Bush sat down with reporter Mike Allen yesterday for a Politico/Yahoo interview, billed as the first for a president talking to an online audience. Probably the biggest news in the discussion was Bush’s bizarre comment about giving up golf during the war “to be in solidarity” with grieving families.
I neglected, however, to read the entire transcript of the interview, and notice that the questions were kind of bizarre, too.
Dan Froomkin asked, “Has there ever been a more moronic interview of a president of the United States than the one conducted yesterday by Mike Allen?” After seeing that, I couldn’t imagine what would draw such a sharp rebuke. Allen, after all, was a White House correspondent for the Washington Post and Time magazine, so he presumably knows how to conduct an interview with the president that isn’t “moronic.”
So, I read the transcript. Froomkin has a point. The first seven questions — seven — were about Jenna Bush’s wedding. Froomkin also pulled together this non-wedding-related list of Allen’s questions:
“Mr. President, I know you’re going to hate this, but I’m hoping that we may twist your arm and talk about baseball for just a moment. (Laughter.) Mr. President, you’re a Major League Baseball team owner again. Everyone is a free agent. You have a Yankees-like wallet. Who is your first position player? Who’s your pitcher?”
“Now, Mr. President, you and the First Lady appeared on American Idol’s charity show, ‘Idol Gives Back.’ And I wonder who do you think is going to win? Syesha, David Cook, or David Archuleta?”
“All right. Mr. President, who does the better impression, Will Ferrell of you, or Dana Carvey of your father?”
“And speaking of impressions, our friend, Robert Draper, author of ‘Dead Certain,’ said you do a great impression of Dr. Evil from ‘Austin Powers’.”
Allen also asked Bush, “Do you feel that you were misled on Iraq?” That’s not bad at all — except it was a question that came from a Politico reader.
No Trackbacks To “Seven questions about Jenna Bush’s wedding?“
When is the groom shipping off to Iraq?
channeling Chris Farley: “Um….yeah…..heh….uh, mr. president? Remember that time you bombed Iraq? Yeah….that was awesome. Uh huh.”
How many of the hundreds of “drunken mistakes” did she invite??
Ruthless People @ 1:
Beat me to it. :D
Christ! Am I in Oz? This President insane? When does this nightmare end!
Someone should ask Mike Allen what feels better on the tounge…an cherrio or Bush’s spincter?
The groom & his dumb [Deleted. Abusive. Site Monitor] can now relocate to their Iraqi paradise.
The Texas limestone cross gives me the creeps. Especially at a wedding. They could have saved a lot of money and held the ceremony in a graveyard.
Look at all those happy and smiling faces in that photo. These people are sick.
Ah, the dumbing down of America continues. Enquiring minds want to know, and all that crap.
I won’t even go into what a crime it is to pitch softballs to the president who made what is possibly the worst decision ever by a US president. All of us here know that already.
Ooh, Calgarylady, you’re right–that cross looks like a gravestone. Creepy.
…Bush spends his time doing Dr Evil impressions?
I suppose one could say that those light hearted and off topic questions where given to the President because of the occasion but the President is always the President no matter what is going on. In my opinion, these “questions” just make a lame duck President even more lame in the long run.
Wow! Were these questions asked WHILE Allen was blowing the President? Or AFTER?
bushit could never face any questions that insinuated what a complete schmuck he is without turning to jello. Everything is sick, wrecked, and phony in bushitworld.
Is it true the groom had to rush out in the middle of the night to Home Depot to buy rust removal for Jenna’s chastity belt?
Ana Marie Cox has written that Allen is a very nice guy as a human being, but he’s quite the suck-up, and often uses right-wing talking points.
The thing that has struck me about this photo, and earlier versions that just showed Jenna and whatshisname, is the body language. Doesn’t it look like she’s about to crawl him and he’s wondering what in hell he’s getting into? What are the chances he’s gay? She’s sure not.
joeedugan @ 13:
How do we know that wasn’t Bob Allen doing the interview (and did he give Bushie his 20 bucks up front?)?
Ottley of the Philadelphia Phillies?
It’s Utley, dumbass, and he plays 2nd base.
How does this president get everything, even the important stuff, all wrong, and everybody just gives him a free pass?
For 8 years?
ZombieNation @ 7:
Since when were zombies touchie-feelie?
I’ll just state the obvious. Why is Allen, a ‘reporter’, asking Bush questions like this when thousands have died and continued to die in this sham war? Can we get any lower as a country? Other than electing McSame?
For the past 4 years I’ve wondered why we don’t have thousands protesting in the streets of every major city in the country. Oh, that’s right, most people are too busy and can’t miss that episode of American Idol. I wonder what it will take to get us back to caring again.
ysbaddaden @ 15:
Hell, I thought he’d just call POP-A-LOCK!
Did Bush do a 12 step program to give up golf?
Marc @ 23:
No, but he still golfs at weddings…
Any photos of Bush drinking yet?
I would also add that the picture itself speaks volumes. Its how I imagine a typical Republican/Conservative wedding would look like. Notice how Jenna is leaning towards Harry in a more aggressive posture while Harry looks more timid. Just from that picture alone, I think we can say that the odds are Jenna will be wearing the pants in that family. Its a stretch to say that I know but it is well known that Conservatives/Republicans tend to be more vocal than actually courageous.
