with the fact that the President was said to have been eating. OH MY GOD! AMEN... How many of you idiots have forgotten that "WE ALL" need to eat. I'm not for Bush. However, I am DIFINITIVELY NOT for any person who believes the issue "OF EATING" is Major News.

Don't forget! The President also referred to his MEAL, as it will be when it "COMES OUT"

Open your eyes! Take a step back! Have a cup of coffee! What ever it takes, to Wake Up!

We have bigger issues than whether or not the President was "Talking while he was eating!"

So, why don't we DO something?

Like what?

There are 3 options.

1. Talk
2. Join Israel and start shooting
3. Leave Israel alone, and supply her what she needs to win

What will talking accomplish? Well, just look at what it has "accomplished" to date. Hizbalah and Hamas grew to control Lebanon and Gaza. They are stockpiling weapons and training for war. Talking only buys them more time, and us more pain in the future.

If we look at how effective talking has been lately, we find it has only made things worse.
"Rice's most recent outreach to Iran was hardly timed to succeed. The Iranian leadership had heard Rep. John Murtha and Sen. John Kerry's declarations of defeat in Iraq. It felt emboldened. And it understood Rice's May 31 offer of negotiations as a sign of weakness. Less than a week later, on June 4, Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei declared, "In Iraq, you failed. . . . Why do you not admit that you are weak and your razor is blunt?" Engaging overconfident adversaries leads to entrenchment. That adversaries rebuff offers of concessions with more violence should not surprise."
http://www.meforum.org/article/976

As much as I would like to see the US bring the war to our other enemies in the region, that probably isn't the best use of our resourses now, especially when Israel is in control of the situation. We should, however be ready to assist, if they need it.

So, the last is probably the best option for the moment, while keeping open our options for entering the fight.

Remember, Israel's enemies are also our enemies.

I'm glad to see our President understands the issue correctly, has an action plan, and asserts it clearly and comfortably to an ally.

Hey Loretta, If you had actually watched the tape, like I did, you wouldn't be surprised by the reporter's observation of chewing sounds. It's pretty overwhelming, and hard to ignore.

Also, lest you forget, the Trib endorsed Mr. Bush in 2004

This was not an accidental mishap. This was done on purpose by both Blair and Bush. No one at the summit wanted or could mention Syria. By doing this "accidentally" and getting it out in the open --- its exactly what Bush & Blair wanted everyone to hear.

PLEASE FORGET THE **** TABLE MANNERS ALREADY!!!I'm more concerned about (1) the perceptions both leaders had of Kofi Annan, or the UN in general. "He's through"? "He's had it"? Is there something more being said than meets the ear? And (2) Who is the "they" in Bush's statement that what "they need to do is to get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop..." Is he being axiomatic, or does he have someone else in mind? If it isn't the UN, who is the "they" with the perceived power to compell Syria to action? Is "they" "Condee"...or Israel? If the latter, might the political leaders desire a protracted bombing campaign by Israel despite their public statements? INCREDIBLE!!!

You people are a joke.....who cares!!!! There is a much bigger world out there than politics in the U.S. Get a life!

Sadly the Civil War never really ended. There is a Blue America and a Red America and I think its time we seperated. Conservatives head south. Liberals head North and towards the coast. Conservatives take your military, pentagon, star wars, Ann Coulter and Rumsfeld et al. Call your country 'Bushland'. Invade anybody you want while your waiting around for christ to appear again. Just leave us out of it.

We liberals will just create a giant welfare state. We'll loll around the house, unemployed, living off of public assistance, afraid of our shadows. We'll welcome all sorts of minorities. Gay people. Black people. Hell, even gay black people (they're out there). We'll read lots of books about evolution, global warming and stem cell research (we'll have to write them too, because you can't). Other countries will like us because we won't plunder their resources and slaughter their people. And we will have one more enormous benefit,

SPRINGSTEEN!

With regard to the chewing:

Look at the picture, folks. Bush is sitting down, and Blair is standing beside/behind him. It looks as if Bush was eating his lunch and Blair walked over to talk to him. Bush had a mouthful of food, and was faced with three unpleasant options. One, try to swallow it all and risk a café coronary. Two, chew up and swallow, while giving the assembled press corps an opportunity to report on Bush putting off an important ally. Third, shove the mouthful into the cheek, talk, and try to chew while Blair is talking. I'm sure that none of the commenters on this board have ever been faced with a similar situation.

With regard to the fluency of the discourse: We are used to seeing our leaders talk smoothly and in complete sentences. Those speeches are scripted and rehearsed. We watch the news anchors and marvel at their fluency. They're reading off a TelePrompTer. We watch too much TV, filled with witty repartée. The actors there have the benefit of screenwriters, rehearsal, and second takes. Real conversations are filled with ums and ahs, dead ends, and retracings, particularly when a knotty problem is being discussed, and who would argue that the Mideast isn't a knotty problem.

With regard to the swear word: Oh, the shock! I'd argue that the particular word used is descriptive of what's going on. Further, it proves that our President is a human being, with all the foibles and frailty that that implies.

And an open microphone? No one has ever heard of American conversations being recorded in Russia before, right?

Ryan: "Bush is an ignorant cowboy..."

Cowboy, yes. Ignorant, no. Ignorant people can't fly fighter jets.
http://www.warbirdforum.com/bushf102.htm

Ryan: "Bush isn't responsible for the plummeting economy"

What "Plummeting" economy?
"The Bush White House can now boast of 18 consecutive quarters of strong economic growth surpassing that of Europe and Japan combined, 5.4 million new jobs created since 2003, the lowest unemployment rate in 40 years, steady gains in worker productivity and record levels of home ownership."
http://www.humaneventsonline.com/article.php?id=16069

And as to "waking up" well, I hope Ryan does soon.

Bush is a genetic abberation.

Look, I try to be Fair. Bush burns his own butt often enough I don't have to say a thing, usually.

But in this case, PLEASE! For a change, he's actually being a real human. For crying out loud... it's a nice change.

I watched the footage of the Bush/Blair conversation on CNN, whilst having breakfast.
The "foul language" used was not relevent.
But to watch and hear this man shoveling food into his mouth and talking at the same time was more than I could bear. I gave up the breakfast.
The man has no class or breeding. This is a Yale
education? However, I am an Englishman, we have
perhaps different prioritie

I have read reports of this event published in many different international news publications. Rather than try and analyze from a Political Bias Filter or skewed rose colored glasses - they report - just as the Tribune has reported - the details of the discussion and the setting. ONLY the Tribune and this reporter has taken the time to list the comments in context of the converstaion sequence! Thank you Tribune.

