george w bush on meet the press, this sunday, with timmy "the man" russert!

[mental invalid]

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3032608/

check your local listing.


im not sure who here is a regular of this show, but im reaaaaally looking forward to this. i like tim alot and i can only hope that he will be as fair and honest as he is with any of his other guests.(especially clark and dean) if he throws softballs im gonna be disappointed.

from a PR standpoint, i guess it needs to be done, but i dont know if its the best way to go about it. this could really backfire given bushs inability at speaking eloquently and to think on his feet.

should be cool.

[Pilau Hands]

what i'm curious about is how middle america and the general armed forces feels about bush right now. basically for four years i've heard people around me mumble and grumble about how come 2004 we've got to get him out of there...

but remember beards posting those letters from people to the man? they were talking about how he was the best president in history. and military men saying they believe in him and his cause.

curious indeed

[Kr430n5_666]

anyhow anyway

[BROWNer]

i thought those beardo letters were a farce....

good lookin' son, i'll see if i can catch that somehow.
it'll be an exercise in restraint.

[mental invalid]

you should browner...


hopefully the rest of team nerd is seeing the batmanish "TN" sign high in the sky and will be checking in shortly.

[kaesthebluntedwonder]

Yeah I heard about this.

I don't know though, I have a feeling it might be fixed as to have a bunch of softballs like you said. But of course, I hope for the opposite.

We shall see, my friends.

[imported_El Mamerro]

I don't know, Bush didn't seem to look as unbelievably stupid during his presidential debates as he has ever since. Will he ever come out of the current overwhelming dumbosity illness, and back to just-above-average dumbosity with one-on-one talks?

Will people conclude he looked stupid because his views and his face are considered stupid, or because he said objectively stupid things, like inventificating new words?

STAY TUNED.

[kaesthebluntedwonder]

^^^ There are just so many options.

[mental invalid]

"Will people conclude he looked stupid because his views and his face are considered stupid"


alfred "w" bush..."what! me worry?"

[kaesthebluntedwonder]

Forgive my not knowing names and specifics and this and that, but a friend of mine told me last night that Carl Rove's (is that the guy I'm thinking of?) grandfather was a Nazi who helped set up concentration camps and what not.

Can anyone confirm this, or maybe give me the right name. I don't think this is some made up shit.

[mental invalid]

i dont know about karl rove, but the bushs do have a light connection to nazi germany...

http://sandiego.indymedia.org/en/2003/02/4183.shtml

[mental invalid]

the karl rove one looks like a case of bad media:


http://www.freepress.org/departments.php/d...lay/10/2003/389 (http://www.freepress.org/departments.php/display/10/2003/389)


but im not sure:


http://www.counterpunch.org/wasserman10062003.html

[imported_SenorSeven]

anything that gives us a chance to see how mcuh more of an idiot Bush is than we already thought is definitely positive. I swear if he takes it in 2004, the US will be worse off than Iraq was with Sadaam....

[kaesthebluntedwonder]

Originally posted by mental invalid
the karl rove one looks like a case of bad media:


http://www.freepress.org/departments.php/d...lay/10/2003/389 (http://www.freepress.org/departments.php/display/10/2003/389)


but im not sure:


http://www.counterpunch.org/wasserman10062003.html

Nah, I think that first link you posted was what I was thinking of.

Thanks mang.

[old*824]

i used to think bush was an idiot.

now i have come to the conclusion that he is a egotistical dry drunk that does not articulate well at all, has business associates of extremely poor moral standing that do not conduct ethical business(enron) and was in flagrant violation of constitutional and international law by invading two countries during his term after the country suffered the most horrendous terrorist attacks, which we have yet to see justice done to the people behind it.

holy run on sentences batman.

so you cant really clown as an idiot cause this president who was not elected by the popular vote is getting away with some serious shit.

flat out.....he shoulda been impeached in 02 and should definitley be facing impeachment now.

the idiots are the people that actually belive hes going to do somthing good for this country.

[Poop Man Bob]

roe? You like Russert? The man's a Republican shill, forcing RNC-drafted questions down the throat of any Dem guest. I wasn't too fond of him to begin with, but after Dean's first appearance on MTP a grew to strongly dislike Russert.

But, like you said, I hope he asks substantive, penetrating questions to aWol. I'm not going to hold my breath, though.

[Poop Man Bob]

Granted, I won't let my partisanship blind me - Dean did a horrible job that first MTP. Nonetheless, Russert's not my man.

[Poop Man Bob]

And one more thing -

roe, you have to start [assuming you don't already] checking out Atrios - http://atrios.blogspot.com/ .

He is by far one of the best left bloggers out there, with a penchant for media criticism. I don't post on there, but it's my first stop whenever I open up Internet Explorer.

[mental invalid]

i really really like russert bobbo...its how i spend my sunday mornings...and i dont think he is republican...

he was fucking hard on dean, but ive seen him be hard to other dems running also(clark and gephardt). and ive seen him be tough with colin and condie also...

so hopefully he will be upfront and not brash, but not taking bullshit either...


and if it seemed like he was asking RNC questions, thats because he does a good job of playing devils advocate, and dean was gonna have to face those eventually, better that he air it out on tv and get the chance to answer em...but that was one ugly interview, though he did go back on recently...and i thought tim was a bit lighter then the interview 7 months ago...

here hoping for wisconsin....deans last stand.

[mental invalid]

yeah man, as far as main mass media goes, i think timmy is the man...doesnt mean im not going to pull a card when he blows interviews or lobs softballs, but all in all i think he wants the truth as much as i do.

but he doesnt play the hardball like mathews, because well, mathews doesnt get the colins and condies...

so its a tuff game of give and take...

[old*824]

the sunday paper last sunday which usually has a pretty conservitive editorial section pretty much blasted bush all the way around.

im confused why everybody else's face in his admin. was on the cover of newsweek except his.

wasnt history made in 97 or 98 when Clinton got impeached, like he was the first sitting president since some other old white guy in previous century. you see what im saying? talk about a double standard, im sure if his connections to enron were investigated as much as whitewater they could find somthing to impeach him on. and then theres 911 and all the shit he said in the State of the Union during his term.

im amazed at the amount of shady shit this administration has gotten away with. our national debt is like a trillion or someshit we took over two countries and states are going broke while the richest got large tax cuts. congress hasnt done shit except peel away our civil rights and violate the constitution by giving the president the power over the armed forces.

so technically if we followed all the rules, and following rules isnt that bad, we should have a new congress and president and.........

um....i hadda lotta coffee and i have add.......and im bitter.

