Finally, the President gets it...

[Blackadar]

This is a good point.  But it brings up the question of what he was asked.

Video here. The question was, "Mr. President, you haven't been golfing in recent years. Is that related to Iraq?"

In which case, I temporarily  withdraw my mockery.  Now I have to wonder who the hell would ask that question and why?  Ifit was a plant, I will turn my mockery up to 11.

Actually, the mockery level goes up to 11 after watching the video.  Note that I've withheld any judgment on this video until I've had a chance to see it.

First, no self-respecting reporter would ask that question.  It was obviously a plant.  That's poor form, but it happens all the time and reflects more poorly on the interviewer than the interviewee.  So we move on...

Second, the response was absurd.  "Yeah. It really is. Uh, I don't want some mom, uh, whose son may have recently died to see the commander in chief playing golf. Uh, I feel I owe it to the families to be as -- you know to -- to be in solidarity as best as I can with them and I think, you know, playing golf, uh, during a war just sends the wrong signal." 

Uh, no, George, sending kids to die in an unjust war that started off with your lies sends the wrong signal.  I don't really see how one is related to the other.  Did Bush give up other recreational activities to show his "solidarity"?  The justification doesn't make much sense.  Geezer's example earlier was spot-on.

Third, the response was bullshit.  "No, you know, I remember when de Mello, who was of the U.N., got killed in Baghdad, as a result of these, uh, murderers taking this good man's life and, I was playing golf -- I think it was in central Texas -- and they pulled me off the golf court -- golf course and I said it's just not worth it anymore to do that."

But now we get to the real crux of the matter.  Given that he stopped playing golf in October when de Mello died in August, the answer is a fabrication.  As such, it's along the lines of Hillary's "sniper fire" bullshit rhetoric.  However, I find it to be extremely distasteful since Bush is using the death of someone as a false justification to build sympathy and credibility.  Pathetic.

[cheeba]

Actually, the mockery level goes up to 11 after watching the video.

Quelle surprise, unbreakable, jr.

[Pyperkub]

He thought it looked bad for him to be playing golf during a time of war so he stopped.  Someone asked him about it and he talked about it.  I understand the need for people to portray the man as a heartless warmongering demon, but this is getting blown way out of proportion.  Should he have kept playing?  Should he have lied about why he stopped?  I doubt he or anyone expects that this will have any impact on veterans or their families. 

You have it all wrong.  Cheney's the heartless warmongering demon, Bush is just the poor schmuck who's soul is owned by Cheney... sheesh!   

[Geezer]

Actually, the mockery level goes up to 11 after watching the video.

Quelle surprise, unbreakable, jr.

Without knowing the context of the question I still don't think we can say. In a vacuum, that question seems like a softball though, you have to admit.

[Blackadar]

Actually, the mockery level goes up to 11 after watching the video.

Quelle surprise, unbreakable, jr.

Np, Kobra.

Again, you can't prove me wrong so you go after the personal attacks.  Your patterns are rather obvious.

Was the question a pretty obvious plant?  (likely)  Is the reason for quitting rather odd?  (yes)  Did Bush golf after his supposed reason for quitting passed, rendering his excuse bullshit?  (absolutely)

[cheeba]

Without knowing the context of the question I still don't think we can say. In a vacuum, that question seems like a softball though, you have to admit.

Yep, I will admit that. But I doubt we'll ever know for sure. No way will that reporter admit that he's asking questions spoon fed to him.

[Brendan]

Dan Froomkin of the WaPo has more.

He cites a blogger on worldgolf.com that goes to the tone of the "interview":

"In an insipid interview with the web site Politico that featured no less than 20 questions about his daughter's wedding, baseball, American Idol and who does the best impersonation of him, President George W. Bush was hit with a haymaker - Has he stopped golfing? . . ."

The Politico, of course, is run by conservative screenwriter Roger L. Simon.

[Geezer]

Dan Froomkin of the WaPo has more.

He cites a blogger on worldgolf.com that goes to the tone of the "interview":

"In an insipid interview with the web site Politico that featured no less than 20 questions about his daughter's wedding, baseball, American Idol and who does the best impersonation of him, President George W. Bush was hit with a haymaker - Has he stopped golfing? . . ."

The Politico, of course, is run by conservative screenwriter Roger L. Simon.

From the WaPo article:

And a Wonkette commenter suggests: "Has he thought about giving up Iraq for golf?"

 

[Trappin]

I want him to show regret and remorse for the families he's ruined in service of a cause that will never come to fruition.

This is where Clinton bites his lip.. Its the cue for mass ululation.


Oh and IIRC there was another one president (Eisenhower?) who specifically gave up golf during a time of war...

Eisenhower didn't bother to attend Patton's funeral.

[Knightshade Dragon]

The namecalling stops.  No Kobra or Unbreakable here.  When you stoop to that level you are no better than they are.   

[Rowdy]

See, here's the thing:

It might be almost barely meaningful if the President also stopped setting records for number of vacation days taken, stopped clearing brush on his vanity ranch, stopped mountain biking, and didn't show up on the set of deal-or-no-fucking-deal, but a lot more meaningful if he started attending some funerals and visiting Walter Reed more than twice a year.  It's more important that the President acknowledge the thousands of lives that have been ruined or ended because of his elective war.  I think that not "playing golf during a war" does not show any "solidarity" with "some whose kid recently died," but instead exposes the total and utter shallowness of a mental midget.

Do you know anyone on active duty in Iraq or Afghanistan, cheeba?

What a bunch of specious crap.

Anyone with any intelligence knows that the president can never truly take a vacation day. The "football" follows him wherever he goes. He receives updates from the various departments every day. He is able to function as easily from Crawford as he is from the White House.

He showed up on Deal or No Deal to honor a decorated veteran, whose mother was sitting in the audience crying with pride as he received the message. Yeah that's a total dishonor to the military.

As for attending military funerals, do you read all these liberal blogs with no critical thought whatsoever? You obviously didn't do any research. FDR attended no military funerals. LBJ attended 2 - he knew both personally. Nixon attended none. Carter attended a memorial service. Bush 1 didn't attend any. Clinton didn't attend funerals. He attended memorial services. Kind of makes sense for a president, with the large entourage and security that necessarily follows him everywhere, along with the large press corps, to not make a spectacle of what should be a private ceremony for the family/friends of the deceased, no?

Again, I will reiterate that President Bush is not making a big deal of not playing golf. He simply thinks it inappropriate at this time. I know your immature mind for some reason needs to demonize him and think of him as evil because you disagree with him, but he is still a man. He's a man who believes in his heart that these wars are the right thing. He knows he's sending people to their deaths. Can you imagine how hard that must be? I know you can't, because, after all, you *really* disagree with him and so his every action and word are to be mocked and twisted into some cynical catch phrase that you can spew onto an internet forum.

And yes, I've had a couple good friends on active duty in Iraq. One of whom is going back very soon.

Outstanding post.

[IkeVandergraaf]

OJ still plays golf.  He's looking for the real killers.

[Biyobi]

OJ still plays golf.  He's looking for the real killers.

Perhaps Bush should join him out there to continue his hunt for WMDs.