As to the political diatribes about "right' or "left"- I have one comment:

After reading the Tribune - watch for the televison news 9 coverage and look at the video. It was embarrassing watching the US President eating and chewing with his mouth open while discussing very serious matters as if he was at the family dinner table. The Tribune reporter was actually being fairly discrete in his detail. The Tribune article was being kind. After the inappropriate "cutting up the Pig" comments to the German Chancellor earlier in the week, I thought the international faux pas' would be ended - I guess I was wrong. This wasn't a diner in El Paso or Humboldt and your social skills should be consistent whether you think the audio/video is recording on not!

PS To Ryan - If the President can try and take credit for the economy - "It's the Tax Cuts" his words not mine - then he can certainly take the blame! Can you Say OIL/Energy Policy? You take the job - you take the credit or blame!
PS To Loretta - It is definitely NOT unpatriotic to fairly criticize a seated President and his behavior or any politician for that matter! That is exactly one of the freedoms that were demanded, fought for and granted by the Founding Fathers. For this President, who relishes supporters that totally believe that a President should be blindly supported or you are being unpatriotic and you don't love America, for this President his only regret is that some knowledgeable voters have at least an awareness that this country is governed by the Constitution, rather than being governed under the Magna Carta where he could truly be King! President Bush II, like the late Mr. Nixon, truly has a Monarchy Mentality! Unlike Mr. Nixon - Mr. Bush II feels like he has earned the right through Imperial bloodlines.

"If you don't learn from History you are doomed to repeat it!"

I have read reports of this event published in many different international news publications. Rather than try and analyze from a Political Bias Filter or skewed rose colored glasses - they report - just as the Tribune has reported - the details of the discussion and the setting. ONLY the Tribune and this reporter has taken the time to list the comments in context of the converstaion sequence! Thank you Tribune.

As to the political diatribes about "right' or "left"- I have one comment:

After reading the Tribune - watch for the televison news 9 coverage and look at the video. It was embarrassing watching the US President eating and chewing with his mouth open while discussing very serious matters as if he was at the family dinner table. The Tribune reporter was actually being fairly discrete in his detail. The Tribune article was being kind. After the inappropriate "cutting up the Pig" comments to the German Chancellor earlier in the week, I thought the international faux pas' would be ended - I guess I was wrong. This wasn't a diner in El Paso or Humboldt and your social skills should be consistent whether you think the audio/video is recording on not!

PS To Ryan - If the President can try and take credit for the economy - "It's the Tax Cuts" his words not mine - then he can certainly take the blame! Can you Say OIL/Energy Policy? You take the job - you take the credit or blame!
PS To Loretta - It is definitely NOT unpatriotic to fairly criticize a seated President and his behavior or any politician for that matter! That is exactly one of the freedoms that were demanded, fought for and granted by the Founding Fathers. For this President, who relishes supporters that totally believe that a President should be blindly supported or you are being unpatriotic and you don't love America, for this President his only regret is that some knowledgeable voters have at least an awareness that this country is governed by the Constitution, rather than being governed under the Magna Carta where he could truly be King! President Bush II, like the late Mr. Nixon, truly has a Monarchy Mentality! Unlike Mr. Nixon - Mr. Bush II feels like he has earned the right through Imperial bloodlines.

"If you don't learn from History you are doomed to repeat it!"

What's the big deal? So much talk about their conversation. Big deal. The media is only making a mountain out of a mole hill. Is there nothing more interesting to report? The media loves to stir people's juices. So many angry people. Please let go of your anger. So very sad. Life is short, enjoy it while you still can. Holding on to all this anger/resentment toward President Bush is only causing havoc on the heart.

finally we now know what george w. bush is. a complete, unsophisticated, village idiot. but, i think most people already knew that.

Bush and Blair are on the right side of this conflict. I'd rather have a frank exchange of thoughts that can't be mistaken for "Clinton Dribble". Even an idiot like Turbin and Kennedy can understand. Might need a translator for Boxer though.

Much ado about nothing,referring to the chewing, the lunch, the blankety-blank words. The interesting things in this overheard conversation, not meant to be heard, were that the ideas for solutions that both men were trying to talk around were ideas I have already heard this last weekend, presented in interviews with others in think tanks, former State Department officials, Former Secretary of State Albright on some of the discussions on different news interviews. What did surprise me was that Bush and Blair sounded as though they hadn't really spoken about these ideas for solutions yet, nor had they discussed the solutions in depth. Blair sounded as though he was not actually speaking frankly, as though Bush should be reading him between the lines, because he didn't want to speak openly, hoping for Bush "to get his drift." I think he was offering to go to the Mid-East in place of Condoleeza Rice, to sound out what was going on, to save the US from committing anything or openly failing if the timing wasn't good for Rice to go yet and achieve nothing.

The other thought I had was not as criticism to either of these men, who were acting like any persons having a meal and discussing their business problems. It struck me that while these leaders, of powerful countries look at the world crises, which each one has played as a game of chess, and can be so detached from the facts of the life and death events happening to ordinary but now desperate people in Israel and Lebanon, and Iraq and Afghanistan, Darfur. And what really bothers me is that those suffering people seem so much like the people I have known all my life, in my family, in the families who live around me, the children, the old people like me. And what in this God's world are they all fighting over? Does anyone even know anymore?

Listen to all these blog statements? Who is settling anything with all the snide remarks about liberal and conservatives? What is satisfying to anyone to win an argument over nothing? We don't deserve to be in this country, so detached that we can look at the world so shallowly, and discuss everything with such emptiness.

Like I said, much ado about nothing. This is my first and last contribution to any blog. An exercise in total vanity and worth nothing in the face of those little children who are suffering and dying.

M. Davidson An independent and free liberal grandmother, who loves liberty, because it is such a beautiful thing to be alive and grateful.

WHY THE SENSIBILITY WITH HIM CHEWING???? IS HE SOME KIND OF SEMIGOD??/ ARE U TRYING TO MARKET HIM AS ONE??
NO SUCH A THING AS OPEN MICROPHONE BY MISTAKE...NOT AT THE LEVEL OF PEOPLE LIKE BUSH AND BLAIR.
HE'S TRYING TO CONVINCE US THAT HE CARES... HE KNOWS NO ONE BELIEVES A WORD HE SAYS, SO HE PRETENDS IT WAS A PRIVATE CONVERSATION WITH HIS GOOD FRIEND TONY BLAIR............. GOOD ALL TONY, EMBEDDING WITH HIM TILL THE END...... NOT FOR NOTHING: HE OWES BUSH HE'S "VICTORY" IN THE SECOND RUN.
THEY ARE TRYING TO CONVINCE THE WORLD THAT HE IS TRYING TO DO SOMETHING BUT THERE'S NOTHING HE CAN DO...THAT IT IS ALL SYRIA AND HEZBOLLAH'S FAULT AND IN THE MEANTIME....HE KEEPS DOING BUSINESS.
IN THE MEANTIME, YOU KEEP DEFENDING HIM AND PAYING FOR GAS...................................................................

