New York Times: Laura Bush Defends Gala in Time of War and Disaster

[truthpusher]

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/15/politics/15laura.html?oref=login

Laura Bush Defends Gala in Time of War and Disaster

By ANNE E. KORNBLUT

Published: January 15, 2005

WASHINGTON, Jan. 14 - With less than a week to go until her husband's second inauguration, Laura Bush on Friday defended the decision to hold the $40 million celebration as planned despite a war abroad and the tsunami disaster in the Indian Ocean.

Inaugurations, Mrs. Bush said, are "an important part of our history."

"They're a ceremony of our history; they're a ritual of our government," she said in a round-table interview with reporters in the White House map room. "And I think it's really important to have the inauguration every time. I think it's also good for Washington's economy, for people to come in from around the country, for the hotels to be full, and the restaurants to be full, and the caterers to be busy. I think that's important."

She added: "I think there's a symbolic aspect of the inauguration that - and because of that, the symbol of the inauguration, you never want to - for any reason - cancel it or not have it."

more:

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/15/politics/15laura.html?oref=login

[WildClarySage]

1. "And that's why we're spending a buttload of money

to establish the legitimacy of my husband's presidency. Now, could you hand me that bottle there? Thanks."

[renaissanceguy]

57. Talk about "elitists."

Stepping on the many jobless and poorer Americans just so they can have some fun and pat themselves on the back.

http://www.cafepress.com/liberalissues.15032164

[saigon68]

82. They are Scum --- Murderers

Some day they will see what will happen.

[scarface2004]

158. not bad for a stupid bitch...

that ran a stop sign and smashed her fiance into the afterlife!!

[Julius Civitatus]

86. That's the same rationale to justify MONARCHY

For real. Read it carefully. That's the same rationale modern European constitutional monarchies use to justify their existence.

It's pathetic.

[leftofcool]

2. Oh Pu-fuckingleeze!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Couldn't this alcoholic bitch come up with something better than "its a symbol."

Left of Cool

[Celeborn Skywalker]

3. They don't even have to cancel

For Christ's sake, couldn't they get by on "only" a $20 million dollar inauguration?

[roguevalley]

5. someone ought to mail them a violin

[oldtime dfl_er]

47. except that nobody can afford things like that anymore

except "his base".


www.cafepress.com/showtheworld

[DBoon]

4. Yes this is an important "symbol" of our country

That we have become a country of self centered irresponsible greed.

Thank you Laura, for telling the world what America truly stands for.

[Supersedeas]

93. symbol of our two countries - one fighting war for oil profits/other party

with tuxedos and elegant gowns.

[SOS]

140. The Republicans today

are indistinguishable from their forebears a century ago -



The man guarding the door is Mark Hanna, strategist for the Republican President McKinley. Karl Rove is said to greatly admire Hanna.
The fat guys are the compassionate conservatives of 1896.

[Supersedeas]

176. solid solid connection...wonder how many MSM types are familiar with the

Hanna-Rove connection.

Classic post, SOS.

[PartyPooper]

6. "Let the rest of them eat cake...if they can afford it."

That's what she's really saying.

[alittlelark]

30. Oh yes, cake.... yummy yummy till

the executioner comes.

[genieroze]

45. Cake? Oh, I thought she was telling us to eat something else. n/t

[NurseLefty]

7. Gawd, why does this Stepford Wife get the double standard treatment?

When Hillary was First Lady, all she had to do was sneeze and there would be calls to burn her at the stake.
This Marie Antoinette-like quip from little Laura is just typical.
:puke: :mad: :grr:

[stepnw1f]

8. "Aan important part of our history."

Yeah... and on the People's Tab Once Again

[alcuno]

15. I've always hated the way she says "important."

Like nails on a chalkboard.

[Skittles]

122. is it "im-PORDANT"

gawd, I hate the way a lot of Texans say it

[alcuno]

159. That's it! Truly horrible.

How does a "T" get pronounced as a "D?"

[BigMindTinyHead]

166. Not nearly as bas as some NE nonsense speak

How exactly does one "pak the cah" when parking the car or put on a "parker" when donning a parka? There are too many nimwitspeaks to even begin picking on only one.

