Posted by Frank James at 9:32 am CST
Sometimes, it seems like everyone is somehow connected to everyone else, especially when you're talking about about the ruling elites from one nation to the next.
When Stephen Hadley, President Bush's National Security Advisor, briefed reporters travelling with the president in Asia about a meeting Bush had with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during the APEC summit, he told of a photo Abe gave the president.
"There were a couple light moments in the discussion," Hadley said. "One was a discussion about the contribution that may be made to the Japanese economy by the signing to a contract by the Boston Red Sox of a Japanese pitcher, a man named Matsuzaka, at an estimated $51 million, which is -- the President complimented the Prime Minister on that; and also a poignant moment -- the Prime Minister presented a picture to the President of his grandfather and the President's grandfather playing golf with President Eisenhower in the waning days of the Eisenhower administration -- interesting familial touch for the two leaders."
Abe's grandfather, Nobusuke Kishi, was once a Japanese prime minister, representing his nation's conservative wing, just like his grandson.
He was also a senior member of the government of Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo who took Japan to war in World War II. Indeed Kishi had signed the war declaration and after Japan's surrender he was imprisoned as a Class A war criminal. Time magazine had a very informative profile of him in 1960, done in connection with his trip to visit Eisenhower.
Bush's grandfather, of course, was Sen. Prescott Bush, a Connecticut Republican, a man who, if he never realized his own presidential aspirations, had them mightily fulfilled by his son, the first President Bush, and his grandson.
And, of course, it was the first President Bush who, as a naval pilot during the Second World War, was almost killed by the same Japanese military machine which Abe's grandfather served at the highest level.
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Comments
If B.J.Clinton was born 20 years earlier,I wonder how he would have "avoided" W.W.2. Canada was right there with us,so forget defection. Anyway,the greatest generation would have been better off without him!
Paulo
Posted by: Paulo | November 18, 2006 11:46 AM
President Bush doesn't want to get into the details of how his grandfather indirectly supported the Nazi war machine to make the the Bush family wealthy. That photo will probably be hung in a very obscure corner of the White House if it's shown at all.
Posted by: Donald R. | November 18, 2006 11:55 AM
The problem with the Bush family is that they view being President as a birth right.
Becoming President is the goal for the Bush's,NOT what political position they might stand for,and as we have all seen,they want to be a "war time" President so that it will cement their place in history as a tough guy.
If people want to blame someone for the Bush royal family coming to power,they could start with Ronald Reagan's "people".
When Reagan won the Republican nomination he didn't want to have anything to do with George H W Bush,he viewed him as a boring,social climber.
Reagan's people told Ronnie that George H W Bush would be a good choice as Vice Prez because he was the one whom Ronnie had defeated in the Republican primary.
It wasn't until the very last minute that Reagan agreed to take on George H W Bush as his Vice Presidential candidate,and after their election victory Nancy Reagan would make a habit of not inviting the Bush's to big gatherings at the Whitehouse.
George H.W. Bush only won one election in his entire life prior to his VP,and Prez duties.
He was a "yes man" for tricky Dick Nixon,and was the very last one of Nixon's people to abandon him during the Watergate mess,saying "his President" would never do somthing like that,while the rest of the country looked at the evidence against tricky Dick,and came to a different conclusion.
Sounds kind of like W.'s "stay the course" Iraq situation,doesn't it???
Posted by: John E. | November 18, 2006 12:48 PM
Bush's six degrees of seperation:
(1) Habeus Corpus
(2) Warrantless Wiretapping
(3) Dead Soldiers
(4) Wounded Soldiers
(5) Dead Civilians
(6) Wounded Civilians
With Bush at the helm we can count on lots more.
Posted by: Donald R. | November 18, 2006 6:33 PM
Paulo,
You ask "If Bill Clinton was born 20 years earlier,I wonder how he would have "avoided" W.W.2."
Probably in a similar way that George W. Bush, Richard Cheney, Karl Rove, Paul Wolfowitz, Dennis Hastert, Dick Armey, Tom Delay, Trent Lott, John Ashcroft, Roy Blunt, Mitch McConnell, George Allen, Rick Santorum and other Chickenhawks did.
Just like our Vice President Cheney, they "had other priorities in the '60s than military service."
Posted by: Paulo | November 19, 2006 9:42 PM
John E.
He was more than just a "yes man" for Nixon. It is widely thought that he orchestrated the Bay of Pigs as a C.I.A. field agent. It is also thought he managed the assassination of President Kennedy. This is not conspiracy theorist info, there are too many coincidences involved to just be happenstance. He knew Nixon didn't pull off Watergate because he(Bush) was in charge. This family is a criminal enterprise that dates back to the Opium scourge of the early 1800's. The Elections in FL & OH were par for the course for this gang. The history of this family is troubling at best, dispicable when the dots are connected.
Posted by: K.Brown | November 20, 2006 10:50 AM