WORSE THAN CHEWING IS HEARING BLAIR'S REMARK ABOUT "CONDI" "IF SHE GOES SHE HAS TO SUCCEED, IF I GO I CAN JUST TALK????????????????"""""""""""
WHAT KIND OF SHOW ARE THEY PUTTING ON?????
SOMEONE TELL THESE GUYS THAT THEY NEED TO WORK!!!!!!!!!
FOR US!!!!!!!!!!
NOT JUST TALK! THAT IS NOT WHY THE PEOPLE IN UK VOTED FOR HIM AND ARE PAYING HIS SALARY.
NOT TO TALK WHILE PEOPLE ARE DYING AND CHILDREN ARE BEING BLOWN TO PIECES.

You've got to love this dialogue. It's obvious who the blind (reps) are and the open minded dems. Yes, we clearly remember how Clinton was butchered in the media for years about Lew.

BTW - it's not polite to chew food and talk at the same time - maybe it is for Texans. Typical "shrub" stuff for GW - all those innocent people dying over there, Americans stranded in Lebanon/Israel, and what's most important to him is EATING!

Too bad he doesn't stay on vacation - perhaps his ratings would come up out of the sewer. Look for another drop now - he's screwing this up as well.

Mike/Chicago

Quote from Dave Brann, July 17. - "Bush had a mouthful of food, and was faced with three unpleasant options. One, try to swallow it all and risk a café coronary. Two, chew up and swallow, while giving the assembled press corps an opportunity to report on Bush putting off an important ally. Third, shove the mouthful into the cheek, talk, and try to chew while Blair is talking".

What a terrible dilemma with which to be faced for the leader of the free world. As with the vast majority of decisions Bush has already made, he screwed that one up too.

Loretta,

Do you read the same newspaper I do? The Trib editorial page has had nothing but praise for Bush over the years, endorsing him in the elections and defending him when he looks bad. They even had words of praise for him during the Katrina debacle.

Would they have said the same thing for a Democrat? If it happened, yes. That's called reporting. I think the Trib reporters do a pretty good job of reporting the facts. However, the editorial page leans so far right I'm surprised the Trib tower hasn't fallen over.

After seeing the video, I don't see how anyone reporting the conversation could not have noted that the President was speaking with a mouthful of food. My mother taught me that it is bad manners to talk with your mouth full. My mother also taught me to pronounce "to" as "too" and not "tah". I blame it on his mother.

I could care less about Bush's expletive, especially since he apparently did not know he was being recorded. Also, I don't see why everyone is so uptight about Bush chewing his food and the mic picking up the noise. Who cares?!

What I find both annoying and embarrassing is his misuse of the word "irony." Surely Mr. President wrote a paper at Yale that challenged him to study the uses of irony. Maybe he neglected to write that paper.

Loretta Miner --

Bush is not a president, he is an usurper who gained the office in an unconstitutional, felonious, and treasonous conspiracy that began with a bunch of fascist thugs masquerading as SCOTUS judges. Everything that he has done under color of law since 10 December 2000 is null and void AND a huge series of felony conspiracies against our laws. He and about a thousand of his illegal administration, the criminal Congress, and the fascist thug federal bench are treasonous constitutional criminals and felons-in-waiting whose only rightful place is in federal prison.

Bias that.

Chicago Trib --

Your editors have published an editorial today titled, "Profane but true". Its author(s) propagandizes a claim to truth that cannot be substantiated.

Here we sit, watching the usurper, one of history's all-time liers, who obviously wants to get into a war with Syria/Iran, assuming that the Syrian govt can control Hezbollah. Clearly, the assumption is a sophistry waved around by the usurper and his warmaker surrogates. War with Syria is coming, gott mit uns, Bush has the vision and he will lead, Bush is the true and only decider, this is what's best for everyone, and to hell with the economy, anyone below multi-millionaire who is not positioned to profit from war, New Orleans, and the NAACP convention.

The evidence clearly shows that Hezbollah is not under any govt's control.

But there go the Chicago Trib editors, racing along behind the PNAC-Neocon band wagon, trying their best to jump on.

Oh, yeah, oh, yeah -- the most depraved Liar-In-Chief in US history is really telling the truth this time. Uh-huh, Uh-huh. It's all on Syria to control Hezbollah. In profanity, veritas forever. Georgie-boy forever and ever. Amen, and slow down that wagon.

I love the LIBune's little poll, here. Talk about stacking the deck with loaded question and answers!!

And for you folks who say the LIBune is a conservative. The editorial page is only a small part of the newspaper. And actually fewer than 25 percent of a newspaper's readership even bothers reading a newspaper's editorial page.

But about 90 percent of the Tribune's reporters and editors are liberal. They would include Mark Silva, Frank James, Jeff Zelany, Jill Zuckman, Eric Zorn, Mary Schmidt, Dawn Turner Trice, Charles Madigan, Tim McNulty, William Niekirk, and on and on and on and on and on and on. And from the mouths of one of those listed above, told to me, they hate the slightly to the right bent of the Trib's editorial page.

Having said that, the Tribune editorial board is a big proponent of gun control, hardly conservative or Republican; against tax cuts and for higher taxes, hardly a conservative or Republican view; and on many other issues that paper has taken a more liberal viewpoint.

It's always embarrassing to see George Bush with Tony Blair. Whatever Tony Blair's politics, he at least can express himself thoughtfully, using words that fit what he's trying to say. This is what I think we should expect from our leaders (at the very minimum, of course), and it just seems beyond our president's capability. If he's so ill-equipped to communicate precisely and compellingly, how well equipped can he be for decision-making?

What do you expect? George W. Bush is the worst president in the world - talking with his mouth full of food and cussing - what a world leader!!! I pity poor Laura Bush - he really deserves to be married to Ann Coulter - the nastiest person in the world!

Cath. French says,

"If you ask why I would send something like this, my friends and family lost loved ones in Clintons' wars of Kosovo / Bosnia and also Somalia. NO ONE protested those wars and the lost of many young soldiers. The blood of our kids is not worse than those lost in Iraq!! There is a word we have for people who only protest certain wars, and it's at the bottom"

1. Bush One got us into Somalia. Clinton got us out. (Cut and run to you)

2. Re. Kosovo: We had 0 (zero) none, not any, as in zero US/allied combat deaths in Kosovo.

3. How do you know who did or did not protest the Kosovo war?

4. Trent and the repubs. tried to snatch defeat from the mouth of victory on the very eve of success in Kosovo. (He didn't call it cut and run)

Catherine, you need to get your head screwed on straight.

I was not offended by his comment, but was by him chomping. Geez, dude, have some manners!

the media,newspapers,public need to support our government. please give it up with the negative information that our country does not need.
Show some support!
We need to show our solidarity to the younger generation!
This land is your land,too.
GOD BLESS OUR COUNTRY..

the media,newspapers,public need to support our government. please give it up with the negative information that our country does not need.
Show some support!
We need to show our solidarity to the younger generation!
This land is your land,too.
GOD BLESS OUR COUNTRY..

