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I'm sensitive to the media distorting the facts, but Bush's opposition to arming pilots was widely reported. Example:

President asks for alternative to arming pilots

By William M. Welch and Laurence McQuillan, USA TODAY
09/27/2001
President Bush plans to announce today a series of security steps intended to restore public confidence in commercial air travel, including strengthening cockpit doors to thwart hijackers, White House and congressional officials said Wednesday. During a visit to Chicago's O'Hare airport, Bush also will call for increasing the number of armed air marshals to cover most domestic flights and increased federal control of airport security checks of baggage and passengers, they said. Bush will emphasize the need for federal guidelines for airport screening, but he will stop short of making the screeners federal employees, the officials said. He will call for government testing, supervision and monitoring.
[snip]
Bush indicated on Wednesday that he is cool to a controversial idea, proposed by the 67,000-member Air Line Pilots Association union, to allow cockpit crews to carry handguns. Asked whether he supports arming pilots, Bush said, "There may be better ways to do it than that, but I'm open for any suggestion."

Regardless, President Bush - as usual - adopted the big government solution when he had a perfect opportunity to do otherwise.

Don't forget unionizing the TSA, the security people at the airport. They are the most incompetent sorry bunch I have ever seen. If they catch anyone stealing donuts from the airport Krispy Kreme, I will be pleasantly surprised. And then Bush rewarded them by letting these incompetent idiots to be unionized. Where do I start with my disappointments? Hopefully I will be able to stop soon.

"Asked whether he supports arming pilots, Bush said, "There may be better ways to do it than that, but I'm open for any suggestion."

Now, didn't *you* claim that Bush literally OPPOSED arming pilots? Not merely looking for potential better bills, mind you, but actually opposing it altogether. You know, something that he did TWICE by signing two different bills that did that very thing?!

Where do people get off claiming that Bush is AGAINST bills that he signs into law?

I can't tell you how many gullible posters have claimed that Bush was against arming pilots, even though NONE of them can ever quote Bush himself saying that he was against it even for a moment, much less who can explain why President Bush signed TWO FREAKING BILLS INTO LAW that ARMED PILOTS.

Oh, he was just against it, take our word for it, or take the liberal news media's word for it, you all claim.

Rubbish.