[Poop Man Bob]

Originally posted by mental invalid
here hoping for wisconsin....deans last stand.

Extremely unlikely. I think the man's done. What a shame.

[mental invalid]

Bush on Pumpkinhead Sunday

Full hour. I guarantee this will go down in history as the worst moment in American journalism. Russert got his gig after delivering a fluffer to Bush I.

-Atrios 6:50 PM


hahahaha....i hope he's wrong...ive seen tim buckle before, not often but ive had some yelling matches at my tv...my girl thinks im nuts...

but bobbo that is one hell of site! i suggest other people do themselves the favor and head on over.

[Poop Man Bob]

I'm glad you like it. It's run anonymously by some dude in Philly, and he's the top baller in terms of the leftist blogging world. Others to check out if you're interested:

www.dailykos.com (http://www.dailykos.com) - great Democratic blog with multiple authors. It's especially good with primary discussion and candidate discussion. A great feature is the ability to sign up for an account and post a blog as a "diary" available for other users to read and comment.

www.talkingpointsmemo.com (http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com) - by Josh Marshall, a writer for Washington Monthly and The Hill. He has a great deal of contact with insiders in DC (usually Dems, although not limited to 'em), thus giving some good information not obtainable otherwise. He too tends to go in depth into issues. Along with Atrios, my favorite.

www.thismodernworld.com (http://www.thismodernworld.com) - the artist for This Modern World, the greatest comic strip currently running.

[Poop Man Bob]

i dunno, as far as mass media goes i like timmy russert...yeah i know he can lob softballs sometimes, but then again, ive seen tim go hard and be relentless sometimes.

he does get some of the biggest names, and there is a reason for that. you can just have these people on and crucify em, it doesnt work that way.

hopefully he wont balk at this. hopefully he will see his journalistic integrity is on the line.

ill be watching.
roe | Email | Homepage | 02.05.04 - 12:23 pm | #

Fuck yeah, boyeeeeeeee! I found someone a new addiction.

[mental invalid]

hahahaha...dood you should by now i cant just stay on side lines! and yes i have quite the addictive personality!


i have to be careful though, i cant edit...

*meant to say you "cant just..."

[mental invalid]

and yeah that is a great comic strip....

[Poop Man Bob]

Kurtz: Mock sessions held at White House... (http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A17165-2004Feb5?language=printer)

Bush to Defend Record on TV
Talk Shows Have Garnered Key Role in Presidential Politics
By Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 6, 2004; Page A12

President Bush suggested to his staff that he appear on "Meet the Press" on Sunday as a way of answering questions about Iraq after a barrage of Democratic criticism against him, a White House official said yesterday.

Bush's decision to submit to an hour-long interrogation by NBC's Tim Russert comes as Democrats John F. Kerry, Howard Dean, John Edwards and Wesley K. Clark have been denouncing him not just on Sunday morning shows but on programs ranging from "Hardball" and "Larry King Live" to David Letterman's "Late Show" and Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show," where Edwards announced his candidacy.

The president has stepped up his television presence over the past year or so, granting interviews to ABC's Diane Sawyer and Barbara Walters, NBC's Tom Brokaw and CNBC's Ron Insana. But at a time when he has dipped in the polls and is on the defensive over the failure to find Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, "Meet the Press" and its audience of 5 million represents a roll of the dice.

Communications Director Dan Bartlett said that Bush, who plans to appoint a commission to examine intelligence failures on Iraq, "felt it was important that the American people hear his thinking on this issue and pursuing the war on terrorism." On Tuesday, Bush suggested "Meet the Press" because of the "lengthy format" and because "Tim Russert has an enormous amount of respect," Bartlett said.

Others were puzzled. "Frankly, it seems that they're overreacting," said GOP consultant Don Sipple, who worked for Bush's first gubernatorial campaign in Texas. "I don't think it's the best forum for him right now." But, Sipple said that "he's in a much different race than they thought they were in a month and a half ago."

Adam Levine, a former White House aide who portrayed Russert in mock sessions with administration officials, said: "There are times for the White House when it makes sense to do a big, high-profile, difficult interview." He said a Russert interview "is going to be fair and straightforward, and if you pass that test, you've moved beyond those [negative] stories."

Russert, who typically confronts his guests with videotape and graphics of past statements to try to highlight inconsistencies, had asked for an interview two weeks ago but was turned down.

"The biggest challenge is trying to distill everything down to an hour," said Russert, who will tape the session at the White House on Saturday. "You could literally have a 12-hour interview and want more. Tone is everything. You realize that anything and everything a president says usually has some impact."

Bush, who did his first live Sunday interview as a presidential candidate with "Meet the Press" in 1999, is not the first White House incumbent to make an appearance. Bill Clinton did it twice, in 1993 and 1997; Jimmy Carter in 1980; and Gerald R. Ford in 1975. Richard B. Cheney has appeared on "Meet the Press" 10 times as vice president.

James Carville, the former Clinton adviser, said that "the president is having a hard time breaking through. The Mars thing was a dud. The State of the Union was a dud. They've got some definite news they're going to try to make. I don't think he's just going to sit there and try to hit pitches."

Appearances on the show have been a factor in the Democratic race. Both Dean and Edwards stumbled after rocky performances and declined to return for months. Dean came back last Sunday and assailed the president.

Bush "has been the punching bag for the Democrats and, to some degree, for the news media for about a month now," said Tobe Berkovitz of Boston University's communications school. "Bush needs to show he is the commander in chief of substance, and you don't do that with David Letterman or Jon Stewart or Jay Leno."

Clinton pioneered the talk show campaign in 1992, trading barbs with radio host Don Imus and playing the sax on Arsenio Hall's show. As president, Clinton schmoozed with Larry King, did a town hall session with Ted Koppel and discussed his underwear preference on MTV. Such venues became so popular that California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced his candidacy with his friend Leno.

