100K directors; August vacation cut short; and Presidentin' For Dummies

[ProSense]

July 11, 2006, 7:47PM

On the road: Will Bush get less Crawford this August?

By CRAGG HINES
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

This could be getting serious.

The White House is concerned enough about President Bush's job rating and its possible effect on Republican chances in the November elections that word of reduction in vacation time at Crawford next month is being put about.

Bush may be so desperate to look engaged that, even if he's not in Washington, aides say he will spend more August nights on the road away from his Prairie Chapel Ranch.

What with the approach of congressional elections as well as continuing rough patches with Iraq, Iran and North Korea, "White House officials have decided too much is at stake this year for Bush to spend so much time on vacation," the Associated Press reported.

Not noted in the report was which White House official delivered this view to Bush and whether the official's head had been reattached. For Presidents Bush like their down time, and who can blame them? (As a beneficiary of his father's lovely, long summer sojourns on the Atlantic Coast of Maine, I'm not complaining.)


http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/hines/4040588.html

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

White House paying $100,000 salary to "Director of Lessons Learned"

by John in DC - 7/12/2006 11:25:00 AM

Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) offers a few more lessons learned:

Snip...

"I would also ask the President why we're paying for two 'Ethics Advisors' and a 'Director of Fact Checking.'

"They must be the only people in Washington who get more vacation time than the President.

"Maybe the White House could consolidate these positions into a Director of Irony."

http://americablog.blogspot.com/2006/07/white-house-paying-100000-salary-to.html

Presidentin' For Dummies

by digby

Q Well, Mr. President, you've known Mr. Prodi for a long time, and you've known Mr. Berlusconi -- you've known both of them. And how would you assess the personal relationship that you had with Mr. Prodi and with Mr. Berlusconi? Is there a difference how comfortable would you feel with one or the other?

THE PRESIDENT: ...And let me just take a step back. What's interesting about our country is that we've got -- we've had close ties with a lot of countries. My ranch was settled by Germans.

Q Really?

THE PRESIDENT: Yes. There's a huge number of Italian Americans. A lot of Russian Americans. You know, Norm Mineta in my Cabinet is a Japanese American. In other words, so when you talk about relations with an American President, you've got to understand that there's a -- at least I have, I know my predecessors have, connections, close connections with people who have fond -- either fond memories and/or great pride in their motherland.

Who knew?

How embarrassing it must be these days to be John Podhoretz, who wrote this in his hilariously ill-timed tome, http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?inkey=65-0312324723-2">Bush Country, How Dubya Became A Great President While Driving Liberals Insane:

The consistent inability of Democrats and liberals to pay proper respect to their adversaries has surely done more damage to them than to their adversaries. Their misunderestimation will continue to cost them as long as they persist in their comforting delusion that the whip-smart George W. Bush is an idiot.

And, by the way, Norm Mineta's resignation was official last week.

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2006_07_01_digbysblog_archive.html#115268147292295900

Embarrassing is a good word!

[Mnemosyne]

1. I wish he'd take a permanent vacation...

at the Hague - actually Abu Ghraib sounds more in line with what he has earned.

I hate August.