Posted on 04/16/2006 12:55:36 PM PDT by Wolfstar
PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush left the White House last Thursday for a long weekend at Camp David. The President and his family enjoyed an early Easter dinner today before returning to Washington.
The family's Easter meal included two kinds of ham, spinach salad, macaroni and cheese, asparagus, deviled eggs, fresh fruit and biscuits. For dessert, could choose between double coconut layer cake and lemon curd trifle with fresh berries.
Unfortunately, on this lovely day when Christians everywhere celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, the Left will not restrain itself from turning even the innocence of children and a 128-year-old non-political tradition into a propaganda tool. In a story that is getting wide coverage, gay and lesbian groups are planning to crash the annual White House Easter Egg Roll. The event occurs tomorrow, from 8:00am to 2:00pm. About 200 gay and lesbian couples are planning to attend, and most lined up days early to obtain tickets. Here are two articles to give you a sense of how the media is playing this story. The first is from Agence France Press via Yahoo News, and the second is from Cox News Service.
Gay parents to crash White House Easter partyWASHINGTON (AFP) - Dozens of gay couples and their children are planning to make their presence felt at the annual White House Easter egg party -- no matter what the conservative occupants think.
The Easter Egg Roll is a traditional all-American event held on the White House lawn each year since 1878, where kids push an egg with a giant wooden spoon, often with the proud president and his wife looking on. The gay groups say their gesture is to make their presence felt in American society -- the president has supported calls for a constitutional ban on gay marriage.
"Like other parents in this country, we want to give our children the best opportunities, to shower them with love, to teach them respect and a love for the rich and diverse traditions America has to offer them," said Jennifer Chrisler, executive director for the Family Pride Coalition. Chrisler said she will queue for tickets with her partner and two sons. Some are queuing through the night to be at the front of the line on Saturday morning.
Family Pride has been behind the calls for gay groups to crash the White House party which conservatives have condemned as an attempt to politicize a family event.
But the homosexual groups say it will not be a protest.
Family Pride spokeswoman Cathy Renna said about 100 families had already indicated they would try to get tickets. They have committed though not to use slogans or even wear t-shirts that could get them barred from the White House. Renna said the families would wear flowers in "rainbow colors" which symbolize gay pride. "Just so that people identify us and our families are visible, because unfortunately we're not visible in this country."
Bush may avoid gay politics at White House egg roll
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Ken Herman, COX NEWS SERVICEWASHINGTON — Wacky Jack Hanna the animal guy will be there. So will astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Cookie Monster, a couple of Olympians, thousands of families and an Easter bunny.
But the White House is declining to say whether President Bush will attend Monday’s Easter-egg roll on the South Lawn, targeted this year by gay parents unhappy with his stance on gay parenthood.
In a cleverly orchestrated move, the gay parents and their kids are using the event to bring their cause inside the White House gates.
"Mrs. Bush welcomes all families," said Susan Whitson, spokeswoman for first lady Laura Bush, who will be on hand to welcome the thousands of parents and children expected to show up.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan has not said whether the president will attend. Delaying the decision could allow the administration to see how much of a presence the gay parents will have.
Bush’s schedule Monday offers both an excuse for skipping the egg roll and an opportunity to attend. His schedule has him in nearby Sterling, Va., at 11:15 a.m. for a tour of a stone business and a discussion on taxes.
The egg roll is from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Jennifer Chrisler, executive director of Family Pride, the group organizing gay parents for the event, said "it would be great for the kids to see either the president or the first lady because everybody knows who they are.
Chrisler, who will bring her 4-year-old twin boys and spouse, Cheryl Jacques, said it’s neither a protest nor an attempt to politicize a nonpolitical event.
"We hope the American people see that gay and lesbian parents are participating in all of the great American traditions, just like all families in this country do," Chrisler said.
But Chrisler is not shy about criticizing Bush, who for years has tried to use nonconfrontational words to voice his opposition to same-sex marriage and adoptions by gays.
Family Pride’s plan calls for the gay parents to make their case merely by showing up — all wearing rainbow-colored leis to identify themselves — and having their kids enjoy the White House festivities.
Groups opposed to gay rights are not buying the line.
"It’s unfortunate that an event that is simply designed for children, perhaps the only event that takes place at the White House that is not political, is now being politicized," said Peter Sprigg, the Family Research Council’s vice president for policy.
On a much happier note -- and one more appropriate to the Easter holiday: Each year, one egg decorated by an artist from each state is displayed at the White House visitor's center. The Lincoln, Nebraska, JournalStar told their readers about Grace Adam, and Wood TV8, Ludington, Michigan, told their viewers about Deb Malewski, whose hand-painted egg depicts the Big Sable Point Lighthouse in Ludington. As part of their trip to Washington, the artists toured the White House and met First Lady Laura Bush.