After Dean lost Iowa's caucuses, he appeared with his rarely seen wife, Judith Steinberg, in interviews with Sawyer, MSNBC's Chris Matthews and CNN's Wolf Blitzer, and joked with Letterman that there would be "no more crazy, red-faced rants." Edwards recited his own "Top Ten" list for Letterman late Wednesday.

First lady Laura Bush has also raised her profile, appearing on the NBC, CBS, ABC and CNN morning shows Tuesday and last night with CNN's Anderson Cooper.

Bush often appears most comfortable in informal settings, such as when he and his wife appeared with Oprah Winfrey in 2000. By contrast, said one Republican strategist, "Russert is relentless, and Bush can get prickly under questioning."

[Poop Man Bob]

From Atrios (http://atrios.blogspot.com/2004_02_01_atrios_archive.html#107603188535427270) :



Russert's Rep On the Line

His big moment is Sunday. Nick Confessore (http://www.prospect.org/weblog/archives/2004/02/index.html#002392) has this to say:
This should really get Russert's goat, if it hasn't already. For President Bush -- a man famously bad on his feet, who has created problems for himself at virtually every single one of the few press conferences he has given -- to put himself in Russert's hands for a full hour, when a few simple questions are all that are needed to break this story wide open, would seem to be a real risk. Unless you believe, as some folks do, that Russert's reputation for toughness is at best lived up to erratically, and at worse undeserved. Will Russert prove his critics right, or will he prove them wrong?
My guess is Russert will prove his critics right, while simultaneously proving that when there's a choice between sucking up to Republican power or proving your cred as a journalist, it's a no-brainer. Then we can cease all discussion on this topic and simply recognize the truth.

[BROWNer]

talkingpointsmemo is fresh, i peep that here and there.
i got somebody who'll tape it for me sunday..can't wait
to see the fraud on the spot.

[TEARZ]

just saw the signal, thanks roeski!
i'll be punching my team nerd timecard on sunday morning, ready by 8:55 with green tea, orange juice and an english muffin.

[iloveboxcars]

I am a regular, I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to make this one, I'll have to make someone record it for me.

[mental invalid]

bump...

im already sorta upset that russert went to bushs turf, its to informal already, sorta chummy...

as much as i want to dispute the cynicism bobbo i regretfully agree.

[Poop Man Bob]

What do you know that I don't? Other than the fact that Russert is going to whore it up tomorrow?

I'm very drunk so I doubt I'll be able to make it to the show tomorrow. I'll have to rely on your word and a transcript....
...
...
... of Russert whoring it up for aWol.

[Poop Man Bob]

I'm going to challenge Bush to a good ol' round of fisticuffs.

[Poop Man Bob]

DOO DOO.
"the man"
russert
timmy
why
times
lives
here
latin
experience
wine
myriads
tv
videos
latyrx
bettah hoes
lex
next
days

i really hate bush

[Poop Man Bob]

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/graphics/pack...sh/bush_tsg.mov (http://www.thesmokinggun.com/graphics/packageart/bush/bush_tsg.mov)

Watch this please. Bush is a lying fuckhead. Fuckhead o' lyin'.

[26SidedCube]

hahah.. Bush "felt it was important that the
American people hear his thinking on this
issue and pursuing the war on terrorism."

GHAH! We've been hearing your thinking for
the past 4 years, why the fuck do you think
we don't like you?

This man is so out of touch with the people
he's governing. I honestly think he's caught in
a conservative time warp. Convinced the US is
made up of the people in his parent's Country
Club.

If this shit isn't 100% scripted he's going to
bomb so fucking hard...

Pick up a newspaper, Georgie.

[TEARZ]

just watched it. tim went like 5% as hard as normal. allowed the president to really control the agenda.





BULLSHIT. ALL LIES AND DECEPTION. i don't know why i expected anything different.

[Nekro]

GO TIM GO! Ask those follow up questions!

[Æ°]

"The skull and bones is so secret we can't talk about it."

[Poop Man Bob]

Oh, Timmy. He asked decent questions, but allowed Bush to venture off into his own world and barely address the question. Russert never called him on it and never asked probing follow-up questions.

Bush's beady little eyes will forever haunt me if he gets reelected.


And this new "fad" really bugs me: calling anything negative said about aWol simply "politics," and wholly failing to address the content of the charges. E.g., 'Bush, you were AWOL. How do you respond?' 'Well, that's politics for you.' Pigfucker!

[Poop Man Bob]

Russert: When allegations were made about John McCain or Wesley Clark on their military records, they opened up their entire files. Would you agree to do that?

President Bush: Yeah. Listen, these files I mean, people have been looking for these files for a long period of time, trust me, and starting in the 1994 campaign for governor. And I can assure you in the year 2000 people were looking for those files as well. Probably you were. And absolutely. I mean, I

Russert: But would you allow pay stubs, tax records, anything to show that you were serving during that period?

President Bush: Yeah. If we still have them, but I you know, the records are kept in Colorado, as I understand, and they scoured the records.

And I'm just telling you, I did my duty, and it's politics, you know, to kind of ascribe all kinds of motives to me. But I have been through it before. I'm used to it. What I don't like is when people say serving in the Guard is is may not be a true service.

Russert: Would you authorize the release of everything to settle this?

President Bush: Yes, absolutely. We did so in 2000, by the way.





BTW, I haven't heard anyone denigrating the National Guard. What I've heard is everyone denigrating Bush for skipping out on his duties with the National Guard. There's a huge fucking difference, George.

*edit - spelling.

[Poop Man Bob]

The transcript, for those interested:


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4179618/

[hottnickels]

Originally posted by Poop Man Bob
Oh, Timmy. He asked decent questions, but allowed Bush to venture off into his own world and barely address the question. Russert never called him on it and never asked probing follow-up questions.

Bush's beady little eyes will forever haunt me if he gets reelected.


And this new "fad" really bugs me: calling anything negative said about aWol simply "politics," and wholly failing to address the content of the charges. E.g., 'Bush, you were AWOL. How do you respond?' 'Well, that's politics for you.' Pigfucker!

my sentiments exactly.

bush is so pathetic.

and so many people just go along with it.
maybe it's because they know he's retarded so they don't want to make fun of his disability.


the marlboro man.
that was a good one.

