Me Talk Presidential One Day: One Of Bush's Speachwriters Reveals How Messy Things Really Got

News Type: Event — Seeded on Tue Sep 15, 2009 3:16 PM EDT

Article Source: men.style.com

politics, bush, economy, mccain, republican, gop, palin, economics, george-w-bush, speech, matt-latimer, speech-writer, latimer

Seeded by Killfile

Matt Latimer worked as one of Dubya's speechwriters during the president's final twenty-two months in office. He was there to help sell the surge to a skeptical public. He was there as we pretended that the fundamentals of the economy were strong. And he was there to see a president who failed to grasp his own $700 billion bailout package—even as he was pitching it to the American public on live TV. A disillusioned insider reveals for the first time just how messy things got

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{"commentId":9499170,"authorDomain":"killfile"}

Killfile

Its an interesting look inside the Bush White House. All too often we only see the President's public face; in Bush's case, I think, to his detriment.

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#1 - Tue Sep 15, 2009 3:31 PM EDT

{"commentId":9500212,"authorDomain":"vlodblogger"}

Desert Storm Black Vet

could not see that article but did see this one

Is there a politician George W. Bush ever liked? Not according to former Dubya speech writer Matt Latimer. In his forthcoming memoir, "Speech Less: Tales of a White House Survivor," Latimer says the former Prez dissed pretty much everyone in Washington - including Barack Obama.

"He came in one day to rehearse a speech, fuming," Latimer writes. "'This is a dangerous world,'" he said for no apparent reason, "and this cat [Obama] isn't remotely qualified to handle it. This guy has no clue, I promise you."

GQ's October issue has a sneak peek at the book - out Sept. 22 - which is being touted as a "Devil Wears Prada" for the White House. In the excerpt, Latimer dishes on the other politicos Dubya has privately mocked.

"If bull- was currency," he said, "Joe Biden would be a billionaire." Of the GOP's Sarah Palin, he cracked, "I'm trying to remember if I've met her before. What is she, the governor of Guam?"

And although he may have detested her, Bush always believed Hillary Clinton would be a Democratic political contender. Groused the former Prez, "Wait till her fat keister is sitting at this desk."

A rep for Bush said, "No comment."

what is the big deal

{"commentId":9500212,"threadId":"677062","contentId":"3272934","authorDomain":"vlodblogger"}

1 vote

#2 - Tue Sep 15, 2009 4:01 PM EDT

{"commentId":9512445,"authorDomain":"tgstk2"}

tgstk2

Wow. I mean, WOW... Reading this article is like watching a ten car pileup. This is a must-read for any students of history. And, I have to hand it to Mr. Latimer, he is one heck of a writer. How about this quote:

n 2007 I finally made it to the Bush White House as a presidential speechwriter. But it was not at all what I envisioned. It was less like Aaron Sorkin’s The West Wing and more like The Office.

Or this talking about Bush's 700 billion dollar bailout proposal:

He liked being decisive. Excuse me, boldly decisive. The president seemed to be thinking of his memoirs. “This might go in as a big decision,” he mused.
“Definitely, Mr. President,” someone else observed. “This is a large decision.”

BTW -- killfile, the link in this article seed goes to the second page of the article. The first page is here.

{"commentId":9512445,"threadId":"677062","contentId":"3272934","authorDomain":"tgstk2"}

#3 - Tue Sep 15, 2009 11:10 PM EDT

{"commentId":9522676,"authorDomain":"killfile"}

Killfile

Dangit.

All I ask, Esquire, is for a "show this article on one page" button.

{"commentId":9522676,"threadId":"677062","contentId":"3272934","authorDomain":"killfile"}

#3.1 - Wed Sep 16, 2009 10:52 AM EDT

{"commentId":9515060,"authorDomain":"aine"}

Aine MacDermot

OMG... dying laughing over here. That part about Jimmy Carter especially... I wish this was front page here, at the NYTimes, at the Washington Post, at the Wall St. Journal... everywhere. And no rightwinger can ever claim this is leftwing garbage, it was written by Bush's own speech writer. I KNEW these guys were incompetent, I just didn't know the depths of the incompetency. Now I've got some idea of those depths.

{"commentId":9515060,"threadId":"677062","contentId":"3272934","authorDomain":"aine"}

2 votes

#4 - Wed Sep 16, 2009 1:19 AM EDT

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KILLFILE

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Me Talk Presidential One Day: One Of Bush's Speachwriters Reveals How Messy Things Really Got

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