Wilcox woman's egg on White House Easter display
by the Associated PressWILCOX— A special egg from Nebraska is part of the 2006 Easter egg display at the White House, thanks to Grace Adam of Wilcox.
Her decorated egg beat 10 other eggs submitted by Nebraska artists for the White House Easter egg contest, which is organized by the Nebraska Department of Agriculture in conjunction with the American Egg Board.
One egg from each state and the District of Columbia are on display.
Adam went to the capital to see the display.
Each Nebraska contestant decorated a blown-out chicken egg to illustrate something special about Nebraska.
Adam’s egg features the red University of Nebraska “N,” Chimney Rock, a sandhill crane and corn and cow head.
THE WEEK AHEAD: Knowing I've been having some trouble obtaining the weekly schedule on time for the weekend Dose (normally posted on Saturdays) our own LuvyaDubya sent an email to the political unit at ABC News asking them to add the Week Ahead to their Friday Note. They said they would if they had the info before their deadline. Apparently due to the holiday weekend, they received the schedule early. Thank you LuvyaDubya for the following:
Monday, the President participates in a roundtable on taxes and the economy in Sterling, Virginia.Tuesday, President Bush will welcome Prime Minister Fouad Siniora of Lebanon to the White House. The two leaders will discuss a range of issues, including economic development and democratic reform in Lebanon and the Middle East, the investigation into the assassination of Prime Minister Hariri last year, and Lebanon's continuing efforts to reestablish its sovereignty, freedom and independence. Also on Tuesday, the President will give a speech in Maryland about American competitiveness.
Wednesday, GWB makes remarks about American competitiveness in Alabama. He will tour and speak at the Tuskegee University Center For Advanced Materials on Wednesday. The President will discuss America's competitiveness with the world as it relates to math and science.
Thursday, President Bush meets with President Hu Jintao of China. This will be President Hu's first visit to the White House. Talks will center on trade issues, particularly China's huge $102 billion trade surplus. "The large trade surplus supports the view that the renminbi is significantly undervalued, and will add to the political and economic pressure on China for exchange rate reform," Merrill Lynch's chief Asia economist, TJ Bond, said in a note to clients.
Friday, President Bush will visit Cisco Systems in San Jose, California, to discuss the American Competitiveness Initiative. If approved by Congress, the initiative would double government funding for basic research in the physical sciences, train thousands of new science and math teachers and extend a popular tax credit businesses can receive for investing in research and development. The President will stay overnight Friday in bucolic St. Helena, in Napa County. GWB plans to do some mountain bike riding.
Saturday, the President will spend the weekend in Southern California and will stay in Rancho Mirage. He will tour the California Fuel Cell Partnership in West Sacramento. Afterwards, he will attend a Republican gathering in Palm Springs.
Sunday, the President will attend church, then eat lunch with Marine and Navy families in Twentynine Palms.
Like all White House holiday events, the Easter Egg Roll has ALWAYS been non-political. The Easter Egg Roll, in particular, has been for very young children. In order to get in, you have to bring at least one toddler. An event for the most innocent among us -- that's what the radical Left (in this case, the gay and lesbian wing) are injecting themselves into Easter.
One antitdote to this ugly nonsense is for people to read and know history. For those who are interested in the history of this event, I've provided the following link. History of the White House Easter Egg Roll
Pinging you to the Easter Sunday Dose.
Bunnies ;)
All humanity is of one Author, and is one volume; when one dies, one chapter is not torn out of the book, but translated into a better language; and every chapter must be so translated; God employs several translators; some pieces are translated by age, some by sickness, some by war, some by justice; but God’s hand is in every translation, and his hand shall bind up all our scattered leaves again for that library where every book shall lie open to one another.
-- JOHN DONNE (1572–1631)
"Ah, Helen, caught ya studying Marx again.".
This photo was snapped on Thursday as the President left the White House for Camp David. Snugs posted it on the Dose that day, but it needs a caption:
Whew! Helen must have been by here awhile ago.
GWB walks with his mom and dad at the Naval Observatory after their return from Camp David today.
Happy Easter
Thanks for the dose looks like good stuff to read
Bob McDonald of Crawford, Texas, rides his horse by war protesters near President Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, Saturday, April 15, 2006.
Wunnies
One year-old Chase Verdery Jr. participates in the White House Easter Egg Roll, 2003. Dozens of gay couples and their children are planning to make their presence felt at the annual White House Easter egg party -- no matter what the conservative occupants think.
The above caption is shown here verbatim. I merely copied and pasted it.
This Easter Egg was created for the first Easter after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. It depicts the damage to the Pentagon and the huge American flag draped over the outside wall near the place where the plane hit.
As an example of one year's collection, you can see every state's eggs from 2003 by clicking here. The ones shown below are from several different years.
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.