Perino: Bush’s Comments Were Not ‘Aimed’ At Obama, But Do ‘Include’ Him
Perino: Bush’s Comments Were Not ‘Aimed’ At Obama, But Do ‘Include’ Him
During today’s press gaggle, reporters pressed White House Spokeswoman Dana Perino about President Bush’s comments implying that Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and Democrats favor a policy of appeasement toward terrorists. Perino denied that Bush was taking aim directly at Obama, stating that presidential candidates often believe “the world revolves around you.”
However, she wouldn’t refute that his comments were meant to include the senator:
Q: But, so, not aimed at him — do they include him?
PERINO: He’ll have to speak for himself as to what his policy is and you guys can know it well. This was a speech that the President gave to the Knesset. And this is not a new statement by President Bush. This is long-established United States policy, so it should come as no surprise that President Bush suggests that we should not be talking with these people.
Perino’s comments contradict what Bush administration aides are admitting privately. As CNN’s Ed Henry reported earlier today:
White House aides are acknowledging that this was a reference to the fact that Sen. Obama and other Democrats have publicly said that it would be ok for the U.S. President to meet with leaders like the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad.
NBC’s John Yang also said that a White House official told him that Bush’s comments were aimed not only at Obama, but at former President Jimmy Carter and his suggestion that the United States talk with Hamas.
Topic Cloud
ArchivesBlog Roll
More spin from Ms Purina.
Well, dogchowlady, you can spin like a dervish, but you’ll never get to nirvana spinning that crap.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:21 pmDana: SHUT THE ……HELL UP.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:21 pm‘Bush’s comments were not aimed at Obama”
yeah, right, and I’m the the King of Romania too.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:22 pmBush’s Comments Were Not ‘Aimed’ At Obama, But Do ‘Include’ Him
– - Bush’s War Was Not ‘Aimed’ At Iraqis, But Does ‘Include’ Them
May 15th, 2008 at 1:22 pmBush’s formula for negotiations.
Pre-concede to all our demands, then we’ll talk about how many of your demands we can compromise on. Or we’ll bomb you.
Chymperor, kinda like Yertle the Turtle, is Emperor of all he can see. Just needs five thousand six hundred and three more turtles and he’ll be king of the universe.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:23 pmDana Bimborino . . . chief apologist for the petulant little punk who is in Israel shooting his ignorant, arrogant mouth off again.
Damage control . . . it’s hard, hard work when you’ve got a drunken presi-dunce out there running his mouth (without engaging his brain).
May 15th, 2008 at 1:23 pmBy this logic, Nixon was a traitor for going to China, Reagan was a traitor for talking with Gorbachev, Kennedy was a traitor for holding a summit with Kruschev, and ……..
May 15th, 2008 at 1:24 pmPhoto Caption Contest:
Seig Heil, Herr Chimperor”
May 15th, 2008 at 1:26 pmCaption contest: “May you all live long and prosper…”
May 15th, 2008 at 1:26 pmBecause it is a much more effective strategery to threaten a soverign nation, then refuse to talk, then attack that nation, right Chimpy?
May 15th, 2008 at 1:27 pmWorld diplomacy as seen through the lens of a six year old on a playground.
Can anyone explain to me how “talking with our enemies” (i. e. “diplomacy”) is synonymous with “appeasement”????
Can anyone explain why the press allows this man and his administration to get away with such BU**SH**?
May 15th, 2008 at 1:29 pmBush’s comments were aimed not only at Obama, but at former President Jimmy Carter
– - Gosh, too bad all the former GOP presidents are dead. Or brain-dead.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:29 pmooops! my bad
I meant to use appeaser or surrender monkey instead of traitor.
there, all fixed now.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:30 pmDana is getting this BS slinging down real good! But having to follow in Tony the Tiger’s shadow, she has a very large latrine to fill.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:31 pmCaption: no boys the shocker looks like this…
May 15th, 2008 at 1:31 pmBush may have gone too far with this one! Check out some of the fallout:
President Bush committed political treason today
“To travel to Israel and to associate a sitting American senator and your possible successor in the Oval Office with those who at one time gave comfort to an enemy of the United States is, in and of itself, an act of political treason.”
Bush may actually have been stupid enough to not realize that he was dissing over two thirds of the country.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:33 pmGreat picture, Perino looks completely whacked out. Probably using mind control drugs on her.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:34 pmdid anyone ask the bull merino why George and Dick installed Hamas against everyone’s advice? Did the idiot mention how Israel told them not to?
Rep. Conyers: It is time to impeach. Stop saying if you do something else. This president and vice president are certifiable lunatics and you know it. It is time for you to act or we, the people, will never trust our congress again.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:37 pmPeople….bush doesn’t care what you or the world thinks of him. He isn’t stupid, he just doesn’t need anyone’s opinion anymore. When he doesn’t need those who helped him anymore, off they go.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:41 pmThis is long-established United States policy, so it should come as no surprise that President Bush suggests that we should not be talking with these people.