Was Jeb at the weddin’??? Man, I wish I could have been there and cornered Jebbie; I would have given anythng to ask him: “(ahem!) So, Jeb. How’s that 2008 Presidential campaign workin’ out for ya?? Oh (snicker!) That’s right! Thanks to your bro, you don’t have one!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
ysbaddaden @ 15:
Lets not get to far ahead of ourselves. I don’t think Harry has advanced to that section of the birds and the bees story yet. He probably thinks that babies are found under a cabbage leaf or brought by a stork.
why is “Do you feel that you were misled on Iraq?” ‘not bad at all’ as you indicate in your post? It’s the kind of softball, tell us why you’re so great and everyone else is so bad, kind of question that helps get him off the Iraq hook…
they might have well have asked “How come everyone blames you for the Iraq war when it was the faulty CIA intelligence that got us into this mess in the first place? Why, Mr. President…why?”
A ‘not bad at all’ question would have been: “You have claimed in the past that faulty intelligence was to blame for your judgment that Iraq possessed WMDs. Yet the historical record shows that you were given intelligence reports that rejected these claims. Why did you choose to cherry pick intelligence when deciding whether or not to invade a sovereign nation?”
Joe O. @ 25:
Poor bastard was probably soiling his Fruit O’ The Looms. He’d heard the rumor that it was gonna be a real Texas shotgun weddin’ - and Dick Cheney was gonna be there.
Does anyone else find it strange that Bush’s comment about giving up golf during the Iraq War (which, as MSNBC has shown with video, was a lie anyway), came from Allen’s question whether Bush’s cessation of golf had to do with Iraq? How could Allen possibly have known that? Obviously, the question was a setup.
Was George H. Bush there? Was mom Barbara there? Remember what she said to the victims in Texas after Katrina? “Now that’s not to bad.” Then turned aside and asked, “When are they going to leave?” So much compassion in that family!
Mike Allen I am surprised he does not have a show on CNN yet? Snark.
At this stage in the game, the Chimp and his handlers get to see, and OK, the questions in advance. No surprises.
Media Concepts @ 30:
Of course it was a setup! George never goes before the cameras unscripted. You know, that George, he’s goes before the cameras without having every word drilled into him, you know he gets ta thinkin and talkin’ things out of his own brain. Poor fella done gets downright confused.
ysbaddaden @ 20:
Have you seen that Chimpy bald fetish website, the one with all the laying on of hands on bone domes ?
Prob just feeling for a soft spot to bite into !
Why wasn’t the “beer pong” table in any of the picures?
Is it true tht the longest neck at the wedding was the Lone Star Beer Bottle?
How many abortions have the twins had? And was Jenna keeping this one politically motivated?
A certain bride-to-be to be was extremely
pregnantplump last year,going by the various photos on Wonkette and similar, so what happened ! abortion or secret baby ?
Both things fall foul of the RW Xtian credo.
And finally, Our Dearest Beloved Leader, have I ever told you how handsome you look today? Can I get you a pillow? How about a cold frosty soda? Really, I just can’t get over it. So very handsome.
Was the man of the cloth the only black guy there? Did he wait tables at the reception too?
When Barbara Bush arrived, she handed her coat to Condi.
fastfeat @ 40:
Nah, Bush probably has a whole host of slave immigrant workers to do that which are provided by his own private sweat shop. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me to learn that Bush forced them to carve that cross and table using only stone tools.
What a perfect place for a military recruiter, with all those young Bush cousins who have been given so much by America–here’s their chance to serve and support Unca W’s war.
Ya’know, I’m not sure I can take it if I hear one more person ask ” Why does everyone give this clown a free pass ? ”
It’s called DENIAL !
The great , powerful , ultra-civilized U.S. of A. couldn’t possibly have made a lying idiot the leader of the entire free world, could it ? Naaahh . He’s just a regular guy , let’s help him along with this interview so that he doesn’t sweat .
Media Concepts @ 30:
Absolutely! I thought the same thing, that someone must have fed Allen that question.
Also, is it me, or does Jenna’s hubby bear a creepy resemblance to the always creepy Rick Santorum?
Mark @ 43:
And you know, that if that happened every one of them would want to have a supporting but not an active (I.E. fight) role in W’s wars as always. Funny, but many Republicans remind me of a jock strap. A joke strap is there to support and protect what actually matters but it isn’t actually a participant in the game. lol
Allen is a right-leaning whore and sycophant. And Politico is nothing more than Pajamas Media 2.0. Don’t know why people have such a hard time figuring that out. It should have been obvious when Bush put in a plug for Politico the first time Allen asked him a question at a press conference.
Are people really fooled just because they now have slightly more professional looking graphics, and have wroped in a few hacks like Allen and Vendehei?
Ruthless People:
When is the groom shipping off to Iraq?
Ha! My 84 year old mother asked the same question!
Mark @ 43:
Oh yes, I forgot to mention that when those Bush cousins run when the recruiters arrive it will be easy to track them down. Just follow the urine and fecal trails. lol
I heard that Baghdad is great for a honeymoon.
the questions seemed like they were provided by the white house. the politico reporter is a tool.
so, people care about this kind of crap while the country is being torn apart?
I meant to check back to see if they used my question, but I guess there is no point in that now. I asked him if he has land in Paraguay so he can escape being tried for war crimes.
Atilla the Hungry @ 53:
Actually, I think they’re flying that limestone cross down there to put on a hill above the Chimp farm to look like a smaller version of the one that is on the mountain above Rio.
Plus, that table looks like a great place for Blowboy to lay out some healthy rails from his Colombian “free trade” buddies.
history will chart this shameful course we’re on. never forget!
frickin’ shamnanigans!
my father, rest his soul, would have been sickened by this horse-shite administration.
my father, rest his soul, was a very conservative republican.