Bush ready to trade Maine for Crawford
Posted on 07/08/2002 6:57:39 AM PDT by MeekOneGOP
Bush ready to trade Maine for Crawford
Media and staff, however, would rather avoid Texas in August
07/08/2002
KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine - Cool sea breezes, coffee on the hotel veranda and long walks on the beach.
Enjoy it while you can, President Bush told his entourage as they enjoyed a holiday weekend on the Maine coast.
Crawford in August is right around the corner.
Mr. Bush himself can't wait to get back to his beloved Texas ranch, which he again plans to use as a western White House in August, despite not-so-subtle suggestions by staff and reporters that he consider another visit to his parents' compound in Kennebunkport.
In wishing the president a happy 56th birthday, one reporter asked Mr. Bush: "Now that you're a little older and wiser, are you rethinking avoiding spending all of August here?"
No, Mr. Bush replied: "I think you'll like Crawford."
Members of the presidential caravan said the people in Crawford and Waco are great, but the area lacks the amenities of the seaside resort. Some suggested a parity plan by which every day in Crawford is matched by a day in Kennebunkport.
Don't count on it, Bush aides said. One joked that that while Mr. Bush likes to go to Crawford to unwind, everyone else seems to go there to whine.
After a weekend of golfing, boating and fishing, the president plans to return to Washington on Monday. A day later he travels to New York for a major speech on corporate responsibility in which he is expected to call for stricter enforcement of securities laws and more prison time for violators.
Mr. Bush plans to begin this year's August sojourn whenever Congress recesses for the summer, on or around Aug. 8-9, aides said. He will probably base operations there until Labor Day weekend.
Although aides expect Mr. Bush to be out of the public eye during his first week in Crawford, that could change. During last year's expected first week lull, Mr. Bush made his long-anticipated speech on federal support for stem-cell research.
Mr. Bush will probably make a series of day trips out of Crawford during the latter part of August, aides said, some of them in anticipation of the congressional election season this fall.
Some critics questioned the amount of time Mr. Bush spent in Crawford last August, especially after reports that one of the briefings he received that month included the threat that terrorists might try to hijack airplanes. Aides dismissed the criticism, saying modern communications make Mr. Bush just as much a president in Crawford as he is in Washington.
Aides said the differences between Crawford and Kennebunkport illustrate one of the differences between the two President Bushes: the New England upbringing of the father and the Texas roots of the son.
Not that Crawford lacks advantages, said members of Bush traveling party. Some noted that, in contrast to the clogged streets of Kennebunkport this weekend, they can drive the speed limit and find parking in Texas.
"Crawford does have its charms," said one White House staff member. "It's simple. It's got that big sky. It's an All-American kind of place."
No ocean breezes, however, a point former President George Bush raised when the subject of Crawford came up.
"It's warmer there," he said.
E-mail djackson@dallasnews.com
One joked that that while Mr. Bush likes to go to Crawford to unwind,
everyone else seems to go there to whine.
LOL! Make 'em sweat, President Bush! 
Gotta love the subtle ways GW deals with his critic's.
Is this a straight trade or does Maine get two future draft picks?
Never heard a complaint of Bubba mooching off friends for three weeks, wherever he could beg a vacation.
You've already disqualified yourself from ever being a WH reporter! Just ask Helen Thomas.
I could deal with that long enough to find a jet.
In the mornings and evenings, can you hear the Mocking birds singing their extensive music catlog, the doves and their lonesome call, see the deer and turkeys enjoying the dew soak grass?
Can you watch the roadrunners going from shade to shade in search of lizards and snakes?
Do they have Night Hawks swooping the low grass in the evenings, darting back and forth for insects and mice?
Can you sit outside at night to play cards, drink beer and enjoy the sounds of the night or are your Northern bugs too large to even consider this?
Our Summer time weather may seem extreme and hostile, but one will be amazed at the wildlife that thrive in this environment. There are things that you will see and enjoy nowhere else.
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