[old*824]

President Bush: Well, first let me kind of step back and talk about intelligence in general, if I might. Intelligence is a vital part of fighting and winning the war against the terrorists. It is because the war against terrorists is a war against individuals who hide in caves in remote parts of the world, individuals who have these kind of shadowy networks, individuals who deal with rogue nations. So, we need a good intelligence system. We need really good intelligence.


old824: have you consulted the tooth fairy in your search for the boogie man, and can you elaborate the boogie mans ties to the monster under the bed?

President Bush: Yeah.

[old*824]

President Bush: He said to me, he said, ‘You're nearly as unpopular as Ronald Reagan was.’ I said, ‘so, first of all, I'm keeping pretty good company.’

bwahahahhahahahah.......

Russert: You were both in Skull and Bones, the secret society.

President Bush: It's so secret we can't talk about it.

Russert: What does that mean for America? The conspiracy theorists are going to go wild.

President Bush: I'm sure they are. I don’t know. I haven't seen the (unintel) yet. (Laughs)

Russert: Number 322.

President Bush: First of all, he's not the nominee, and I look forward

Russert: Are you prepared to lose?

President Bush: No, I'm not going to lose.

Russert: If you did, what would you do?

President Bush: Well, I don't plan on losing. I have got a vision for what I want to do for the country. See, I know exactly where I want to lead. I want to lead us I want to lead this world toward more peace and freedom. I want to lead this great country to work with others to change the world in positive ways, particularly as we fight the war on terror, and we got changing times here in America, too.

Russert: Biggest issues in the upcoming campaign?

President Bush: Who can properly use American power in a way to make the world a better place, and who understands that the true strength of this country is the hearts and souls of the American citizens, who understands times are changing and how best to have policy reflect those times.

And I look forward to a good campaign. I know exactly where I want to lead the country. I have shown the American people I can lead. I have shown the American people I can sit here in the Oval Office when times are tough and be steady and make good decisions, and I look forward to articulating what I want to do the next four years if I'm fortunate enough to be their president.




this shit is mad funny yo.....and this shit to.....

President Bush: This commission? You know, I don't testify?

uhh...prolly cause hed get caught up on perjury like clinton.



damn i wish i woulda caught that shit on tv....


ahahhahaahahahahahhaha.....we are so fucked.

have a nice day.

[mental invalid]

Oh, Timmy. He asked decent questions, but allowed Bush to venture off into his own world and barely address the question. Russert never called him on it and never asked probing follow-up questions.




i agree totally with this statement. i think we were all hoping for a reality that we knew was not going to happen. I thought he asked some good question, but shoulda pulled the needle up on the broken record.

i wish when he had asked the question after using the wolfowitz, he would have buffered that with the quote by powel recently describing the lack of WMDs "changing the political calculus". i think the both of those quotes capture the importance of this matter.

but he hit on some major issues, war time presidents and tax cuts i thought was a good question, as well as he touched on the awol, and the budgets offices estimate of the budget in 2040.


that being said, i got out of this what i wanted. bush is on record, and even though tim didnt exactly lambast him, it was as if he didnt have to. GWs was doing a fine job of hanging himself.

all in all, i gave it a 6 for an interview. i though tim did alrite, i dont know anyone in mass media who would have done better. and the goal sorta backfired on bush.

not a good idea. im not sure if even his base was impressed.

[Poop Man Bob]

Originally posted by mental invalid
im not sure if even his base was impressed.

http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/

[mental invalid]

good link, i heard about her comments on Imus today thats what i was talking about.

"But certain facts of the interview were favorable to the president. Normally it's mano a mano at Mr. Russert's interview table in the big, cold studio. But this interview was in the Oval Office, on the president's home ground, in front of the big desk. Normally it's live, which would be unnerving for a normal person and is challenging for politicians. Live always raises the stakes. But Mr. Bush's interview was taped. Saturday. Taped is easier. You can actually say, "Can we stop for a second? Something in my eye."

this was what i was most upset about it. atmosphere has so much power and influence.


timmy shoulda demanded it on his turf.

[seeking]

what was that smoking gun thing from?

[BROWNer]

i was thinking the other day about how many scandals these
dudes have been through and miraculously squashed.
fucking unbelievable. like..this dude's presidency is basically
one big fat ass, 4 year scandal.
it's hilarious. in a total absurd
retard way..

if anyone comes across some footage that's online, please
hook it up..

[mental invalid]

bobbo, little help on that quote, am i missing something?

aside from the banality and his dumb ass remark about taxpayers and election years?

[Poop Man Bob]

Originally posted by mental invalid
bobbo, little help on that quote, am i missing something?

aside from the banality and his dumb ass remark about taxpayers and election years?

What quote, homey?

[Poop Man Bob]

Decent article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/artic...7-2004Feb8.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A24537-2004Feb8.html)



President Bush, at Home With the Issues

By Tom Shales
Monday, February 9, 2004; Page C01

What did the president really know, and what made him think he really knew it? That was sort of the question put over and over to George W. Bush by Tim Russert of NBC News on a special edition of "Meet the Press" yesterday. Russert interrogated Bush on the matter of faulty intelligence and the role it played in Bush's decision to invade Iraq.

The portly inquisitor concentrated so relentlessly on that subject, in fact, that there may have been insufficient time for other topics; buzz around town had it that Bush wanted to take a stand against same-sex marriage, but he didn't get the chance. And not a word about Janet Jackson's exposed breast at the Super Bowl, which actually might have come up if the interview had been in less sober and skillful hands than Russert's.

Somewhat reminiscent of Raymond Burr as Perry Mason when he bore down on a victim in the witness chair, Russert proved a tough questioner without becoming a showoff during the interview, which was taped Saturday in the Oval Office. Bush wore his customary blue necktie and dark suit but looked unusually tired, his eyes puffy and bagging.

Like every president, Bush must be aging in office; Dorian Gray would show wear and tear in this job. Americans see so little of the current president on television, however -- especially in uncontrolled situations where he is questioned at length -- that his somewhat crumpled visage was initially startling. Throughout the questioning, however, Bush gave an impression of firmness. A few times he bristled, if gently, at a Russert attempt to cut an answer short, but he didn't get snippy about it. He just continued on with whatever he'd been trying to say.