I think that him using this kind of conversation in a normal conversation is fine. Also, Fox did report on it, and they showed clips of it during commercials...

Bush may not be my favorite person, but even I admit this happens to the best if us. This was a personal conversation not meant for the public just as many of us share personal conversation with family and friends but may not convey the same details about things with coworkers or acquaintanes. He has many people working with him (thank God) and a Congress to deal with and isn't always left to what he wants to do personally as policy.
As a past journalist I also begin to wonder if there is such a thing as too much reporting?

Anyone else out there more embarassed by the way he was leanded back in his chair chewing with his mouth open than the swearing? He looked like something on Animal Planet; not exactly the posture one should take when at a photo-op function.

The swearing was not a big deal, actually a pretty accurate way to describe the situation. But the man does seem to have some real issues grasping the fact that he is a public figure and when he is in a public place, there is always someone listening. Hasn't Turd Blossom ever mentioned this to him?!?

the truth is self-evident that this incident henceforth should be referred to as "the s--- heard around the world."

Amazing how this has turned into a conservative vs liberal disagreement. Seems they all do anymore.

Personlly, I could not care less that the President used the 's' word.

As for the comments about chewing while talking, they seem gratuitous to me. But reporters are free to report as they wish. And the public is free to accept or reject it.

Someone needs to leaflet the cars in the parking lot at Erich Industries with a copy of the boss' comments to let his employees know what he thinks of them.

It's interesting to see the number of people who jumped into the fray to beat-up or to defend the President. The numbers of letters and the tone of most of them say once again, what we have all known for many years now. Those who call themselves Liberals are ready to make a case for the view that those on the Right are crazy and the Conservatives have no use for the views of or for the people on the Left.

It's sad to see our country so divided when you consider the things we were able to accomplish when we were united. We won a world war in the 40's by defeating powerful enemies. We faced down the Soviet Union and we came together following the attacks on "9/11". We need to discuss our points of view on issues while respecting the people who differ with us.

Richard Nixon started the ball rolling with his abuse of the Presidency. Bill Clinton shares in the blame by his very open lack of moral behavior. George W. Bush won't get a fair review by Democrats or Republicans because both sides are locked into their positions on terrorism, war, abortion, etc. Congress has only added to the problem since the 1970's with the abuses of power they have inflicted on all of us, to assure themselves a return to office.

Let's stop all the word games and expressions of concern about "chewing & talking" and consider the fact that we have a great number of people around the world who don't like us, are envious of us and want to cause us physical and economic pain. Come up with some meaningful solutions to those problems and send those ideas to the newspapers and to your elected officials. If you think Bush is dumb and Chaney is concerned about his former employer and Rice can't negotiate and Rumsfeld is wrong on the war, come up with ideas that will work and will help and make them known in a respectful and civilized manner. Some people may just be inclined to listen on that note.

If you can't do that, shut up and get out of the way! You are adding to the problem.

There is one thing the American power structure did learn from the British Empire: The concept of...

DIVIDE AND RULE

...it was how the British justified their military and administrative presense.

Not only are the Americans particularly adept at dividing and ruling abroad--Germany, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Nicaraugua, El Salvador, Columbia, etc--they have also managed to divide and rule this nation.

We have One Sixth Blue, One Sixth Red, and both together equal one third of the populace @ 100 million. One Third Non-Voting (100 million), and One Third Not Eligible or Disenfranchised (100 million).

You all sit there are scream at each other, across the Red/Blue divide, not realizing that these politicians you align yourselves with are totally screwing you from above, and those below you who either don't care or aren't allowed to participate, are a growing force for change you will never be able to stop.

So long as you view yourself as different from the "other", the rich will laugh their way to the bank. DO NOT BE SO NAIVE...these rich Dem and Rep politicians talk big against each other in the press, and then go out to $1000 a plate dinners together to laugh, laugh, laugh about how much they have screwed you.

None of them are to be trusted. And the only way to avoid it is to Unite, rather than Divide.

I cannot understand the debate behind all of this...it's amazing to think that noone in the world swears when speaking amongst business associates, peers, etc... Had the President made some crude off-color comment I would totally agree with all of the debate, but the context is not such a big deal and it's obvious who the people are that are trying to make it a big deal. Need you be reminded that your president got caught doing much worse?

How quick we all can be to criticize...maybe now that so many people are talking about how wrong and inappropriate is to swear there won't be anymore of it going around. Maybe this will be the first step toward total peace and harmony amongst all of us and Bush will look like the genius he is.

"Thinking" conservatives?.....Oxymoron. What were you conservatives "thinking" when you voted for Bush? Now we've got the highest deficits ever, spending out of control, "conservation" (same concept) in full reverse as nature is sacrificed for corporate interests.
I don't care if Bush uses the word "dukey" in conversations with other leaders. "S--t" is what the Middle East has become with plenty of impetus from our failed leadership's cowboy diplomacy. This blog has become a firing range for the anti-Bush v. pro Bush crowds so I'll add a reflection on the Bush Presidency from a life-long inner-circle Republican: "As a Republican I'm embarrassed by him."

Democrats, Democrats, Democrats...for those of you thinking you are so intelligent for suggesting that Bush embarrassed the country for saying sh*t on a mic while discussing world politics with another world leader and comparing that to Bill Clinton and his affair with an INTERN need to really wake up and smell the coffee.

How do you compare the two? As if the media was wrong for exploiting the Clinton affair - who needs to know that stuff? Really? It's funny to see how quick you are to judge Bush for saying sh*t yet the rest of the world is wrong for judging Bill Clinton for sleeping with an INTERN.

I can't believe people are making such a big deal over this! Who doesn't eat while they are talking. Everybody is picking at Bush and how he is running our country. People who are complaining, could you be president? Do you really think YOU could run a country? Are you qualified to criticize the position responsible for running a country? Big deal, he said the s word. The majority of people use this word daily. I am sick and tired of people blaming him for everything. I would feel the same way for anyone in this office.

From the reporter's poing of view, writing about audible chewing of food simultaneously talking might have been meant to explain that the text of the overheard conversation was abundantly clear except for occasional chomping sounds seeming to coincide with the movement of the mouth of the President of the United States. Oh, but if we acknowledge that, then we can't vilify our President once more, as idiots have done so unconsciounably ever since he went into office.
These same idiots have no other vocabulary but vulgar obscenities and don't know the right fork from their elbow, let alone how to chew and talk at the same time. They only succeed in making our country appear seriously divided and totally vulnerable because there's no IQ there! Has nothing to do with what state of the Union we're talking about - these idiots are everything.