NO….It’s NOT U.S. policy….It’s asswipe bush/cheney’s policy…Reasonable minds suggest a different policy.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:47 pmBush and the Israeli regime are far greater terrorists than Ahmedinejad could ever dream of being.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:48 pmGeorge W. Bush: TERRORIST-IN-CHIEF
May 15th, 2008 at 1:50 pmMay 15th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Caption: The President prefers having his prostate massaged with 2 fingers. Like this.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:53 pmPerino won’t have much to do come November, but she’s gotta keep food on the table, so I guess lying and dissembling and being a shill and sycophant for your masters is all that is required. Doesn’t change the FACT that Bush injected our American politics into this thing…not gracious to over half the people in the United States, not kindly to his Israeli hosts, not good for resolving anything. But…that’s our Bushie! I think if Golda Meir was alive, Bush would be giving HER a backrub.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:54 pmRUC nails it. This should be repeated:
May 15th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Perino plans a full-time return to the lucrative fraternization sector after January 20th.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:57 pmWow – my comment is awaiting moderation?! Why?
May 15th, 2008 at 1:59 pmPerino speaks, Perino lies. A rule of thumb.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:01 pmBush says whatever he says. He’s the one that’s caused this debacle. Most people have stopped listening at this point.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:04 pmAh, she’s just a spokeswhore. The fight is McCain and Bush vs. Obama.
And we will fight off these fluke aviators. We will win.
McWARS
May 15th, 2008 at 2:04 pmI think Dana is trying to hypnotize the press corps in this photo, or doing her Obi-Wan impression: “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for.”
May 15th, 2008 at 2:05 pmlokidog Says:
Photo Caption Contest:
Seig Heil, Herr Chimperor”
LividLib Says:
Caption: The President prefers having his prostate massaged with 2 fingers. Like this.
By the powers invested in me, I have declared a tie :)~
May 15th, 2008 at 2:07 pmGWB-STFU
May 15th, 2008 at 2:08 pmoopsie….vested, not invested
May 15th, 2008 at 2:08 pmMary I think it was a mis print…my worst word was hell and I was waiting moderation yesterday.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:13 pmCaption: Reporter: “How old are you Dana?”..Dana: “I’m this many”. DUH…
May 15th, 2008 at 2:20 pmBush appeased Osama Bin Laden by not going after him and ignoring him all these years. Plus his family should know something about dealing with the Nazis…
May 15th, 2008 at 2:24 pm.
I’m inclined to believe the president on this one. The Dems ARE appeasers… why else is BushCo still in Office?
.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:25 pmralphy ~ thanks, and please feel free to distribute, royalty free…
May 15th, 2008 at 2:26 pmBesides the crassness of smearing a candidate at a international venue, it was a baseless insult coming from a coward deserter that happens to be the direct descendant of what he accused Obama. That is a Nazi appeaser.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:27 pmThe shrub should do what he does best til 01/20/09 STFU and do some lines off a strippers belly and wash it down with tequila.
Caption: You’re getting sleepy, you will not remember this…
May 15th, 2008 at 2:30 pm“Bush and the Israeli regime are far greater terrorists than Ahmedinejad could ever dream of being.”
1. I think you underestimate his ability to dream.
_____________________________________________________
Wouldn’t it make more sense politically for Obama to say “Being a strong opponent of appeasement myself, I take no offense at the Presidents words, what so ever. I share the Presidents disdain for appeasement. I believe in negotiating from a position of strength, not weakness. Munich showed us the dangers of negotiating from a position of weakness, the fall of the Soviet Union shows us the value of negotiating with those that oppose us, while also maintaining a strong economy and a strong military. “
May 15th, 2008 at 2:31 pmI think Dems just want bushco to continue looking as bad as possible to assure a shoe in win. If they clean him up at all by threatening impeachment bush might come off looking the victim. At least his cronies will cry victim.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:35 pmThe problem with Bush, and there are many, is that he views the world as though he is reading a comic book. Good is always good, bad is always bad. By the end of the book, life is back to normal and the foes have all been vanquished. His self confidence is lower than the depths of hell, and he knows he is not very smart – so he must communicate his ‘vision’ in a black vs. white frame of reference. Plus, he is a whore, so he will say whatever his audience expects to hear.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:38 pmYeah, and Bush’s policies have been so incredibly successful.
They know that most of Americans are very gullible, and uninformed able most everything that they can spout this crap.
Just watch the interviews from West Virginia and you will see just how uninformed and ignorant they are, propaganda works well with these unthinking types.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:39 pmAnd this is not a new statement by President Bush. This is long-established United States policy, so it should come as no surprise that President Bush suggests that we should not be talking with these people.
The only “long established” policy is telling the american people that we don’t deal with terrorists, while we make deals with terrorists.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:45 pmDanas right, having Bush talk to anyone would probably result in another quagmire.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:49 pmCmon Dana, this is verbal buckshot and you dont have to aim to hit things.
May 15th, 2008 at 2:56 pmIf Bush is against you then you’re doing the right thing
May 15th, 2008 at 3:07 pmCall Bush and his staff out for what they are: Lying traitors. Bush and his henchmen could not directly attack Obama. There would be a hue and cry that would be heard across the United States and through many other nations. So instead, they play the sissy role of attacker. No direct mention of the name. Underlings saying that the attack applied to many people and not just these individuals. No direct statement by Bush to let him later deny that that is what he really meant.