[umtalal]

53. "..it's really important .." to read to your kids after 9/11. I hate this

important part just like you do. I am so glad I am not the only one. URGH!!!!!!!!!!

[KittyWampus]

9. Now Explain The Crowns You Used To Decorate The Lincoln Bedroom

[Sydnie]

10. For a former "teacher" she doesn't know her history very well.

It is also been part of our historic democracy that several DID cancel the big parties when they were faced with the same situation.

[Milspec]

124. that several DID cancel the big parties when they were faced with the same

Very interesting, which ones ?

[Sydnie]

126. It is interesting

http://inaugural.senate.gov/history/daysevents/inauguralball.htm

In 1913, the city's Inaugural organizers began planning the ball to celebrate Woodrow Wilson's Inauguration, again to be held at the Pension Building, but President-elect Wilson thought otherwise. He felt the ball was too expensive and unnecessary for the solemn occasion of the Inaugural, and asked the Inaugural committee to cancel it. The city of Washington had not missed an Inaugural ball since 1853, when a grieving President Franklin Pierce—mourning the recent loss of his son—asked that the ball be cancelled. Although some D.C. residents felt very disappointed by Wilson's request, others felt relieved. The Pension Building was often closed for over a week in preparation for the ball, causing the government's business there to shut down.

President-elect Warren G. Harding also requested that the Inaugural committee do away with the elaborate ball (and the parade as well) in 1921, hoping to set an example of thrift and simplicity. The committee complied, and instead, the chairman of the Inaugural ball committee hosted a huge private party at his home. Subsequent Inaugurations followed this trend, with charity balls becoming the fashion for the Inaugurations of Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

President Harry Truman revived the official ball in 1949. Organizers for Dwight D. Eisenhower's 1953 Inaugural ball added a second event due to the great demand for tickets. Four years later, Eisenhower's second Inauguration featured four balls. Kennedy attended five in 1961. President Carter attempted to strip the balls of their glitz and glamour in 1977, calling them parties and charging no more than $25 each, but by 1989, when George H. Bush became President, the number of balls reached an all-time high of eleven. Fourteen balls capped the day's activities for the Clinton's in 1997.

More at the link above --

[kitty1]

135. Roosevelt scaled back

big time at his inauguaration in 1945 when the war was still on. When asked about the parade, he stated in return, something like "a Parade for what?" There were no balls, ( I'm referring to the only kind Bush is familiar with.) It would have been unthinkable to display open celebration in the midst of carnage and suffering. How things have changed. Roosevelt would be nauseaus at all of this display.

[NYC]

11. How about scaling it down a bit?

Need it be so extravagant? The obvious answer is NO.

Self indulgent. They want a grandiose party, and they're having one.

[grasswire]

12. the next two sentences are telling

As for the parties themselves, Mrs. Bush said she was "all ready."

"Not all the new clothes are in the house," she said, "but they've all had their last fitting."

[SammyWinstonJack]

64. Ya know, she sounds just as stupid/ shallow as her chimp hubby.

Two peas in a pod.

[MadisonProgressive]

128. Dumb as a stump.

[Maddy McCall]

13. What's great about this is that the WhoreHouse is on the defensive.

That's significant. How good of a time can you have when you are being made to feel guilty about your extravagance?

[susanna]

20. That is a GREAT point. Thanks! n/t

[Nothing Without Hope]

42. Feel GUILTY?!!! THAT bunch?! n/t

[Johnny Noshoes]

108. Look

if they were normal people they'd feel guilty. They aren't so they don't feel gulity at all - about ANYTHING they do.

[WhiteTara]

113. Please call the comment line

let them know that you think they are scum. THe number is:
202 456 1111.  Jam the lines!

[JerseygirlCT]

121. Good point - they only pull Laura out when they're in deep yogurt. nt

[MadisonProgressive]

129. Easy when you have no conscience.

If sending young (and old) men and women to die for nothing doesn't bother her, why would you expect this to?

[no_to_war_economy]

14. everything is beautiful to her

nothing her murdering hubby does will ever effect her - lake of fire awaits her

}(

[Rose Siding]

16. In a related story, Laura's likeness was unveiled at the Wax Museum

[Benhurst]

24. Dear God -- That thing is hideous. They should put a hood over

it if they don't want to scare away all the children.

