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For Immediate ReleaseOffice of the Press SecretaryDecember 6, 2008 President's Radio Address   President's Radio Address  Audio  En Español       In Focus: Defense      In Focus: IraqTHE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This weekend I'm attending the Army-Navy game in Philadelphia, and I'm looking forward to a great day of college football. But more importantly, I'm looking forward to spending time with the brave men and women of the United States military. Throughout the past eight years, I've seen the tremendous talent and courage of those who wear the uniform. Their efforts have overthrown tyrants, made our Nation safer, put terrorists on the run, and...

This is the Texas home that George W. Bush has purchased for his fast-approaching post-White House years. The home, on a Dallas cul-de-sac, sits on 1.13 acres and offers 8501 square feet of living space, according to city appraisal records. The property was purchased for $2.07 million in early-October by Robert McCleskey, the president's accountant, who is listed as trustee on deed records. Built in 1959, the home has been improved with a detached garage (1150 square feet), servants quarters (896 square feet), and a storage building (240 square feet). (Photo at link)

There would be no cure with W. in the White House I’ll organize my comments with reference to the distinctions I introduced yesterday, though the order will be different. Brand-name voting versus rational-analysis voting. What I think is that the Iraq War ruined President Bush’s brand and President Bush ruined the Republican brand. I think that’s what sank us in 2006 and 2008. Sure, there were scandals, there was rampant spending and government bloat, there was a charismatic Democratic nominee, and in the final weeks of the ’08 campaign there was a financial crisis that sealed John McCain’s fate. But...

WASHINGTON -- First Lady Laura Bush said Wednesday the first couple would be spending their Christmas money on Texas real estate for what she referred to as the "afterlife" - the time when they leave the White House in January after her husband's eight years in office. The couple will be buying a house in Dallas, with plans to spend weekends at their ranch in Crawford."This year, we're going to be very, very careful at Christmas. I suspect that a lot of other American families will be the same," Laura Bush said. "We're going to try to be with each...

Amid the cold gusts of winter, Republicans will soon be ushered out of power after controlling Congress, the White House, or both for 14 years. Here's a further chilling thought: Since 1896, with only one exception, when a party has taken over the White House, it has held it for at least eight years. The exception is the Jimmy Carter Democrats, retired after a single term in 1981. And it would be churlish to hope that Barack Obama will recapitulate the ineptitude and foolishness of the Nobel laureate from Plains. So it could be eight years on the outside of...

Today President Bush took part in the 61st National Thanksgiving Turkey Ceremony in the White House Rose Garden. (Transcript) This is my final Thanksgiving as the President. Over the past eight years, I have been given many reasons to be thankful. I'm thankful to our men and women in uniform and I am incredibly proud to have been their Commander-in-Chief. (Applause.) I am thankful for the armies of compassion volunteers who feed the hungry and shelter the poor. I am thankful for the teachers and nurses and pastors police officers and firefighters, and others who serve their neighbors and better...

Family members, friends and lawyers for convicted ex-Gov. George Ryan are pushing a plea for clemency during the final weeks of the Bush administration.

We have "only one President at a time," Barack Obama said in his debut press conference as President-elect. Normally, that would be a safe assumption - but we're learning not to assume anything as the charcoal-dreary economic winter approaches. By mid-November, with the financial crisis growing worse by the day, it had become obvious that one President was no longer enough (at least not the President we had). So, in the days before Thanksgiving, Obama began to move - if not to take charge outright, then at least to preview what things will be like when he does take over...

Note: The following text is a quote: http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/November/08-opa-1048.html President George W. Bush Grants Pardons and Commutations WASHINGTON - On Nov. 24, 2008, President George W. Bush granted pardons to 14 individuals and commutation of sentence to two individuals: PARDONS: · Leslie Owen Collier - Charleston, Mo. Offense: Unauthorized use of a registered pesticide, 7 U.S.C. §§ 136j(a)(2)(F) and 136l(b); violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, 16 U.S.C. § 668(a). Sentence: Feb. 2, 1996; Eastern District of Missouri; two years’ probation and $10,000 in restitution. · Milton Kirk Cordes - Rapid City, S.D. Offense: Conspiracy to violate the...

10. Land use -- Review executive orders concerning the Antiquities Act designations of lands by the government. Under Bill Clinton, millions of acres of lands were locked up by executive fiat and, because these actions were not established by law, they can be undone by executive action of a subsequent President. 9. Oil drilling -- Continue to push the Outer Continental Shelf planning process so that newly opened OCS acreage can be leased for future oil drilling. 8. Oil shale leasing -- Issue the final leasing regulations for oil shale leasing in the Western United States. Without these, the U.S....

