There was a rare White House reunion today down in Dallas, TX, for the opening of the George W. Bush Presidential Library and despite their intense political differences, all five living presidents in attendance kept the mood light and played nice for the big day, even Twitter's newest addition, Bill Clinton. We have all the details!
Since W the movie failed to figure out George W. Bush, a psychiatrist who's studied him is giving it a go. Justin Frank, MD, the author of Bush on the Couch: Inside the Mind of the President, says President Bush is not Dick Cheney's puppet nor is he a well-intentioned fool in over his head but a sadist who will revel in watching the world clean up his mess from his Crawford couch.
Dr. Frank believes the mess Bush has left is the result of giving a destructive personality extraordinary power. He shrinks Bush down to a wounded child, a boy who enjoyed killing frogs who grew into a man — to steal a phrase from everyone's favorite VP candidate — hellbent (unconsciously) on destroying the world. To see what he said, read more
Don't get jealous lil guy! Seems like Barney (one of the two Scotties belonging to George W. Bush) may sense that another pup – one that we haven't even seen yet! – is already at the top of everyone's list. This pup is still super-duper cute as is his terrier pal, Miss Beazley, both currently residing in the White House. See how Barney greeted an admiring fan, errr reporter, this morning in the video below.
Hollywood went to DC on Saturday night for the White House Correspondents Dinner and apparently left the color in Cali. Ben and Jen looked gorgeous as usual and brought some A-List acting clout to the reality TV infested event. Jenny McCarthy also looked pretty stunning, though that dress seems a bit risqué for the nature of the evening. Joy of joys, Heidi and Spencer made it after all though instead of black she's re-wearing the same exact outfit from her Kitson trip last weekend. Faux. Pas. I wonder what LC thought of that. Check out a slideshow of the night's highlights, including crowd surfing. Methinks it's gotta be one of the most random White House Correspondents Dinner guest lists ever, yes?
To see more from the party including Marcia Cross, Pamela Anderson, Pete Wentz, BJ Novak, Ed Westwick, Jonas Brothers and others just read more
So by now many of you have heard about evidence that top Bush Administration officials participated in explicit conversations in the White House regarding torture techniques to be used on suspected terrorists. Vice President Dick Cheney, Attorney General John Ashcroft, Secretary of State Colin Powell, then-National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld sat around — in a series of meetings of potential war-crime defendants — discussing specific methods of harsh interrogation, and issuing their approval.
The Associate Press reports that CIA officials demonstrated tactics to "make sure the small group of 'principals' fully understood what the al-Qaeda detainees would undergo. The principals eventually authorized physical abuse such as slaps and pushes, sleep deprivation, or waterboarding."
What recourse is left for an average American who wants to see the US uphold international law? Are you outraged that top US officials discussed and approved techniques widely considered torture in the White House?
Oh, man this has to be the hottest ticket in town. The special dinner where the press gets to roast the president? Especially one whose approval rating hit 28 percent today and it's his last year in office!? I'm dying, dying to go.
The whole tradition of the dinner started in 1924, when Calvin Coolidge became the first of 14 presidents to attend. Up until World War II, the dinner was an entertainment spectacle with singing between courses, a homemade movie (aw! how cute is that?!), and an hour-long, post dinner show with big-name performers.
This year is no exception. I suppose? Though the list this year doesn't feature Sinatra, (or Paula Jones and Matt Drudge like in this pic from 1998). Ben Affleck, Pamela Anderson, Eric Dane, Tim Daly, Hayden Panettiere, and Marcia Cross will all be there — and kind of inexplicably — Lauren Conrad from The Hills. Maybe LC and GWB are BFFs? Could happen.
The host this year is Scottish-born, now US citizen Craig Ferguson, who said of receiving the honor,
But I thought as soon as I become an American you know what is going to happen, I am going to get jury duty or the CIA. will get in touch and have me assassinate a foreign head of state. Anyway my first job as an American citizen I can exclusively reveal tonight is performing at the White House Correspondents Dinner weekend. I am doing it. I am doing it. I know! Anyway, I am not hosting it. President Bush is . . . I am thinking does he know I can't be kicked out now? Like it would be the
big thing have the dinner and my last act at president, you go home Ferguson. I am like I am home.
The shindig happens April 26. Will this year top Stephen Colbert's turn in 2006? To take a quick peek at the host heard round the world, read more
Congress just denied President Bush by voting to delay consideration of the controversial trade agreement with Colombia until after the November election.
President Bush wanted Congress to approve a not-too-expansive trade pact with Colombia. But, this being an election year, a simple trade issue has become a vehicle for back and forth about jobs, the economy, and national security. The agreement was also problematic for the Democratic presidential candidates, who rely on the support of organized labor and large corporations.
OK here's how all the major players played it:
Pelosi: The Speaker of the House preempted Bush's plan to force a vote, by unilaterally (and legally) changing the rules of the House. The existing rules required the House to vote on a bill submitted by the president within 90 days. But, Pelosi played her cards, saying that she would not allow a vote until the president agreed to increased economic aide for Americans. So today, the House voted to delay.
Condi Rice: The secretary of state played the national security card on this one. She said that it is imperative to relations with US ally Colombia, and other US interests in South America, that the bill be approved immediately. Oh, well.
To find out where the presidential candidates, an ex prez, and other high-profile surrogates stood on the deal, read more