You can lead a Republican to the truth, but you can't make them drink. Nancy, here, suggesting that she, Bu$h, or this current generation that elected the Idiot President and has shown unmitigated irresponsibility are doing ANYTHING positive for the next generation is downright INSULTING. I cannot believe anyone could be so ignorant and averse to reality to think that they are doing ANYTHING positive for the future generation by worshipping polticians. Pathetic. If you want to do something positive for the next generation: stay home next election. Your suggestions that people should worship the government are, dare I say, Nancy, unAmerican.

Oh Jerry, you tell people to "come up with solutions" as if any individual's "solution" is possible when plans must be implemented by corporate-sponsored politicians that people are dumb enough to believe actually act in the best interests of the people. So long as we continue to elect people who have their own financial and influential interests in mind, you're screaming at a wall. You want to make a difference? Stop voting for the people that led us up a creek without a paddle. Stop voting for incumbents who have proven their ineptitude in serving the people. Stop thinking that anyone in our government is conservative OR liberal. If you believe that, then YOU are adding to the problem.

Ah, C.Morris you also need a little history lesson. First, Bush I did put troops into Somalia, which was a humantarian mission to feed people being starved to death. I thought you inane lefties were all for helping the downtrodden? i guess not, though, based on the do-nothing of Clinton regarding Rwanda and the efforts by the Left to not help Bush help those in Darfhur today.
Clinton left Somalia because of what happened in Mogadishu when several of our men were killed. Rather than get those responsible for killing 18 of our military men, Clinton was too spooked and did cut and run. It also was a move that emboldened bin Laden, That is according to bin Laden himself.
The Left did not protest Kosovo, despute 47 straight days of bombings that killed thousands of innocent people.
And Trent Lott and the GOP did not almost prevent us from winning in Bosnia. But what is funny, is that Clinton said our troops would be there a year -- tops. This was back in 1997. Hmmm, we're still there!!

Ah, C.Morris you also need a little history lesson. First, Bush I did put troops into Somalia, which was a humantarian mission to feed people being starved to death. I thought you inane lefties were all for helping the downtrodden? i guess not, though, based on the do-nothing of Clinton regarding Rwanda and the efforts by the Left to not help Bush help those in Darfhur today.
Clinton left Somalia because of what happened in Mogadishu when several of our men were killed. Rather than get those responsible for killing 18 of our military men, Clinton was too spooked and did cut and run. It also was a move that emboldened bin Laden, That is according to bin Laden himself.
The Left did not protest Kosovo, despute 47 straight days of bombings that killed thousands of innocent people.
And Trent Lott and the GOP did not almost prevent us from winning in Bosnia. But what is funny, is that Clinton said our troops would be there a year -- tops. This was back in 1997. Hmmm, we're still there!!

While I'm not a fan of President Bush I don't think anyone can really fault him for his use of the explicative. I think everyone's probably heard it and used it at least once. It's a big to do about nothing.

The fact of the matter is he said what a lot of people have been thinking, and what the G8 countries didn't want to specifically say in their joint statement. Plus he said it in what he thought was a private moment. Yes it was careless, but it's hardly anything to get worked up about.

In light of the issues and tension between Putin and Bush (Putin making a few public statements that were blatant dig's at Bush)I wouldn't be surprised if the russian Microphone gaff wasn't on purpose.

The problem with people like Loretta Minor is that they think because a person dislikes or disagrees with the president then they don't love their country. She should more to China where you are not allowed to to have an opinion.

I only have two words regarding the President swearing: Big deal.

Why aren't the Jesus Freaks lambasting Bush for his foul mouth? It's unchristian to be hypocrits!

We have an idiot for a president.

No wonder the world is falling apart!! What with war, hunger, natural disasters (oh wait, that was Georges's fault too!)- and we are worrying about the President's table manners and language skills?......I bet that 80% of us have used stronger language than "Gosh darn" the last time we stubbed our toe or locked our keys in the car! Get over it!

Why is the fact that President Bush uttered an 'expletive' and talks with his mouthfull such significant news? Besides, it's old news that Mr. Bush is a crass, inarticulate, myopic individual who seems to lack curiousity, creativity, and imagination and is an embarassment to this country every time he is caught on tape, accidentally or intentionally. This seems analogous to useless news about the private details of celebrity lives. The focus should remain on the poor decisions, incompetence,excessive secrecy, lying, immoral actions for political gain, and threats to the fabric of our Constitution associated with his administration.

Oh Great Wizard Of Oz,Please Give George W.
Bush A Brain!!
Ok John D....you can start crying now.

"Remember, Israel's enemies are also our enemies."

Posted by: ytba | Jul 17, 2006 7:20:38 PM

Why is that? What has Israel done for us? Seems all Israel has done is unite the Arab world in hating the US because of our blind support of Israel. Gee, thanks! And for what? Israel has no oil, no useful exports that can't be found elsewhere. In the same way that the ill treatment of the Germans at the close of WWI was the real start of WWII, the insensitive obliteration of Palestine to create Israel at the close of WWII is the seed of WWIII.

Remember, Israel's enemies are Israel's enemies.

Abe Salaam

As one of the comments above asked: Why ARE there still so many Americans loyal to Bush? It makes no sense whatsoever. Just like I cannot understand how he won the last election.

Liberal or Conservative - who cares? Bottom line in Bush a a complete disaster and had screwed the people of the USA and the rest of the world for years. The only thing that will stop this is the next election cycle where we can get folks in offce who WILL question everything, not just sit by and let him continue to screw us.

With table manners as bad as that no wonder Poppy fired W's butt of to boarding school. He was making everyone in the house sick at dinner.

Someone once said, "You get the government (President?) you deserve." But this one is "Cruel and Unusual punishment."

What an embarrasment to the American people!!!!

So what if the President was "caught" swearing. He was just being honest (thankfully). Show me a world leader who hasn't either in spoken word or thought expressed the same feelings at one time or another over problems in this world. I for one am glad he's not afraid to say what he feels, and he's right, it's all a bunch of s*** and people should stop blowing themselves and or others around them into pieces and maybe, maybe there will be some peace in this world. Hezbollah and Al Qaeda, in my opinion, should be obliterated once and for all. Their main priority is causing death and destruction wherever they see fit. It is a bunch of s***, and it's got to stop, soon!

All I gotta say is that after reading all these comments from the sick, hateful, demented Left is that you people need some serious help. It's not Bush who is the laughingstock, it's you folks who are all whipped up into a ridiculous lather over someone saying "s--" and having food in his mouth!! It would be funny if it wasn't so damn scary.

All I gotta say is that after reading all these comments from the sick, hateful, demented Left is that you people need some serious help. It's not Bush who is the laughingstock, it's you folks who are all whipped up into a ridiculous lather over someone saying "shit" and having food in his mouth!! It would be funny if it wasn't so damn scary.

