Posted on 07/06/2002 6:21:08 PM PDT by Retired Chemist
KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine - President Bush shuttered the White House to business Friday and escaped - with a gaggle of daughters, wayward pets, nieces, nephews and brothers - for a long birthday weekend at the seaside compound where his family has spent summers for more than 100 years.
First up: a spin in his father's speedboat with daughter Jenna. No driving privileges for the birthday boy, though; it was the former president at the wheel when the boat zipped into a cove, and the current president called out to neighbors that he felt great.
The president, who turns 56 today, flew to his parents' home on the Maine coast after a quick morning phone call to Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Beyond that and his daily intelligence briefings, Bush planned little more taxing than some golf and fishing before his Monday afternoon return to work in Washington.
Oh, and that business of growing a year older.
``I think a cake can be expected, some singing can be expected,'' said White House press secretary Ari Fleischer. ``... And you never know with the Bush family when a game of tennis or some other sporting event will break out.''
BUSH, WHO watched Washington’s Fourth of July fireworks display from the White House balcony, said history proves Americans are a united people and “when you strike one American you strike them all.”
In Maine, at the stone-walled manor on Walker’s Point where the Bush family has spent summer vacations for more than a century, the president planned to hit the golf course and get in some fishing.
But America’s war against terrorism was clearly on his mind in his pre-recorded Saturday radio address devoted entirely to the patriotic spirit.
“More than ever in the lifetime of most Americans, our flag stands for a true united country,” Bush said. “We’ve been united in our grief and we are united in our resolve to protect our people and defeat the enemies of freedom.”
More than 60,000 U.S. troops are serving around the world in the war against terror, the president said, and their service stands as an example and an inspiration to those at home.
“As we fight a war abroad, at home, Americans are answering the call to service, giving their time and energy to causes greater than self-interest,” Bush said.
“This nation is confronting a terrible evil, and we are confronting evil with good,” he said.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.