Posted on 09/18/2006 8:04:26 PM PDT by Robert A Cook PE
FRIDAY AT THE WHITE HOUSE
Well, this hasn't been what you would call an ordinary week off.
There I am last Wednesday taking a hike in the desert outside of Tucson, Arizona. I come back to the room and decide to check the email. There's a message from the White House marked "urgent." Well ... let me tell ya ... you're gonna want to open that message, and so I did.
OK ... so this might be such a big deal for some folks out there, but it sure got my attention. The President was inviting me and a few other radio talk show hosts to meet with him in the Oval Office on Friday for an off-the-record conversation.
The first problem was clothes. I don't generally take a suit on my summer vacation, and it might have looked a bit odd for me to show up at the White House wearing hiking shorts and a t-shirt reading "I'm a pathological flyer." So it was off to Tucson to buy a suit, shirt, tie, shoes, socks and a belt.
May I drop in a plug here for the Men's Warehouse on River Road in Tucson? Karen took me under her wing and I walked out in one hour with a fully altered suit and everything else I needed. No ... I didn't tell her I was going to the White House. I just said I needed it for an unexpected meeting ... and she came through.
Getting there was another matter. I finally arranged flights out of Phoenix. So it was in the car at 8:30 on Thursday morning. Arrive at the Phoenix airport at 11:00. Fly Northwest to Memphis, then Reagan airport in DC. A cab ride to the hotel, and I'm sacked in by 10:00 Thursday night.
The next morning I stay in the room and devour the Washington Post and the New York Times. This in a vain attempt to try to appear halfway intelligent in the meeting to come.
At 11:30 I arrive at the NW guard gate to the White House. Hannity is right behind me. the President is in the process of holding a press conference in the Rose Garden. We clear security and wander on our own to the West Wing. Inside the lobby we find Mike Gallagher and Michael Medved. Laura Ingraham arrives a few minutes later and we wait for our meeting to begin.
At about 12:30 we're moved into the Roosevelt Room to await the president. I wander around and notice two displays on the wall. One was the Medal of Honor won by Theodore Roosevelt, the other was his Nobel Peace Prize.
After about 20 minutes, at 12:50, the door opens and we're ushered across the hallway into the Oval Office. We're joined there by Press Secretary Tony Snow, and the meeting begins.
The ground rules were simple. We were off the record. We cannot quote the president on anything that was said during the next 90 minutes. The subject matter ranged through domestic policy, immigration, the war on terror, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Jordan. President Bush talked of the leaders of countries ranging from Great Britain to China to Japan to Iran. I'll assure you, there were some great moments there.
Midway though our talk we were surprised by a bark and scratching at the door to the Oval Office patio. Beasley wanted in. Scottish Terrier, I think.
I came away from the meeting with some clear impressions. President Bush is a man of deep religions faith, and strongly believes that anyone who truly believes in God will also have a burning desire to live free. He's absolutely convinced that we will prevail in Iraq and in the war against Islamic fascism, though the job will be arduous.
I had many impressions of the President and of the Oval Office. During the flight back to Phoenix on Friday evening I pulled out a notepad and wrote everything I could remember about the entire experience. Those will share with you Wednesday when I'm back on live.
Did I say Wednesday? Why golly, I sure did! I've extended my vacation to Arizona by two days so that I could complete the project I came here to do. I'll be coming home with one nice suit of clothes and some incredible experiences to share.
Interesting that as BAD as this WH is in getting info to the MSM, it IS at least trying to get word to the people who will not distort it and ignore it.
May I put a plug in for the United States Marine Corps. Every time I listen to Neal, I'm reminded how many males there are in the US who'd have done well to serve a tour in uniform.
8<)
Appropriate: I HOPE they grilled him on that mess Bush is promoting!
No, OTR is the (100 title-block limiting number of letters I could use) replacement for Off-the-Record.
Anyone know if Laura Ingraham talked about this on her show yet?
Medved mentioned it Friday. I didn't hear Ingraham Friday but she mentioned it Monday as well as her meeting with Thatcher on Thursday.
Michael Medved ping. Not really about Michael Medved but he met with the President on Friday as most of you probably already know.
Careful here, Jim. Correct me if I am wrong, but the only person in that room, Neal included, who wore a uniform was the President.
I guess Sean Vannity couldn't make it.
Why were these people even invited if they can say nothing about what was spoken? Duh?
Has Laura spoken of this, or any of the others? I don't get to radio much during the week.
That Ingraham...late again! (cause she's often late or "just in time" for her show)
I'm glad that President Bush took the time to have a meeting with these people. They have been tirelessly defending him.
From the article:
At 11:30 I arrive at the NW guard gate to the White House. Hannity is right behind me.
Care to "revise and extend" your snarky comment?
Good, the President included a dear friend of Chucky Schumer afterall. Hope he took the time to explain the whole ports issue to Vannity.
Yes. Laura talked about it on her show. Note that she was the last one there!
What I deduce is that Tony Snow is behind this - my thoughts is he wanted these talk show hosts to get to know Bush more intimately than the current "news" stories portray him. As I said before - from a DC "insider" - Bush as two passions: the WOT and immigration. He's not playing politics, this is the way the man sees the world and it might be tied to his religious beliefs. No way his immigration policy is it for political reasons as I've seen posted here many times.
Boortz's dad was a long-time Marine.
He (Boortz) was a student at Texas A&M when all members needed to be in the Corps, but I don't know if he was actually commissioned coming out of college.
Over time, while you aren't supposed to quote anyone, I think it's understood that, in general, whatever was said will become public knowledge. In our case, the term "Islamic fascism," I'm pretty sure, came out of our meeting.
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