Personally I don't give a s---- that Bush cussed in what he must have thought was a private conversation with Tony Blair. What Dick Cheney did on the floor of the Senate, telling Senator Patrick Leahy to "go ---- himself", was a hundred times more uncouth.

The problem I have with Bush cursing is that it makes him a total hypocrite. How does he explain it to his evangelical base? Or are they willfully blind to any and all of his flaws, and they will continue to fawn over him regardless?

Ken Nachreiner

Erich Industries, Inc.

1(800)882-5839

In Illinois: 115 E Irving Park Road, Box 744 • Streamwood, Illinois 60107 • (800) 882-5839

If nothing else, George has very poor manners. I wonder if anyone had ever told him not to talk with his mouth full of food. Instead of trying to interrupt lunch for a couple minutes he was continuing to eat while talking. I feel bad for Blair. Thanks God he realized to turn the microphone off and put the end to this embarassment.

For those of you who are so bothered by the fact that anyone mentioned Bush's crude table manners, did you listen to the tape? I saw it on CNN before it was all over the place and I was disgusted by Bush smacking his lips and talking with his mouth full. He's the leader of the free world, for goodness sake. His lack of couth reflects badly on the citizens. You may think it petty, but people in other cultures judge us by our table manners.

"Who doesn't eat while they are talking."

I don't. My parents taught me table manners because they knew that people judge you based on your manners. Why do you think they have all of those etiquette classes for corporate executives?

Dear liberal posters, thank you for helping us engergize the base with your comments in this thread today. You've helped us win yet another election because you still don't get the political tactics of George Bush. Just like that other big dummy who beat the snot out of your candidates in every election he faced them in, you know, Ronald Wilson Reagan?
Believe it or not out there in your cushy condos, but there are lots of Americans who care more about the substance of policy then whether or not someone speaks with their mouth full in a private conversation. There are also people in America who judge people based on the content of their character (and politicians on their ideas and policies) and not whether they use an expletive every once in awhile.
You have further set yourselves apart as the party of the effete and the elite. The party that cares more about artifice than substance and the party that won't state the obvious, that Syria really does need to stop this (stuff).
Enjoy your weekend of wind-surfing. Thanks for the election win, again. I'm sure turd blossom and Dubya are yukking it up over the "hidden microphone" and the great script they wrote.

Perhaps Mark Twain said it best, "Support your country with all your might, support your leaders only when right."

Bush & Rove fervently hope that as many folks as possible will continue to naively advocate that criticizing Bush harms the interests of America. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Further, comparing past levels of criticism of previous Presidents has nothing to do with today's realities of over 2,500 dead American troops, 20,000 injured American troops - over 10,000 with critical injuries, and over 50,000 American troops suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome.

These troops should be the issue, not Bush's habit of speaking with his mouth full and his head empty.

Loretta,

Just trying to help here. Are you cross-eyed and/or had a serious head injury?

At any rate, hang in there - the remedy shall be upon us in January of 2009.

Some comments (both sides) are rather crass and attack each other in personal ways that are not all that productive in this dialogue. This is a major reason why our best and brightest minds stay away from politics, and we have such poor "leadership" in congress.

Although I am not a big fan of George W. Bush, this administration has kept the insane murderers who claim to "kill for Allah" away from our doing more damage in the US. I shudder to think what John Kerry or Al Gore would try to do against an enemy so evil and so cruel. Americans need to see the atrocities (ie, beheadings, violence against civilians, and total disregard for life) to really understand that we are at war with ruthless thugs who only want to kill you; we will be at war for decades.

For those who hate Bush and cannot wait for the next election (after he leaves office), please answer this: who will be the best leader? I cannot come up with anyone I am crazy about, although John McCain and Rudy Giuliani may be the safest choices, given our challenges of being at war with terrorism. Hillary? Yikes! Joe Lieberman? A strong leader on national security, but his own party is destroying him.

Bush has made some blunders, and history will determine if Iraq was a disaster (would be a huge tragedy), or a success (would be a revolutionary change of history in a troubled world). The media is not optimistic, and in response, the American public is losing faith that democracy can win. Lincoln was also a very unpopular President during the Civil War, which cost us dearly, but won freedom for all Americans. I do not think Dubya is another Lincoln, but if democracy succeeds in the Middle East, he will be a hero to millions.

On the domestic side, the economy is strong and growing (and so are our energy costs, unfortunately- the lack of an energy plan is one of his failings). I will credit Bush will cutting taxes for every American (however modest for the middle class, it is a step in the right direction). The deficit, while slowed recently, will be another unsavory legacy of this President (but in his defense, we are at war).

As bad as many think we are doing, would any of you prefer to live in any other nation? My ancestors left the old world to find a better life in the US, and I am thankful they did so.

it is a pure working attitude while spending leisure time if i am to observe it. You see the occassion speaks as if it is some sort of a break or recess sadly the microphone was'nt off but we should admire the two leaders despite the informal setting at that time they were overheard in the room while chatting, they are really serious about the event happening between Lebanon (Hezbollah) and Israel. So what's the big deal, they are also people prone to stress and may show irritation at the most unexpected and unaware ciscumstances.

The worst thing about this is the very poor and woefully incomplete transcript. The tape is much more audible than the AP would have us believe. Unfortunately, to listen to it, one has to hear W talking with his mouth full and constantly interrupting. What a buffoon.

To this very day I am absolutly flabbergasted at the reality of there being (still) so many supporters of Mr Bush. Is there a correlation between this phenomenon and the popularity of "reality" TV, sudoku and celebrity magazines??

John D.

Did you read Catherine's entry? She said she lost lots of people in Clinton's wars.

Unless they were Serbian, Kosovar, or one of the Rangers, she could not have lost anyone.

Also, yes we stayed in kosovo, and all still alive... unlike Bush's mess.

History lesson? At what point did say anything counter to your lesson?

you know what who cares of bushes eating habits.Can we get to the real issue here...peoples lives.For all I care he can shove peanuts down his mouth open or closed.But the real issue is the lives of these innocent people that have been lost,not in a normal way but in pieces and burnt, children ,women,babies.Let me ask you one thing,did you see any body pieces in the Isreali towns?Oh sorry people seem to be going HISTERICAL....tell me WHO IS THE TERRORIST HERE.AND HERE YOU PEOPLE ARE LOOKING AT HOW THIS SO CALLED PRESIDENT IS EATING.

John D.
(Catherine French, listen up also)

Having looked at you entrys again they seem to make little sense.

Kosovo and Gulf war I, and Afg. were protested very little. Why? Most Americans for one
reason or another:

1. Understood and agreed with the rational for each, and were willing to accept
the resulting death and destruction.
2. The admittedly limited goals were reached in a relatively short time regarding the shooting phase.
3. Most Americans believed they were hearing the truth from the leader at the time.

But now comes Iraq, and it was a clear mistake from the get go. We should still be in Afg. in force while letting containment and deterrence work with Saddam.

