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GQ magazine recently published excerpts from former George W. Bush speechwriter Matt Latimer's new tell-all book, Speech Less: Tales of a White House Survivor. Here are some particularly amusing highlights, via NY magazine:
8. Bush Wears Crocs: Particularly when he practices speeches.
7. Bush Nicknamed Speechwriter Jonathan Horn "Horny":This is not surprising at all, just funny.
6. Bush Is Arrogant About Things He Shouldn't Be Arrogant About: "I know it sounds arrogant to say," he told Latimer, “but I redefined the Republican Party."
5. Bush Takes Pride in Thinking up Very Simple Jokes: “If bullshit was currency,” he said straight-faced, “Joe Biden would be a billionaire.”
4. Bush Refers to People As "Cat": "We got to make this understandable for the average cat," he said of one speech.
3. Bush Didn't Have Much Regard for Barack Obama: Bush remarked, "This guy has no clue, I promise you."
2. Bush Didn't Understand His Administration's Own Economic Proposals: “We’re buying low and selling high,” Bush kept saying about the Treasury's plan to snap up troubled mortgages. The problem was that his proposal didn’t work like that. One of Bush's staff members anxiously pulled a few of us aside. “The president is misunderstanding this proposal,” he warned. “He has the wrong idea in his head.”
Eventually, Bush, exasperated, deliver[ed] a classic line: "Why did I sign on to this proposal if I don’t understand what it does?" he asked.
1. Bush Was Remarkably Prescient About Sarah Palin: Right after Palin was selected as John McCain's running mate...Bush delivered what would become a spot-on assessment of her liabilities: "This woman is being put into a position she is not even remotely prepared for," he said. "She hasn’t spent one day on the national level. Neither has her family. Let’s wait and see how she looks five days out." Never mind the fact that Bush, when he ran for president, also lacked experience on the national level.
Posted by ayelet at September 22, 2009 01:38 PM