Post by Cablemender on Jul 27, 2004 11:50:13 GMT -7
Well if I was across the poker table or in the cocpit (spelling caused by the word censor) with him, I might feel differently about what one's facial expression tells me. But as I remember it was HOURS after the event before anyone knew whodunnit with any kind of authority. If I give the government the benefit of the doubt and figure they knew 30-60 minutes before they told the press, that puts Bush in the know while he was orbiting in Air Force One.
I have a little bit, and I admit a very tiny bit, of experience in this presidential movement stuff. It was not too long before Bush Sr. went to China. There were two issues keeping him on the ground, and he was supposed to finish a talk, make a quick trip across town for another talk, then leave for the trip. Well, there are a number of things that have to be in place when a president or VP travels that have to do with communication links being set up - a military function. We were required to have a link up and running and it wasn't happening, so his staff told him to drag out the first speech, and talk another 10 minutes to shift the timetable. You should have seen the look HE had when that was whispered to him. He talked another 5 min or so, then when back in his circle of people began chewing out whoever was handy. He got to the second speech and was told up front that there was still a delay, and I'm told by my coworkers that you could see the smoke coming out of his ears.
The link went up... the President went up... the link went down and they were advised to not go past a certain point until it was up again. I have no data on what look he might have had, but I think it would be reasonable to believe it was one of disgust.
My point in all of this is that while it might seem like something you or I would do is to jump right up and get back to some situation room, the Pres. is not always at liberty to just get up and go. We know the VP was taken to a secure location, but we don't know if that had to happen first before W. went anywhere or not. Now I have no idea, absolutely none, of what, if even anything, like that might have come into play that day. But in all fairness, I think without knowing those facts, and realizing that that look of panic you saw was probably on the face of every ATC supervisor east of the Mississippi, and every intelligence agency chief, Airline Executive, and every other Cabinet member, I can't in good conscience attribute it soley to some kind of character flaw in W. Bush.
It might have been, but I'd need to know more before believing none of those other factors had anything to do with it. Personally, I think it's pretty far-reaching to try and use a minute of video to accurately characterize 4 years of political career, even if the minute was as bad and for the reasons you believe caused it.
I remember people saying before the last election that this President could never make a decision on his own, that he surrounded himself with "his daddy's men" because he was incapable of making a decison. Yet, these last four years, all I hear from the left is how his decisions are unlikeable, and no one blames "his daddy's buddies" for a single one of them.
I have a little bit, and I admit a very tiny bit, of experience in this presidential movement stuff. It was not too long before Bush Sr. went to China. There were two issues keeping him on the ground, and he was supposed to finish a talk, make a quick trip across town for another talk, then leave for the trip. Well, there are a number of things that have to be in place when a president or VP travels that have to do with communication links being set up - a military function. We were required to have a link up and running and it wasn't happening, so his staff told him to drag out the first speech, and talk another 10 minutes to shift the timetable. You should have seen the look HE had when that was whispered to him. He talked another 5 min or so, then when back in his circle of people began chewing out whoever was handy. He got to the second speech and was told up front that there was still a delay, and I'm told by my coworkers that you could see the smoke coming out of his ears.
The link went up... the President went up... the link went down and they were advised to not go past a certain point until it was up again. I have no data on what look he might have had, but I think it would be reasonable to believe it was one of disgust.
My point in all of this is that while it might seem like something you or I would do is to jump right up and get back to some situation room, the Pres. is not always at liberty to just get up and go. We know the VP was taken to a secure location, but we don't know if that had to happen first before W. went anywhere or not. Now I have no idea, absolutely none, of what, if even anything, like that might have come into play that day. But in all fairness, I think without knowing those facts, and realizing that that look of panic you saw was probably on the face of every ATC supervisor east of the Mississippi, and every intelligence agency chief, Airline Executive, and every other Cabinet member, I can't in good conscience attribute it soley to some kind of character flaw in W. Bush.
It might have been, but I'd need to know more before believing none of those other factors had anything to do with it. Personally, I think it's pretty far-reaching to try and use a minute of video to accurately characterize 4 years of political career, even if the minute was as bad and for the reasons you believe caused it.
I remember people saying before the last election that this President could never make a decision on his own, that he surrounded himself with "his daddy's men" because he was incapable of making a decison. Yet, these last four years, all I hear from the left is how his decisions are unlikeable, and no one blames "his daddy's buddies" for a single one of them.