You both imply no one protested the Kosovo/Somali wars. Why didn't you if they were so wrong, Catherine? Don't tell me you were being loyal to Clinton. Your diatribe indicates otherwise. If you didn't protest those wars, then who is the hypocrite?

John D. your disingenuous outrage and Clinton's statement that we would be out in a year is pretty funny considering all the glowing predictions re. Iraq from the current crop of dunces ruling over us.

I think it just sticks in your craw that Clinton's little Kosovo adventure achieved its limited goals with, and this is the important part;

NO US COMBAT DEATHS.

(There were some non-combat deaths, regrettably.)

For any reader that may have not read the posting that was so distorted by John D. Here it is. You decide.

"Cath. French says,

If you ask why I would send something like this, my friends and family lost loved ones in Clintons' wars of Kosovo / Bosnia and also Somalia. NO ONE protested those wars and the lost of many young soldiers. The blood of our kids is not worse than those lost in Iraq!! There is a word we have for people who only protest certain wars, and it's at the bottom"

1. Bush One got us into Somalia. Clinton got us out. (Cut and run to you)

2. Re. Kosovo: We had 0 (zero) none, not any, as in zero US/allied combat deaths in Kosovo.

3. How do you know who did or did not protest the Kosovo war?

4. Trent and the repubs. tried to snatch defeat from the mouth of victory on the very eve of success in Kosovo. (He didn't call it cut and run)

Catherine, you need to get your head screwed on straight. "

Now, what Catherine says is coherent only if the soldiers Serbian, Somali, or some other combination."

Catherine F.'s statement is coherent only if it were a Serbian/Kosovo/Somali combination of deaths or a Ranger. And yes, it would be a great tragedy regardless, but we should know who she refers to.

Obviously, Rosa, I care about how world "leaders" eat in public, but that's not nearly as rude as your posting part of your rant in all caps. Shouting doesn't make you right and Trib should have edited it out--and maybe corrected your spelling of "hysterical, " which hardly describes the overall tone in here.

Personally, I am just amused.

John D. and Cath. F.

I can only assume your silence to my rebuttals to your diatribes indicate agreement with me.

Doug Z. said:

"Loretta,

Just trying to help here. Are you cross-eyed and/or had a serious head injury?

At any rate, hang in there - the remedy shall be upon us in January of 2009.
Posted by: Doug Zook | Jul 18, 2006 6:53:14 PM"

DZ,

I hope you are correct, but this country is very likely to elect Jeb Bush in '08.

The press can eavesdrop on Bush, but Bush can't eavesdrop on phonecalls made to known or suspected terrorists overseas?

Y'all blame him for 9/11 saying "he didn't do enough;" but when he does something that is esssential to get the information we need to thwart the monsters, for whom a Democrat is no less a target than a Republican, you whine and pout the he's doing too much.

You really are a bunch of ninnies.

to MAX, who said...

"This was not an accidental mishap. This was done on purpose by both Blair and Bush. No one at the summit wanted or could mention Syria. By doing this "accidentally" and getting it out in the open --- its exactly what Bush & Blair wanted everyone to hear."

Interresting idea, Max. If true, it shows they certainly know which bait to use when fishing for headlines.

Geez guys, I can't see how some of you conservatives can praise Mr.Bush! Its the kind of people who jump on the press stating "Oh my goodness its a liberal attack against Bush!" that tarnish the reputation of America. While some conservatives are blathering on about how Bush+Chewing+Cussing+Blair= bias information posted by the press, there the big kids are discussing the loss of life in the Middle East Crisis! Imagine that! There are people out there who could careless about this trivial event and ponder "What will happen to the people of my country tomorrow?"

I'm disgusted on how some of you Republicans are saying, "Pish posh! Mr.Bush is the answer to all our problems, we voted for him and he's doing a bad thing? Impossible! Its the press thats bias to our great leader! Yea thats right! Everyone else who isn't against us is Anti-American and unpatriotic to our country!

While people like Loretta sit on their couch and bibble about how bad Democrats, Liberals, and everyone else who is against Bush are unpatriotic and undeserving of such a "great" man people are dying. And all you can think about is "OMG President Bush was talking while chewing his food, he can't do that! It is a mistake and I will not take any other just answers". Thats the kind of pathetic perspecitve in individuals that is leading this country downhill.

Sure President Bush embarrassed himself on internation television, so what? I'd bellow about how bad Bush messed up too, since I'm a Democrat, but my morals don't allow such behavior. Those who can't seem to get over that "our great leader" is not such a great leader after all, get over yourselves. People are dying in the Middle East when you are talking about the table manners of a TEXAN man and a man masquerading as gentleman named Tony.

What I'd like to see, is the redemption of this excuse of a presidency by actually rising to the occasion in a game called Life.