President and Mrs. Bush couldn't be handling the transition more graciously. But rather than celebrating the peaceful transfer of power that is the hallmark of our democracy, Hardball has announced a new feature, "Final Daze," intended to mock W as we count down his last weeks in office. Mike Barnicle, sitting in for Chris Matthews, announced the new segment on this evening's show. MIKE BARNICLE: And that brings us to a new, regular item we're starting tonight called "Final Daze." President Bush has 57 days left in office, and many are asking "where's Dubya?" With the economy tanking and the...

With a backlog of applications piled up at the Justice Department, high-profile criminals and their well-connected lawyers increasingly are appealing directly to President Bush for special consideration on pardons and clemency, according to people involved in the process. Among those seeking presidential action are former junk-bond salesman Michael Milken, who hired former solicitor general Theodore B. Olson, one of the nation's most prominent GOP lawyers, to plead his case for a pardon on 1980s-era securities fraud charges. Two politicians convicted of public corruption, former congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Calif.) and four-term Louisiana governor Edwin W. Edwards (D), are asking Bush...

Press Releases Contact: Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami 202-226-7616 For Immediate Release 11/24/2008 Pelosi: Talented Obama Economic Team Will Help Lead Our Nation During Serious Economic Crisis Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on President-elect Obama’s announcement of his economic team: “President-elect Barack Obama has assembled an exceptionally talented and diverse economic team to help him lead our nation during the most serious economic crisis in generations. Congress stands ready to work with the new President on his bold plan to restore confidence to our economy, create and save 2.5 million good-paying jobs here at home, and...

A farewell of sorts that includes some very funny and poignant pictures of GWB taken throughout his administration.

For Immediate ReleaseOffice of the Press SecretaryNovember 21, 2008 President's Radio Address   President's Radio Address  Audio  En Español       In Focus: APEC 2008THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This weekend I am in Lima, Peru, meeting with leaders from nations in the Asia Pacific region at our annual summit. This summit comes at a time of serious turmoil in the global economy. It also comes at a time of unprecedented cooperation. A week ago in Washington, I hosted the first in what will be a series of international meetings to address the financial crisis. We reviewed the actions we have taken to manage...

LIMA (AFP) – US President George W. Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao on Friday discussed the global economic crisis and efforts to speed the process of ending North Korea's nuclear programs, the White House said. > The US president, who steps down January 20, "at the beginning of the meeting expressed how he 'felt a little nostalgic' given this was their last meeting as heads of state," she said. "He said he felt very comfortable in their personal relationship and that he believes the relationship between our two countries is on solid ground" and passed Hu "warm regards" from...

President Bush has disappointed his staunchest supporters no few times during his presidency, but nothing — not even his failed attempt to force a flawed immigration bill upon the nation — has been more disappointing than his refusal to pardon or commute the sentences of incarcerated border agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean. On Dec. 11, 29 convicted criminals received presidential pardons. They included persons convicted of tax evasion and bank fraud, and drug smugglers and dealers and a moonshiner. However, while Mr. Bush was willing to extend the ultimate gift of the season to corrupt criminal elements, he...

An unpardonable use of power By Sen. Russ Feingold Nov. 20, 2008 | If President Bush cares about his place in history, he should think twice before issuing pardons that call his judgment, and the integrity of the rule of law, into question. A departing president probably can't help thinking about the judgment of history. At the end of eight years, President Bush likely isn't any different. With the nation's attention focused on his successor, it may seem as if there is little opportunity left for the current president to affect how he will be viewed. But there is one...

In the waning months of the Bush administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has joined the ranks of federal agencies rushing through new regulations that weaken protections for human health and the environment. USDA has released a proposed rule that would significantly weaken oversight of all genetically engineered crops, and which continue to allow companies to grow food crops engineered to produce drugs and industrial chemicals. The USDA began this process over four years ago by promising stricter oversight. Unfortunately, improvements considered early on have been dismissed, and the proposed rule now has the same gaping holes as the...

Only a few short weeks ago, American Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson made the whole World a promise. If only American taxpayers would ante up $700 billion, the US Treasury would buy up enough troubled mortgages to stem the soaring tide of home foreclosures and put the brakes on a rapidly accelerating financial melt down. Despite protests and out right catcalls from millions of average Americans (who are actually much smarter than they look), Congress took the bait and put them and generations of their children on the hook for nearly a trillion dollars. Now, fast-forward to this morning, November 18,...