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May 28, 2006

Still weaseling

The President's recent news conference in which he declared his greatest mistake as using too much "tough talk" is a pretty interesting development. Although made much too late to actually repair any damage he's done, at least the President's handlers understand that the smug and arrogant tones haven't played well outside of Texas.

But sadly, Elizabeth Bulmiller of the Times still plays into the myth that Bush is some sort of plain spoken Texan:

Mr. Bush's Texas twang intensifies and recedes depending on the setting. But he has always prided himself on being plain spoken. When it comes to military and national security, he made the heaviest use of Texas talk in the first term, initially after the Sept. 11 attacks and then after the Iraq invasion.

On Sept. 15, 2001, Mr. Bush declared that he would go after the perpetrators of the World Trade Center attack and "smoke them out of their holes." On Sept. 17, 2001, Mr. Bush declared that he wanted Osama bin Laden "dead or alive." On July 2, 2003, Mr. Bush taunted militants attacking American forces in Iraq with "bring 'em on."

White House officials have defended his Texas talk as the kind of plain-spoken language Americans like to hear, but Laura Bush has at times tried to rein him in. In a widely reported comment at the time, Mrs. Bush sidled up to her husband after he said he wanted Mr. bin Laden "dead or alive" and asked, "Bushie, are you gonna git 'im?"

I suppose the definition of "plain spoken" is up for debate. Bush's supporters defend his mispronounciations and garbled delivery as part of his unsophisticated, every-man approach. As if we're supposed to be pleased that our President is just like everyone else with no special intellect or abilities. Personally, I'd prefer that the Leader of the Free World be smarter and more capable than I am. This is a guy with his finger on the nuke button...not someone I'm headed to the local pub to down a few beers with.

But the "plain spoken Texan" thing is utter bullshit--part of Rove's created caricature. Bush was born in Connecticut. His family moved to Texas when Bush was a young boy and he lived there until he left for prep school in New England. After than he attended Yale.

This is hardly a born and bred Texan.

Posted by Carla at May 28, 2006 08:15 AM

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