Posted on 06/04/2004 10:45:29 AM PDT by dead
President George W. Bush’s increasingly erratic behavior and wide mood swings has the halls of the West Wing buzzing lately as aides privately express growing concern over their leader’s state of mind.
In meetings with top aides and administration officials, the President goes from quoting the Bible in one breath to obscene tantrums against the media, Democrats and others that he classifies as “enemies of the state.”
Worried White House aides paint a portrait of a man on the edge, increasingly wary of those who disagree with him and paranoid of a public that no longer trusts his policies in Iraq or at home.
“It reminds me of the Nixon days,” says a longtime GOP political consultant with contacts in the White House. “Everybody is an enemy; everybody is out to get him. That’s the mood over there.”
In interviews with a number of White House staffers who were willing to talk off the record, a picture of an administration under siege has emerged, led by a man who declares his decisions to be “God’s will” and then tells aides to “fuck over” anyone they consider to be an opponent of the administration.
“We’re at war, there’s no doubt about it. What I don’t know anymore is just who the enemy might be,” says one troubled White House aide. “We seem to spend more time trying to destroy John Kerry than al Qaeda and our enemies list just keeps growing and growing.”
Aides say the President gets “hung up on minor details,” micromanaging to the extreme while ignoring the bigger picture. He will spend hours personally reviewing and approving every attack ad against his Democratic opponent and then kiss off a meeting on economic issues.
“This is what is killing us on Iraq,” one aide says. “We lost focus. The President got hung up on the weapons of mass destruction and an unproven link to al Qaeda. We could have found other justifiable reasons for the war but the President insisted the focus stay on those two, tenuous items.”
Aides who raise questions quickly find themselves shut out of access to the President or other top advisors. Among top officials, Bush’s inner circle is shrinking. Secretary of State Colin Powell has fallen out of favor because of his growing doubts about the administration’s war against Iraq.
The President's abrupt dismissal of CIA Directory George Tenet Wednesday night is, aides say, an example of how he works.
"Tenet wanted to quit last year but the President got his back up and wouldn't hear of it," says an aide. "That would have been the opportune time to make a change, not in the middle of an election campaign but when the director challenged the President during the meeting Wednesday, the President cut him off by saying 'that's it George. I cannot abide disloyalty. I want your resignation and I want it now."
Tenet was allowed to resign "voluntarily" and Bush informed his shocked staff of the decision Thursday morning. One aide says the President actually described the decision as "God's will."
God may also be the reason Attorney General John Ashcroft, the administration’s lightning rod because of his questionable actions that critics argue threatens freedoms granted by the Constitution, remains part of the power elite. West Wing staffers call Bush and Ashcroft “the Blues Brothers” because “they’re on a mission from God.”
“The Attorney General is tight with the President because of religion,” says one aide. “They both believe any action is justifiable in the name of God.”
But the President who says he rules at the behest of God can also tongue-lash those he perceives as disloyal, calling them “fucking assholes” in front of other staff, berating one cabinet official in front of others and labeling anyone who disagrees with him “unpatriotic” or “anti-American.”
“The mood here is that we’re under siege, there’s no doubt about it,” says one troubled aide who admits he is looking for work elsewhere. “In this administration, you don’t have to wear a turban or speak Farsi to be an enemy of the United States. All you have to do is disagree with the President.”
The White House did not respond to requests for comment on the record.
This is a left-wing hit-piece right out of the DUmpster.
What a crock.
No doubt about it. You know, the typist of this drivel used to be a Freeper? He's looney tunes.
This sounds like rumor mongering and gossip unchecked. It'll be on the alphabet networks tonight.
And the lead story on CBS news....
Pretty much the way I spend my day on FR.
Is one of those aides named Terry Wilkinson, Doug?
This thing already has been removed from the boards twice. Going for three.
Forgive me for doubting that anyone in the White Hose would pick up the phone for Doug Thompson.
Of course, it's possible that someone was in a pixieish mood and decided to feed him a line of BS, knowing he'd run with it.
When they get something believable with a named source I'll read it. Until then, this is GARBAGE.
And this is a bad thing because?
Counghing into hand: Bulls**t
This is a made-up piece of fodder for the truly ignorant. This is the second item from this publication that has a lot of unattributable quotes and an axe to grind. Let's do some quick research on the writer and the "newspaper".
Doug Thompson is a sick, lying b*stard.
LOL .... shocking
3,2,1....
This looks like a piece from STAR or NATIONAL ENQUIRER...an "aide" here...a "consultant with connections" there... hmmmmm....
This ties right into the DNC talking points about linking "W" to Nixon -- remember the "Nixon too drunk" story a week or two ago? The next leftie attack on the President will be slurs and innuendo that he's fallen off the wagon and is drinking again...
OMG...the Crusaders are coming for us. This fits in with what Rush was just saying about Soros, and how the Left despises anyone who may believe in God. This is the culmination of picture the Left has been painting since the day Bush (and Ashcroft) stepped foot in office.