Russert's first question was about intelligence -- about forming a commission to investigate the intelligence failures that allegedly led Bush and his troupe to believe absolutely that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction in his possession. The interview produced a bit of news right away when Bush dismissed the notion that CIA Director George Tenet's job was in trouble: "Not at all, not at all."

Otherwise, in terms of content, not a great deal new emerged from the interview. With television, though, style can easily be content, and Bush, from the outset of the session, came across as defensive and slightly, subtly agitated, with that "I'd rather be anywhere else right now" demeanor hiding behind his careful smile. It's widely known that Bush is uncomfortable in these ad-lib situations and so has held scandalously few televised press conferences during his term. Sitting down with Russert, who is known as tough but not bullying, was probably a wise political move.

The only thing to fear was not fear itself but some sort of egregious gaffe or, perhaps, a display of foul temper. Those pitfalls were avoided, and thus it seems safe to predict an uptick in Bush's approval rating this morning just because he did the interview, not because of anything he said or the way he conducted himself. When the matter of the election came up, Bush exuded confidence: "I don't plan on losing." But if he and his inner circle were that confident, Bush wouldn't have been giving the interview in the first place.

His merely doing it was perhaps as newsy as any specific comment he made or question he answered.

Russert's hammering away on the intelligence issue was nothing if not persistent. Intelligence indicated there was "no doubt" that the weapons of mass destruction were there, Russert quoted Bush as saying when he declared war. Eventually Russert got carried away with his demands to know how Bush could take the country to war without "ironclad, absolute intelligence." What would that be? A photograph of Saddam himself heaving a missile into the air, or putting anthrax into an envelope and addressing it to the White House?

On the other hand, Bush was hardly eloquent in restating and restating his case, of course, noting at one point that David Kay came up with the shocking revelation that Saddam was "a dangerous man in the dangerous part of the world." Later Bush said Kay reported of Iraq that "the place was a dangerous place." Does Bush know that he can walk to some neighborhoods not that far from the White House and find himself in "a dangerous place?" The characterization sounded ludicrous, especially in light of the feverishness of prewar rhetoric.

Bush also gave ruthless opponents a potential quote to be yanked out of context in the attempt to defeat him when he said, "I don't think America can stand by and hope for the best from a madman."

Inevitably, there were examples of Bushspeak, the president's own particular syntax, which sometimes has a Mobius-strip or Lewis Carroll quality to it -- as when Bush said, "In my judgment, when the United States says there will be serious consequences, and if there isn't serious consequence, it creates adverse consequences." But we knew what he meant.

When Russert brought up the old charges about Bush's service in the National Guard during the Vietnam War not having been particularly valorous, Bush used the rhetorical trick of implying that such criticism somehow cast aspersions on the National Guard. "I wouldn't denigrate service to the Guard," he cautioned Russert. Other predictable subjects covered included the economy ("The recession started upon my arrival" in the White House, Bush said) and the deficit, and partisan politics ("I don't attack" and, earlier, "I'm working hard to unite the country").

Apparently as a gesture of decorum and respect, NBC cut back on the number of commercial interruptions in "Meet the Press." But not entirely. There were two large commercial breaks, one of which included an ad for Cialis, a new drug in the Viagra vein and one that opens, said the announcer, a 36-hour window of opportunity. "When the moment is right," he asked, "will you be ready?" Jeez Louise, did they have to run that during an interview with the president of the United States?

There were ads for big defense contractors like Boeing and General Electric, which owns NBC. The network also aired -- again in dubious tastefulness -- a promo for the next episode of its faux White House drama "The West Wing," a collection of quick shots that included the detonation of a nuclear bomb. Apparently President Jed Bartlet is having an even tougher time than President George W. Bush.

Fairly early in the interview, Russert quoted a prominent Republican as predicting that Osama bin Laden, the most-wanted man in the world, would be captured prior to the November election. There was the hint of a suggestion of an implication that, say, if Osama bin Laden were captured tomorrow, or three months ago, the news might be somehow withheld until the most politically advantageous moment.

Could such an outrageous scenario actually occur? That's more chilling than this horrible Washington winter. But it often seems that when the new century and new millennium began, the lines separating fact and fiction grew closer, and that if they haven't overlapped already, they could at any given moment.

For now, Russert and NBC News can congratulate themselves on a job well done, and they will.

And though there wasn't a lot of visual interest in this hour of two talking heads, a closing shot of Bush and Russert sitting in the center of the pattern on the Oval Office rug was strikingly beautiful. We're talking about rug here? Yes, we are. One must must look for little encouragements where one can find them.

[Poop Man Bob]

BROWNZ - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032608/

There's some video highlights on that page, if you're interested.





















































































[img]http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Components/Art/MeetThePress/z_EVERGREEN/picw_tim_russert_mtpfront_10a.jpg'>
Boo.

[mental invalid]

the smoking gun clip?

[mental invalid]

oh come on...i know im biased, but who would have done a better job then russert?

brokaw?
jennings?
hannity?
kopel?
cooper?
walters or sawyer?



i know i know, its like lesser of two evils, but still.

[!@#$%]

i would've liked to see some of the 60 minutes fools go at him..

whatever.

i'm just waiting for november.
if he's reelected, i'm out.

[26SidedCube]

http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/

^Someone posted that.. good link.
Even tho it doesn't really pertain to the interview
I liked how this was worded:

"Democrats have minds that do it through talking points, and Republicans have minds that do speeches. (Mr. Bush has given a dozen memorable speeches already; only one of his Democratic challengers has, and that was "I Have a Scream.") And the reason--perhaps--is that Democratic candidates tend to love the game of politics, and Republican candidates often don't. Democrats, because they admire government and seek to be part of it, are inclined to think the truth of life is in policy. How could they not then be engaged by policy talk, and its talking points?

Republicans think politics is something you have to do and that policy is something you have to have to move things forward in line with a philosophy. They like philosophy. But they are bored by policy and hate having to memorize talking points.

Speeches are the vehicle for philosophy. Interviews are the vehicle of policy. Mr. Kerry does talking points and can't give an interesting speech. Mr. Bush can't do talking points and gives speeches full of thought and assertion.