It is time to take Bush and the Republicans down. Nothing, nothing should be beyond acceptable as a tactic against these criminal scum.
May 15th, 2008 at 3:08 pmLOFL!!!
May 15th, 2008 at 3:09 pmNothing, nothing should be beyond acceptable as a tactic against these criminal scum.
Pogo replies: We have met the enemy, and they is us!”
Democracy wouldn’t withstand such a bloodletting – and I’m talking about all democracies, not just ours. We are still the shining beacon of freedom to the world, and another internecine score-settling like the Civil War would only serve to discredit the concept of democracy. A slow, patient rollback of the damage is the only course, with much anguish, and bitter disappointment, but also with a clear focus on returning our once-cherished traditions, like habeaus and seperation of powers.
May 15th, 2008 at 3:45 pmI hate to be the one to do this, guys, but Perino was exactly right. Bush’s statements were most likely not aimed at Obama. Senator Obama was not standing directly in front of Bush at the time, therefore, they were not aimed at him.
Now you may argue that although Obama was not directly in front of Bush, they were indeed pointed in Obama’s direction. I say hogwash. This, I believe, entails two very unlikely assumptions. First, this assumes that comments are affected by gravity and thus will travel relative to the curvature of the Earth as opposed to radiating tangentially into space. And second, this would require President Bush to have been speaking in a 231 degree northwesterly heading and applied enough velocity to his comments to propel them the necessary 6200 miles from Jerusalem to Chicago. This would have required a statement launch velocity of 25,272 miles per hour at a 25 degree angle of delivery. Discounting the effects of wind drag and the Coriolis effect, the statement would’ve reached Obama in approximately 16.23 minutes, if it did not burn up upon entry into Earth’s atmosphere.
Thus, Perino is very likely correct.
May 15th, 2008 at 4:00 pmperino, W.H. ore.
May 15th, 2008 at 4:08 pmWe also need to point out that negotiations are not appeasement. The Bush administration has long shown an inability to understand history. Ok, the Bush administration just plain lies about history.
France and Germany had indeed appeased Hitler during the 1938 time frame. They acquiesced when Germany annexed Austria. They turned a blind eye as Hitler sought to extend German territory to the east. Please note, the appeasement consisted of acquiescing to actions taken by a nation in contravention to international law and treaty obligations. It did not refer to merely speaking to an enemy leader.
France and England originally acquiesced because they wanted to see Germany expand eastwards towards Russia. They feared the budding Communist state more than Nazi Germany and wanted Germany as a counter weight to Russia. Ironically, it was the German invasion of Russia that ultimately undermined the German war machine during WWII. The Munich agreement referred to a proposal by Germany to annex the Sudetenland from the Chech state. The Checz had a treaty with France requiring French protection. France, Germany and Britan signed an agreement that set the stage for a referendum of the Sudetenland occupants (somewhat rigged) that led to its incorporation into the German state.
Chamberlin became an object of derision because he honestly thought that this would buy peace. The French were not fooled and had no illusions that Germany posed a threat. They just thought that Russia would become the object of that threat.
The closest precedent to appeasement that I can find in the current Middle East situation would be US support for Iraq in its previous war with Iran. The US knew that Saddam was a terrorist, dictator and war criminal. He was provided with precursors to chemical WMD which were used both against his own people and the Iranians. The US provided critical satellite intelligence to support the Iraqis in order to stave off the defeat of the Iraqi army. The real appeasers were: Reagan, Bush I and Rummy. This is a story that needs to be played up at this time. Make history work for us.
May 15th, 2008 at 4:45 pmI guess that would the the scatter gun approach. He wasn’t aiming to Obama but he got him anyway. Therefore he WAS aiming at him. Go spin that Perino.
May 15th, 2008 at 5:14 pmHow did this insipid little junior high cheerleader ever get this job?
May 15th, 2008 at 5:53 pmIf I was on a desert island with Dana Perino and a comet was 30mins from striking, I would cut my own throat with my fingernails.
May 15th, 2008 at 6:22 pmSo apparently Rove’s talking point word for the day is “appeaser” or “appeasement”, this is the 3rd or 4th story that’s had that as it’s main topic. I’m starting a list.
May 15th, 2008 at 10:49 pm@Yankeluh:
I couldn’t have said it better. For this idiot to get his panties in a bunch because Bush made a factually accurate statemsnt is beyond me. He barely deserves to be a senator from Illonois, , and certainly not in charge of the country!
(Wait, that’s not what you were talking about? Sorry.) You might clarify that next time.
May 16th, 2008 at 3:04 pmThis woman is the ultimate political whore. She sells herself out at every opportunity for her criminal bosses. Surely she must be consumed by guilt every night… Snow, etc. were awful, but she is the worst. Shame on you, Dana, for your lies & deceit. God is watching & listening, & you are not in his/her good books for your ‘false witness’. Women throughout the world must shake their heads in disbelief at your subservience to lying, hateful, war-mongering men.
May 16th, 2008 at 7:14 pm