To all of those bashing Bush once again,

Did Bush speak with his mouthful? Yes. Is it embarrassing? Yes. Is it the worse thing that has happened in this nation's history? NO! Do I like the fact that he was eating and talking at the same time? NO. I also don't know what all of the circumstances were, nor do you.
I DO, however, know of several, and have been someone before who was trying to get in a meal and important dialogue at the same time within a very limited amount of time. Does it make it right? No, but it makes all of us human, and it happens to most ALL of us.
Let's be honest with ourselves and each other - for once, and get off our high horses and throw out our self righteous beliefs for just a little while.
We all know axiomatically that had it been anyone with a (D) behind his/her name and title, liberals would have made excuses, just as us republicans are trying to do now. Just as you made excuses for Clinton when he was doing Lewinski in the oval office. Right is right, and wrong is wrong, and according to all of us, they both were having a private moment that didn't stay private.
Our President IS unsophisticated and unpretentious, and he isn't the best speaker in the world, that is for sure. It also is part of his appeal to many. We want to be able to relate to our leaders and feel safe when they are in office. That's what makes them likable and gets them votes. That's why ALL politicians try so hard to make us think they are just regular people like you and I. Take Kerry for example: when he was running for President, he was purposefully shown having a beer in his socks while watching the game, hunting with the guys, playing ball with the kids, etc. That is all done on purpose. It's called public relations and it's done so we will think to ourselves, "Hey, that's a guy I can have a beer with, I like him". When you like someone, you vote for them. However, when they mess up (and they ALL do) then the opposite party wants to bash them and their intelligence. None of these politicians are dumb. They don't get to be where they are by being stupid. Ignorant, maybe, but not uneducated or stupid. Bush is a very intelligent man. He is a graduate of Yale for goodness sake! He's a very smart man, with poor speaking skills. He at least says what's on his mind, and you know where you stand with him. Don't you all know someone who is book smart, but has no street smarts? There are so many who are super smart in one area, and can't understand simple thinking in another. That doesn't make them stupid - it makes them human.You all want to judge the conversation that took place between B and B and call them idiots for not sounding eloquent. First of all, no one had time to figure out the world's problems during lunch. They were bouncing off each other, and what you heard was not a final draft (something each of us has the luxury of while in this blog, but many obviously choose not to use it). In a nutshell, what you heard is correct. Syria and Iran ARE behind this war and ARE supporting Hezbollah. If they stop the "s---", then there would be no war, as Hezbollah couldn't do it alone. And, terrorists do not respond to talk!!!!!! Just a a defiant child does not respond to "Johnny, please don't do that, it hurts Mommy's feelings". Need I say what that defiant child DOES respond to?
I'm sorry everyone, but children are more defiant these days because they have had too many "time outs" and "reasoning and talking to" and not enough hard discipline. I'll debate this all day long.
We conservatives don't have the same beliefs and philophies as liberals do. We want many of the same things though and have the same goals, but believe there is a different way to achive them.
Have you ever had a fight with your spouse because you didn't see eye to eye on the way you raise your child or spend the family money? I bet so. You both mean well, and want the same things - you just have differing opinions on how to achieve those goals. It doesn't make your spouse a bumbling idiot, does it?
Enough with the bashing. We have some very hard issues facing us and our President. He has not enjoyed any easy or peaceful time since his inaugeration. Contrary to poplular belief, he inherited a failing economy. Look it up!! Stock market crash under Clinton. NAFTA signed by Clinton which caused us to lose millions of jobs to Mexico. We have seen companies going overseas in past years, but they left in record numbers after NAFTA - and that was Clinton's baby. It's the first thing he saw fit to accomplish while in the white house. It's what he campaigned on. They all have their things.
We have very hard issues facing us that can't not be solved in a day. If it were that easy, they would have been solved years ago under any other administration. We have had them all: We've had administrations under both parties with complete control of Congress, and both parties with opposing sides of Congress. They all believed that terrorists were a threat to the US. No one has been able to abolish that threat yet. At least we are getting a little closer though. The middle east is a huge problem because we are not dealing with rational thinking people. They only know violence. You can't talk your way out of a problem with someone who only wants you dead. They DO NOT value human life the way we do. everyone is up in arms over civillians getting killed over there. Have we forgotten how many civillians were kille on Sept. 11, 2001? Have we forgotten that Hezbollah and Al-Qaeda are fighting among the civillians and using them as shields? Terrosist kill civillians all the time, and they don't think twice about it. It is unfortunate that civillians get caught in the crossfire, but many more will die if Hezbollah and other terrorist groups are not stopped.
I'm not in favor of violence all the time. I am a peaceful person. But, I'm smart enough to know that sometimes it is the only answer. I remember EVERYONE saying it was a good thing Bush was the one in office when we were attacked by terrorist on Sept. 11, 2001. We all knew that if Gore was in office, he would have wanted to reason with the enemy and we would have not responded in a strong or forceful way. We would have made ourselves a target once again. We haven't been attacked since. And there WERE WMD's. I still beleive we will find them. Many believe they were moved to Syria while we talking to Saddam and telling him that were gonna count to three... And guess what? They WILL come back to harm us. Those weapons were not destroyed as they were supposed to be. And by making Iraq a democratic and free nation, it DOES make them an ally NOT an enemy any longer, so this war with Iraq and on terror are two in the same.
Certain people are going to hate Americans no matter what! We bend over backwards for them, just so they can hate us. Look up how much foreign aid we offer all these countries that hate us. They bite the hand that feeds them. Just as so many Americans criticize Bush for every little thing no matter what, certain countries are not allies - period.
Let them hate us, as long as they know they won't get away with attacking us, let them hate all they want. Why do we care? They hate anyway, but with a leader in place that is willing to give them uranium "just to test them" is still going to be hated, but he will be laughed at as well all the while they make nuclear weapons to destroy the free world!

I don't care if you are a democrat, liberal, conservative, repulican, independant, or non-believer, when you address or refer to our President, he shall be called "Mr.President", or "President Bush".
Mr.(insert last name) is reserved for your elders, NOT your President!!! Didn't your Mom teach you any better? Those that refer to him as such, must have learned their manners from the same place he did!
It matters not if you like him or agree with his politics. He IS the President, and he shall be called so. You may call him Mr. Bush after he has served his term if you be so bold.
If not, you're no better or smarter than he (though you'd like to believe so). In fact, it shows your ignorance and lack of respect for the Office of President.
You need to support your President no matter who he is. If he fails, we all fail. Support does not mean you have to agree all the time, it just means that you want them to succeed. And we should ALL want our Presidents to succeed. When you support your favorite ball team, does it mean you agreed with every play they made? Does it mean you hate them when they lose a game or a player is seen in public doing something wrong? No, it simply means you hope they do better in the next game. Even though they lost or had a player embarrass the team, they still have your support. That is, unless you're a bandwagon fan (lots of those out there) and you are loyal to no one - which is a different issue all together.
I see so many who get so much joy from seeing the blunders of ALL our leaders, and we forget who is watching.We are divided by party lines, and that will be our demise.
Let's not forget, their are poverty stricken republicans/conservatives as well as rich democrats/liberals. For goodness sake, Hollywood is filled with super rich liberals. So why do the dems feel like the "rich republicans are always sticking it to them"?

Karyn,

You are lucky I didn't call him 'Mr. Psycho.'

And by the way, maybe if he loses, we win??

And by the way, don't be such a scold. You sound like the 'church lady.'

Top Ten Names for Mr. Bush.

10. Mr. Idiot

9. Mr. Lame

8. Mr. Rogers.

7. Mr. Incurious George

6. W

5. Shrub

4. That dumb guy running things

3. Mr. War

2. Mr. Chicken Hawk

1. Mr. The Worst Prez Ever

K,

Here's a song I wrote about "President" Bush.

To the tune of Strange Brew. Know it?

***********

Bush brew, kills what’s inside of you

He’s the Prez of us in electric red
If he has his way we may all end up dead
Boo-Hoo,,, now what ya gonna do
Bush Brew, Y2K did it to you

On a vote in the middle of a raging sea
He whipped Al’s (butt), that’s the way it must be
Although,,, Gore really won the score
Bush brew, stir up the right wing stew

Bush and Cheney even Tom DeLay,
They will teach us all how the big boys play
Dems lose,,, reduced to clowns and booze
Bush brew, he didn’t give Kerry a clue

Mephistophoeles aka Karl Rove
On his advise into Iraq we dove
Hey now,,, Redux: Apocalypse Now
It hurts, his name must really be Kurtz

Bush brew, kills what’s inside of you

Bush chewing while he talks is what the Chicago Tribune writes and you call that bias,who the hell in there right minds could of ever thought that Bush could handle 2 things at once its a miracle he didnt choke.

Three phrases should be among the most common in our daily usage. They are: Thank you, I am grateful and I appreciate.

Your President is the best president the United States have! Long live to President George W. Bush!