Philosophy takes time. If you connect your answers in an interview to philosophy, or go to philosophy first, you can look as if you're dodging the question. You can forget the question. You can look a little gaga. But policy doesn't take time. Policy is a machine gun--bip bip bip. Education policy, bip bip bip. Next."

[Poop Man Bob]

Originally posted by mental invalid
the smoking gun clip?

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/bush/bush.html

If George W. Bush ends up in the White House, The Smoking Gun would like to be the first web outfit to formally offer Dubya an artifact for his future presidential library. The Republican's wacky performance in this 1992 wedding video excerpt--shot years after Bush went cold turkey in July 1986--needs to be preserved for future generations.
The video was shot at the August 29, 1992 wedding of Jamie Weiss, the daughter of Dubya's close friends Mike and Nancy Weiss. Mike, a Lubbock, Texas lawyer and CPA, was Bush's campaign chairman during his first political race (an unsuccessful 1978 congressional bid) and was one of the Texas governor's earliest political appointments. Nancy, also a Bush appointee, had a prime speaking slot on the final night of the Republican convention. She told the crowd, "I wish you could see how he reaches out to people, teasing those who can take it and protecting those who can't."

Indeed, what a teaser!

When cameraman T. Patrick Murray filmed Bush during the wedding reception at a Lubbock country club, the future governor took some rambling--and we presume good-natured--swipes at the newlyweds, the bride's parents, and her brother Kelly (Bush was being quizzed by a member of the bridal party). We love the part where teetotaler George actually disses two of the Weisses for supposedly not drinking or smoking. And as for those weird Don King-like "only in America" cracks--not to mention what's in that glass--your guess is as good as TSG's.

Click here for Bush's wacky wedding performance (http://www.thesmokinggun.com/graphics/packageart/bush/bush_tsg.mov)

[mental invalid]

"and gives speeches full of thought and assertion."



yeah like that last state of the union....good god it was awful...

and peggy should know better, shes one of the best speech writers to come out of the white house machinery.

[mental invalid]

http://www.americanprogress.org/AccountTem...3%7d/040208.HTM (http://www.americanprogress.org/AccountTempFiles/cf/%7bE9245FE4-9A2B-43C7-A521-5D6FF2E06E03%7d/040208.HTM)

[BROWNer]

Originally posted by !@#$%
i would've liked to see some of the 60 minutes fools go at him..

yea..but i wouldn't bet all my chips on some real shit from them either..
i would like to see some independants step up and lay down.
of course that would never happen, which begs more questions
about the state of the union..

thanks poopyman.



oh, mental..you don't think koppel could step? hahaha

[BROWNer]

"..you do not have the correct Operating System to view this msn video..":rolleyes:

[mental invalid]

tim would beat teds ass....


ofcourse the real deal comes tonite when jon stewart spekas his mind on the topic.

[Poop Man Bob]

Originally posted by BROWNer
"..you do not have the correct Operating System to view this msn video..":rolleyes:


SON OF A BITCH.



roe - damn straight. I love waiting for the Daily Show's take on any political event, much moreso than any other commentator/news analyst.

[!@#$%]

^^of course..
i don't expect any verteran journalist to be able to look past the 'president' and actually question the man. i was thinking specifically of mike wallace, who i don't think would give an unbiased interview, it's just when i think of him, i think he's enough of a jerk to ask the harder questions.

they should let me do the interview:

Tonight on NBC
watch President Bush get verbally decimated by everyone's favorite graffiti writer.

"so presidentjackass, what do you say to the hundreds of families of dead american soldiers who lost their lives in Iraq now that it has been shown that your pre-emptive war was all just a revenge plot?

wouldn't you agree that the blood of hundreds of dead iraqi civilians is on your hands? (as she stands and throws a pitcher of blood onto bush's head)"

[Poop Man Bob]

Another decent MTP-analysis article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/artic...1-2004Feb8.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A24031-2004Feb8.html)

[b]Bush: Hussein Eluded Containment Efforts

By Walter Pincus
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 9, 2004; Page A08


In defending his decision to go to war in Iraq, President Bush suggested yesterday a belief that U.N. inspections and sanctions were of limited utility in preventing Saddam Hussein from acquiring weapons of mass destruction.

"Containment doesn't work with a man who is a madman," Bush said during his interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," even as he acknowledged banned weapons have yet to be found.

Bush's assessment of the U.N. efforts, however, does not appear to be shared by his own former chief weapons inspector, David Kay. In testimony Jan. 28 before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Kay lauded the effectiveness of past U.N. efforts. "In holding the [Iraq arms] program down and keeping it from break out , I think the [U.N.] record is better than we would have anticipated," Kay said.

Kay also said Iraqi scientists had told him recently that they were surprised the U.N. inspectors were so tough and reported some programs were ended in the mid-1990s because of the inspections, but without specific evidence the U.N. inspectors did not believe the Iraqis because they had lied before.

NBC's Tim Russert asked Bush about statements he had made during fall 2002 when the administration was building support for a congressional authorization for war. These included Bush saying, "The Iraqi regime is a threat of unique urgency," and "Saddam Hussein is a threat that we must deal with as quickly as possible." Bush did not acknowledge having made those statements and said, "In my language, I called it a 'grave and gathering threat,' " a phrase he used in a speech before the United Nations on Sept. 12, 2002.

White House aides have insisted, since no weapons have been found, that Bush never used the word "imminent" in describing the Iraq threat. Yesterday, Bush said, "I don't want to get into a word contest."

In describing the threat posed by Hussein, Bush said twice that the former Iraqi leader was a threat to the United States because he "was paying for suicide bombers" that went into Israel, implying that the Iraqi money generated the attacks. After suicide bombings, Hussein in recent years said that, as Saudi Arabia and several Gulf states had been doing for years, he would give $25,000 to support each of the perpetrators' families. But many experts agree those funds, no matter where their origin, were not the motivation for the attackers.

Bush also said Hussein was a threat because "he was funding terrorist groups." Iraq had granted asylum to terrorists such as Abu Nidal and supplied money and training to Palestinian groups that fought Israel. Authorities say there is no evidence that Hussein gave direct financial support to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network either before or after the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, although some al Qaeda operatives and associates passed through Baghdad.