With Julian Bond's most recent speech about the Taliban (religious-right) wing of the Republican Party, the democrats have obviously got new talking points, to make Bush out to be some religious zealot.
Ironically, when confronted and asked just how Bush's religious beliefs have influenced America...nothing can be sited that most American's don't agree with (partial-birth/Gay Marriage).
Other than that, the opposite has actually been happening, as gay marriage has been proclaimed legal in one state...and the ACLU is removing every symbol of Christian existence in this country. Oh...and maybe the WH feels under siege because they are.
Total bullsh!t.
For those (like me) who weren't familiar with the Wilkerson story.... https://lists.resist.ca/pipermail/project-x/2003-July/004074.html
What/?!?!?! The only thing missing is roaming the halls with in a straight jacket muttering sounds similar to "found him in a spider hole Hah. I'll show them. Where's the circus tent?"
No offense, but CHB stuff really belongs in "Bloggers & Personal."
Goebbels would be proud of this steaming pile of RAT dung.
(just tell him you're a friend of Terry Wilkinson)
That's what I thought too. The web site rang a bell.
This is great news! Go, Bush!!
Nothing crazier than a crazed ex-Freeper.
This guy's a blatant liar. Bush is always extremely humble about his christianity and has never made the above statement.
This is bizarre! I just don't believe it.
Doug was a freeper?!
This is undeniable.
Aides say the President gets “hung up on minor details,” micromanaging to the extreme while ignoring the bigger picture. He will spend hours personally reviewing and approving every attack ad against his Democratic opponent and then kiss off a meeting on economic issues.
After nearly 4 years in office, this is the first time I have ever heard Bush called a micromanager. Infact, editorial after editorial and newscast after newscast has constantly complained that he was too hands off and didn't get into the details enough. So which is it?
"Tenet wanted to quit last year but the President got his back up and wouldn't hear of it," says an aide. "That would have been the opportune time to make a change, not in the middle of an election campaign but when the director challenged the President during the meeting Wednesday, the President cut him off by saying 'that's it George. I cannot abide disloyalty. I want your resignation and I want it now."
I do not believe for one minute that this is what happened.
Ooooh.... K, you may be prescient. That's just the thing the Dems would do in heartbeat with full complicity of the mainstream media.
this is pure bull shit
Are you sure this isn't sourced from a supermarket tabloid? The reason you know it's just a hit piece is the hysteria. Someone may need to slap the author for his own good.
Garbage. Nobody's buying it (unless it'd be with public funds).
Nothing crazier than a crazed ex-Freeper.
LOL! It’s true.
Any bets on who around here will be the next to go cyber-postal?
"We're at war, there's no doubt about it. What I don't know anymore is just who the enemy might be," says one troubled White House aide. "We seem to spend more time trying to destroy John Kerry than al Qaeda and our enemies list just keeps growing and growing."
Will he come on here and explain himself?
It looks like his account is still active, but beyond that, I don't know.
He had to apologize for a piece last year, and he'll have to do it on this one, as well.
Hey, Doug! This is the lowest thing you've ever written.
Not one named source, which means you made 'em all up!
The Pres. actualy got into that exact question today..
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/06/20040604-2.html
Q Could you understand -- your political action is inspired by God, you say a number of times --
THE PRESIDENT: I said what?
Q Is inspired by God, I mean, your --
THE PRESIDENT: My political action? I've never said that.
Q You've never said that? I mean, I'm not quoting you.
THE PRESIDENT: No, I've never said that.
Q I said, in general, you relate to God as a --
THE PRESIDENT: You said, my political action is caused by God, I think.
Q No, no, no, no, I said your political action is inspired by God.
THE PRESIDENT: No, my political action is -- my life is inspired by God.
Q But this has a political consequence when you speak about freedom, the notion of freedom, you relate it to God.
THE PRESIDENT: Oh, I see what you're saying. What I say is, I say that freedom is not America's gift to the world. In other words, I'm making it clear to people that freedom is more universal than a country. Freedom is more universal than man. See, I believe freedom is the Almighty's gift to everybody in the world. And the reason I say that is because I don't want people to think that there is such thing as -- that we want the world to look like America. I understand it's not going to. But freedom is universal. Freedom is applied here. Freedom is applied in France. Freedom is a part of -- will be a part of a new Iraq.
Doug was a freeper?!
Still is, technically:
He is also a "reporter" with a proven history of making up sources.
LOL! I can beat that! I have a bunch of sourced (sauced?) sources saying he foully curses SS agents sworn to protect him, lies about everything he touches, goes jockstrap shopping with his DAUGHTER for heaven's sake, uses the "f" word like he's an 8th grader who just figured out he won't be sent to his room for doing so, wounded himself to get out of combat so that he could betray his country and help plan the assassinations of members of Congress, and is so stone-cold stupid and arrogant he is perpetually stuck in his own version of the past, ending around 1973 sometime.
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