Posted on 05/03/2015 8:25:26 AM PDT by null and void
Dana Perino has a lot of good stories to tell about her time as White House Press Secretary in the Bush administration, if this story is any indication.
The co-host of Fox News’ The Five wrote a moving story in her new book And the Good News Is: Lessons and Advice from the Bright Side… about former President George W. Bush that gives people an insight into the character of the man often lost in the noise of the news media.
Dana Perino tells the story in The Daily Signal:
One morning in 2005, Scott McClellan sent me in his place to visit the wounded warriors. It was my first time for that particular assignment, and I was nervous about how the visits would go.The president at one point shares a moment with a boy about his military father:The president was scheduled to see twenty-five patients at Walter Reed. Many of them had traumatic brain injuries and were in very serious, sometimes critical, condition. Despite getting the best treatment available in the world, we knew that some would not survive.
We started in the intensive care unit. The Chief Naval Officer (CNO) briefed the president on our way into the hospital about the first patient we’d see. He was a young Marine who had been injured when his Humvee was hit by a roadside bomb. After his rescue, he was flown to Landstuhl U.S. Air Force Base in Kaiserslautern, Germany. At his bedside were his parents, wife, and five-year-old son.
After he visited with them for a bit, the president turned to the military aide and said, “Okay, let’s do the presentation.” The wounded soldier was being awarded the Purple Heart, given to troops that suffer wounds in combat.And then something powerful happened that had everyone in tears:Everyone stood silently while the military aide in a low and steady voice presented the award. At the end of it, the Marine’s little boy tugged on the president’s jacket and asked, “What’s a Purple Heart?”
The president got down on one knee and pulled the little boy closer to him. He said, “It’s an award for your dad, because he is very brave and courageous, and because he loves his country so much. And I hope you know how much he loves you and your mom, too.”
As he hugged the boy, there was a commotion from the medical staff as they moved toward the bed.That is precisely what he did, leading to a moment where the president was crying with the Marine:The Marine had just opened his eyes. I could see him from where I stood.
The CNO held the medical team back and said, “Hold on, guys. I think he wants the president.”
The president jumped up and rushed over to the side of the bed. He cupped the Marine’s face in his hands. They locked eyes, and after a couple of moments the president, without breaking eye contact, said to the military aide, “Read it again.”
So we stood silently as the military aide presented the Marine with the award for a second time. The president had tears dripping from his eyes onto the Marine’s face. As the presentation ended, the president rested his forehead on the Marine’s for a moment.But just as revealing is how the president handled being yelled at by one Marine’s mother:Now everyone was crying, and for so many reasons: the sacrifice; the pain and suffering; the love of country; the belief in the mission; and the witnessing of a relationship between a soldier and his Commander in Chief that the rest of us could never fully grasp. (In writing this book, I contacted several military aides who helped me track down the name of the Marine. I hoped for news that he had survived. He did not. He died during surgery six days after the president’s visit. He is buried at Arlington Cemetery and is survived by his wife and their three children.)
But there were exceptions. One mom and dad of a dying soldier from the Caribbean were devastated, the mom beside herself with grief. She yelled at the president, wanting to know why it was her child and not his who lay in that hospital bed.True humility.Her husband tried to calm her and I noticed the president wasn’t in a hurry to leave—he tried offering comfort but then just stood and took it, like he expected and needed to hear the anguish, to try to soak up some of her suffering if he could.
Later as we rode back on Marine One to the White House, no one spoke.
But as the helicopter took off, the president looked at me and said, “That mama sure was mad at me.” Then he turned to look out the window of the helicopter. “And I don’t blame her a bit.”
One tear slipped out the side of his eye and down his face. He didn’t wipe it away, and we flew back to the White House.
Update: This article has been edited to change the term “soldier” to “Marine” upon request.
Well, maybe for wounded jihadis. Maybe.
Agree,
Hope this doesn’t become another bash GW thread like the last one about Parinos view of him
Oops Perino not Parino...
A true GENTLEMAN.
NO.
But he did love this country, and he loved and honored the United States Fighting Men and Women.
I would vote for a person of character such as this any time, anytime, over some smooth talking poll that could not care less about this country and it's history.
And he was a full-time employee of Saudi Arabia.
George Bush is a remarkable man!
Didn’t expect to tear-up this early. Touching moments. I still like W., in spite of certain political disagreements.
Bush gave us Obama.
Instead of investigating him and turning the info over, we got Obama.
And thus ended the Bush dynasty. Amen!
Wow. I’ve come to the conclusion that GWII was a mistake but I never stopped believing that President Bush is a good and decent man. This story confirms that.
L
Chit!!!
My friggin screen is all blurry.
Heartbreaking. ..
To hell with them.
Perino is a classy lady, and I’d give anything to have G.W. Bush back in the White House.
Haters, go hate someone worth hating.
The information was out for anyone interested in the truth. No excuses for the Obama voters.
I wouldn’t want the liarOTUS to visit anyway. It would dishonor the vets.
The heroes in this story are the dying Marine and the soldier.
But I also always liked GWB. I didn’t agree with him on everything he did as president, but he is a good and decent man.
Hillary out of the goodness of her heart became the most cheated on woman in America allowing tons of women to have sex with her husband to promote the Democrat party. ;-)
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