[mental invalid]

hmmm....bet that wouldnt go over to well...


but it would be fun to watch...

[mental invalid]

by the way i had no idea that "!@#$%" was a girl....

cooties!

[!@#$%]

a word contest?!!!!!

this guy's stupidity never ceases to amaze me.
i can't believe i watched that interview and didn't puke all over my living room.

[Poop Man Bob]

Originally posted by mental invalid
by the way i had no idea that "!@#$%" was a girl....

cooties!

O O . .

[!@#$%]

Originally posted by mental invalid
by the way i had no idea that "!@#$%" was a girl....

cooties!

hahaha
and here i was, thinking it's old news.

private parts:D

[mental invalid]

"i can't believe i watched that interview and didn't puke all over my living room"



thats why i had a funny looking cigarette on hand to relieve some of the tension...works like a charm.



im always late to old news...

[!@#$%]

aaa a funny lookin cigarette....surrious.

i woke up, turned on the interview, and less than a minute later, i had paraphemalia in hand.

maybe i should go on record:

Bush promotes drug use.

[TEARZ]

!@#$% a GIRL???!!

ERRRR!

[mental invalid]

"Bush promotes drug use."


hahahahaha.....


my levels have gone up since 2000....hmmmmm

[!@#$%]

Originally posted by TEARZ
!@#$% a GIRL???!!

ERRRR!

hey.

that's Miss Jackson to you bub.

[mental invalid]

Originally posted by TEARZ
!@#$% a GIRL???!!

ERRRR!


someone musta taken the "boys only" sign off the tree house door...but i say we let her stick around.

[TEARZ]

aight mental, but only because you lobbied for it... ;)

[mental invalid]

haha...


but im not a registered lobbist!

[imported_dowmagik]

Originally posted by !@#$%

if he's reelected, i'm out.

[Poop Man Bob]

[img]http://www.theonion.com/images/356/image_article2197_418x446.jpg'>

[Nekro]

Oh yeah by the way, he was flat out lying about that AWOL thing. He didn't release any records in 2000.

www.talkingpointsmemo.com (http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com)

[mental invalid]

bobbo i saw that today, praise the onion!

[mental invalid]

rpg = aloha

did i tell you guys im going to see jon stewart do stand up.

stoked


good clip manipulation, the talking points tequila was great.

[villain]

oh god oh god oh god....

I seriously doubt he will get the popular vote again (as if he did in the first place)... But that damn electoral vote is nullifying democracy.

God help us if he is reelected....

[Smart]

Originally posted by Æ°
"The skull and bones is so secret we can't talk about it."

definately the creepiest moment in the entire interview, espescially since Russert was pointing out the both Bush AND Kerry are members...

On the other 'most uncomfortable issues' Bush at least squirmed a little and did his 'heh' laugh and said things like "well, you know, I'm just not gonna be able to comment on that"...

That shit's fucked up... I actually also metioned that quote to my Dad today... hahaha, actually, what led me into it was pop's said about "You know, I'm afraid he's just dumb"... a little hint of sadness, like we were talking about a dog or a distant cousin... not that he ever supported Bush but he's still a sympathetic guy...

[Smart]

Originally posted by mental invalid
oh come on...i know im biased, but who would have done a better job then russert?

Cronkite

[old*824]

john stewart should get a crack at him as well.

cause you know john would clown his ass and it would all go over bush's head.

im concerned cause people are like all confident hes not gonna win, but that is dulled by the fact he didnt win to begin with, the supreme court installed him, he allowed the worst terrorist attacks ever to happen, has invaded two countries, repealed our civil rights and should be brought up on perjury(sp?) charges for his statements regarding his service in the national gaurd.....oh but by now we should all know he doesnt testify...so scratch that one......and he closes this shit by saying he doesnt plan on losing....and apparently losing didnt stop him the last time either.....and how he wants to shape the world and country with american power....guess what mr. president who snorted more coke than half my friends.....your abouta run out of american power right after your done running the country to the ground.


and shit godamnit....fucking a.


old824...one salty motherfucking cracker motherfucker.

[rental]

A Beijing businessman has filed an application to trademark the Chinese name of US President George W. Bush to help market his disposable nappies. In Japan his image has already been used on toilet paper.

[img]http://www.photobucket.com/albums/1003/ayhkat/bush.jpg'>

could we do that here in the us?

[Poop Man Bob]

Originally posted by rental
could we do that here in the us?

http://www.billwyatt.org/sadhusaceofs.html

[Smart]

Originally posted by old*824
im concerned cause people are like all confident hes not gonna win, but that is dulled by the fact he didnt win to begin with

yeah, I dunno if it's been on SNL 2 weeks in a row or I just saw 2 different shows that made cracks about how he stole the election, that shit isn't forgotten... and then the AARP is totally gonna oppose him this time (thank you fucked up medicare bill) so Florida is out of contention... the economy is in the shitter and getting worse... the war, shit, nobody is happy with how that turned out... Osma will NOT be caught before the election (why? because the US didn't exactly 'catch' Sadaam, he was actually captured and placed in that 'spider hole' by his countrymen. that's why he was all beat up, in his underwear and wearing one shoe... they caght him, beat him and stuck him in a hole... then sold him to us for $500million, don't sleep) Osamas people love him, he is a religious icon not a dictator, his followers follow willingly and whole heartedly, money won't turn them and he's surrounded by Arab fundamentalists that follow long traditions treating 'visitors' as family, and he's visiting while we're invading...

The only way Bush can get reupped is if the Kerry/Edwards (because that's the winning ticket) campaign just shits the bed...

but I'm also not telling you to stop telling other people to vote against Bush... just saying...

[old*824]

i see what your saying but my concern is this....

he didnt win in the first place and got away with. civil rights have been repealed. the entire congress violated the constitution by giving him control of the military and he's running a nazi style war campaign. so while i have no doubt the voting majority will elect another candidate AGAIN, with the advent of the electronic voting machine, making voter fraud easier faster and even more unprovable, a pussy whipped congress and a supreme court that installed him to begin with i doubt he's gonna give up the white house. you know though? i mean look how much scandle this guy has pulled off so far....comedy shows and independant news can speak the truth against it as well as the politicians...but with the republican controlled media and computerized voting going to be used i truthfully believe he will win......and if it is contested where can we take it.....back to the supreme court that put him there to begin.

i pray to God that im wrong and Kerry takes it......but hey....im just sayen though......


sincerely,

a salty cracker that needs a forty.