[EFerrari]

58. She has always reminded me of Laughing Sal, a mechanized

figure that used to scare children daily at San Fran's Playland at the Beach. Horrible smile. (I've never seen them appear together . . .)

[oioioi]

97. video here - a striking resemblance...

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2004/05/01/SAL.TMP&o=0&type=news

could they perhaps be related?

I think we should be told

[EFerrari]

99. I knew it wasn't just me!

[FizzFuzz]

141. here ya go--take it away laughing sal:

[louis-t]

180. she's got condi's smile

[FizzFuzz]

183. with a window open--LOL

laughing at my own hilarity! Heeeeee hee :hi:

[burrowowl]

31. Looks better than

the real thing, although it is hard to tell the difference.

[grasswire]

44. is that hair on her chest?

it is, isn't it?

[montana_hazeleyes]

52. I think they're freckles,

but at first it looked like hair to me.lol

[alexisfree]

51. wtf !!! what is wrong with the her chest????

cancerous ass bitch!!

[snippy]

68. I thought this was it.

It is a pretty good likeness.

[justiceischeap]

71. I don't see a difference between the wax Laura and the real one n/t

[blindpig]

87. a damn fine likeness

life imitating art and all of that.............

[Johnny Noshoes]

109. My god

my eyes my eyes ---aaaahhhgg!!! :scared:

[MadisonProgressive]

130. Nice - right down to the liver spots on her neck!

[FizzFuzz]

142. separated at birth?

Geez, she's like a train wreck--repulsive but you can't look away

[diamond14]

153. NYT photo: it shows her BOTCHED eye lift, done in Midland....

LOTS of quality plastic surgeons in DC area have OFFERED for FREE to fix that mess for her....but you can't talk to these bushites, they think THEY ARE PERFECT....and all their children are PERFECT and that the WARS and DESTRUCTION are PERFECT....


gawwwwddddd.....







and she truly feels that the JOKE is on us, the American Taxpayer....
laura even looks like the evil JOKER, from the Batman/Robin movies...

[Canuckistanian]

157. My god, that's ugly

They should try and make it look more.... human.

[proud2BlibKansan]

17. Yes it is becoming a tradition

to protest at shrub's inaugurations.

And it helps the economy when all those extra eggs are sold at the local grocery stores :)

[HeeBGBz]

18. Aw, Pickles wants to party

[susanna]

19. Yeah,

'cause those founders thought pretensions to superiority were so cool. The original anti-monarchs wanted latter-day U.S. leaders to reach as if they're royalty? WTF has happened?

Nevermind.

edited for clarity

[Gman]

21. Translation: This will be good for the Negroes in D.C.

that will serve us, the elite.

[thedailyshow]

22. FDR didn't even have an inauguration gala during WARTIME

and hell, this is "wartime" according to the Bushbots, so to hell with the corporate gala!

[BrotherBuzz]

34. Oh, but they can't honor that tradition....

not when they are trying to systematically dismantle everything FDR stood for. That just won't do.


"Oh, I mean, it's not relevant. So why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that?" - Barbara Bush, March 18, 2003.

[oldtime dfl_er]

46. That's right

and it is actually complete BS that this is some kind of historical tradition that has to be carried on. The stupid woman should read her history books before she opens that Joker mouth of hers. Maybe start with Zachary Taylor who didn't even know he'd been elected until months afterwards. Or Andrew Jackson who threw the doors of the white house open for the public to come tramping in because back then it was THE PEOPLES' HOUSE. I get really sick of people who LIE about historical fact to justify their personal extravagances. SICK of it.

www.cafepress.com/showtheworld

[Mugsy]

81. You beat me to it. FDR worked that same night.

I was going to mention the same thing but you beat me to it.

The day FDR was inaugurated, while they did have a modest inauration party, FDR did not attend, stating instead that the country was so bad off due to the Depression his predecessor caused, it demanded his immediate attention. He instead skipped his own party to work in the Oval Office. He was later quoted as suggesting that the appearance of him "celebrating" at a time of such crisis would have been unseemly.

If you look back on history, you will notice some other interesting parallels from this time...