[Smart]

I think you greatly underestimate the Congress and the Judicial system... for example, no matter how much hysteria the Republicans try to stir up, the fact is that the Federal courts are supporting marijuana decriminalization in certain cases (and those are becoming increasingly liberal, not the political inference just the regular definition)... this flies in the face of the 'zero tolerance' society the republicans have pushed on America (and largely sold the concept).

There is an inherent value in the 3-ring circus approach, have some faith.

[old*824]

im just astounded at the fact that this guy shouldnt be up for re-election....not at all....he needs an impeachment.

so the fact he's even up for re-election has eroded my faith.

and you know..the perjury, cia op leaks, fox news, electric voting and the supreme court. ENRON ties.

come on dunny, martha stewart is gettin it over less than a mill while kenny boy lay is off the hook with 70 billion.

and i doubt the judges that ruled on the medical mary is the ones that would rule on alleged electronic voter fraud.

[wiseguy]

bush scares the shit out of me, he is the biggest threat to world peace.

[Smart]

fuck some electronic theft... it won't happen... if shit even starts to get out of hand in the next step it will mean the demise of the 'electrical' college... but I think the system is still inherently sound, it just needs closer monitoring...

There's no doubt that a whole ton of folks feel 'ripped off' by the last election, that shit can't continue...

It's like this, do you know Bush tried to get the 2 time election rule repealed? Sure, nobody does because it simply failed, but it happened... I'm saying, have a little faith, this entire system, no matter how detached it feels, really comes down to 10 guys in a bar (who own guns)... Bush only collects 'yeehaw' support... anymore even the Republicans want a little cushion from him, only the oldest stand up next to him... They play it like he's the young savvy guy who won over the oldsters but the fact is, he supports their old regime and the Republicans that are around Bush's age or younger are mostly more liberal than him, more like libertarians... There is some blind faith amongst the youngsters but they can't raise any real opposition in their own party, Bush is the only option for them... it's not like when Clinton was rousingly re-elected, there isn't a groundsweil of support across the party...

There are many camps, the Republicans are even more divided than the Democrats and the only thing that keeps their dreams viable is a blind belief that they can win the next election... Don't believe the hype.

[rental]

Originally posted by Poop Man Bob
http://www.billwyatt.org/sadhusaceofs.html


man, the poop. youre up on everything. does anything get past you?

[old*824]

well call me a lunatic conspiracy theorist then....

we should bet on this smart.

i bet you a frosty olde english that the bush camp steals the election via electronic voter fraud.

what sets up the theft is that fact that people get no paper proof of who they voted for. stealing the election is now a few key strokes away, virtually invisible and incredibly hard to prove.

so i guess my whole stance is, america has been decieved and mislead this long......i dont see it changing with one magic election.

then again im from california and bitter about the recall to.

[rental]

word. i bet you couldnt be cute too, could you?

[Smart]

Originally posted by old*824
well call me a lunatic conspiracy theorist then....

we should bet on this smart.

i bet you a frosty olde english that the bush camp steals the election via electronic voter fraud.


It's on!

But you should also be aware that Florida (arguably the backassest) is already moving to add printers to the touch screen machines... I'm sure they got the idea from some other state so...

[old*824]

the reasons my suspicions are raised is due to the cali recall last year.

before the polls closed shwarzanazi won by like a million electric votes...no paper trail.

people behind his campaign/staff are behind the bush's/reagan staff admin.

when was the last time you were in cali smart?

[Smart]

well, it's been since 95 but... notice Swartz has been tugging democrat dick and pissing everyone off since he got there., not to mention flip-flopping on campaign promises AND attracting financial scrutiny.. I doubt there's gonna be too many more recalls out there in the near future...

[old*824]

you have no idea what this nazi is doing to our state.

completely gutting social programs that are allready substandard.

conspiracy theory again proves logical.....

his image was blasted all over mainstream media for months, lots of electronic votes involved and he won by a huge margain.

so yeah, maybe most californians are that stupid and elected a ex steroid non native actor to run the seventh largest economy in the world...but at the same time whats to say it wasnt a training op for the pres. elections with electric votes.

i sincerely hope that extensive recounts are done on all electric votes.

but you know what im saying man?

the people behind the shwarzanazi campaign are the same ones behind our presidents admin and the two rep. pres. before this one.

all bad.

this guy is doing exactly what gray davis was impeached for, except gray davis actually gave half a shit about those who aren't rich.

at christmas time, shwarzanazi was speaking about buying his kids new cellphones in the same breath as talking about capping off health insurance rosters for poor children.

i think all those nazi's that the federal goverment took in after ww2 just
started to really take over.

old824.....not so salty cracker after a forty, but i dont doubt that shit god.

[Smart]

alas my 40s are gone... though I did say just before I finished the final swig:

"Sully, remeber when I said I would drink you last... well, I guess itznaddaliieee!

[old*824]

Originally posted by Smart
"Sully, remeber when I said I would drink you last... well, I guess itznaddaliieee!

so uhh....you talk to your 40s or somthing...im indepthly perplexed as to the correct meaning of this statement.

and i exagerated, im only half way through an olde english.

but i aint had no 40s in 18 hours so i got a lil buzz....

[!@#$%]

i was just thinking about all this shit.

i mean, the confidence with which bush asserted that he'd win again in novemeber was a bit disturbing.

then i read about the installment of all these new electronic voting machines in my state...they had interviewed a few of the election volunteers (who tend to be elderly) and the people were totally overwhelmed by the new system.

i've read some criticism of them as well.

oh man, this shit could get to be nuts.

i didn't know bush had already whacked at the 2term limit.
i'm quite sure he would devote an inordinate amount of time to that one if reelected as well. disturbing truly.

i say mass exodus
i'm gonna be the first American refugee.

[mental invalid]

i dont think cronkite could have done better.

i think we all just think he could.