The "Roaring 20's" was a result of the stock market boom in the early 1920's. The market went bust under Republican President Herbert Hoover, resulting in The Great Depression. This motivated the country to "throw the bum out" and elect a New England Democrat from NY, who gave us The New Deal, the "Rural Electrification Project" and Social Security.

Only difference back then... Hoover didn't have Black Boxes for everyone to vote into.

[BigMindTinyHead]

165. AsI recall from history class FDR was quite ill at the time

A quick google should confirm this fact.

[Bouncy Ball]

167. Good, then why don't you google it

and produce the facts here?

[BigMindTinyHead]

168. Here you go...right from USA Today

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-12-16-bush-inauguration_x.htm

"Somber in tone, Roosevelt delivered his speech, just 559 words, at the White House rather than the Capitol because of the war and his poor health."

[Bouncy Ball]

169. The war being the primary reason, I am sure.

How disappointed were you with the election of this past November?

Do you just think that we should unite all of humanity, forget any color divisions of red and blue, be happy we are alive and breathing, hold hands with all the repukes and sing Kumbayah?

[BigMindTinyHead]

170. I am sure of one thing

It's time to stop the hate before another civil war comes looking for a blue vs red shooting war. Those too busy hating have no mind to make peace and logical decision to better our country.

[Bouncy Ball]

171. Yeah you say that a lot.

Why don't you tell that to rightwingers who started all this crap in the first place?

Why are you only telling it to liberals?

[Cobalt Violet]

23. Just don't drive home Laura!

:evilgrin:

[IowaGuy]

25. So is democracy....

but they were willing to use almost any excuse to call off our elections. I swear, the hypocrisy and sense of self entitlement this group has is beyond comprehension. I hope they don't break their arms patting themselves on their own back.

[Erika]

26. Who cares about this Stepford wife?

She admitted it was her fault in the death of a 17 year old boy friend. We're a little tired of her being paraded.

[autorank]

27. "Oh, the people have no bread. Let them eat cake." Marie Antoinette

[NurseLefty]

28. Is that Laura's inaugural gown? Nice circus tent made from drapes! n/t

[autorank]

72. The secret is out! That is going to be her dress. Shhh...don't tell.

[cornfedyank]

29. "Why should we hear about body bags and death?..It's not relevant."

" So why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that?"--the mother in law on G.M.A. 3/18/2003.

[dxdem]

32. Hm...

Very...British, isn't it? And I don't mean that in a bad way towards the British, i just mean, our royalty and upper-classes need to be entertained. We, the mere subjects, love to live through the antics of our rulers.

[Erika]

33. Yes and their daughters naughty deeds

equates with British royalty kids misdeeds. Children of privilege, all acting without any knowledge or sensitivity of the working class.

[sleepyhead]

62. Bread and circuses

Without the bread.

[American Tragedy]

76. That reminds me of a paragraph from the Federalist Papers

that I read last fall, taken out of context but still applicable here. It demonstrates a very different attitude toward royal decadence.

"He has been shown to us with the diadem sparkling on his brow and the imperial purple flowing in his train. He has been seated on a throne surrounded with minions and mistresses, giving audience to the envoys of foreign potentates, in all the supercilious pomp of majesty. The images of Asiatic despotism and voluptuousness have scarcely been wanting to crown the exaggerated scene. We have been taught to tremble at the terrific visages of murdering janizaries, and to blush at the unveiled mysteries of a future seraglio."
- Alexander Hamilton

[grasswire]

101. wow....

...and I thought I had a pretty good command of the English language. I wonder what a janizary is.

[Orrin_73]

119. Janissary

Turkis/Ottoman soldiers.
Janissary

[saskatoon]

110. Mentioning "British" and "Royalty" in the same sentence---

I'm reading "The Royals" and they are a bunch of white trash just like the Bushes.

[marew]

35. There is no limit to this family's lack of compassion and arrogance. n/t

[DemBones DemBones]

36. Hmm, I read yesterday that FDR had a small ceremony in the WH

and served chicken salad and "plain pound cake" at his last inauguration, during WW II.

They just want to show off for the neighbors from Texas. As a friend of mine said in regards to the 2000 inaugural galas, "Bet there's not a sequin left in Texas."

:evilgrin:

[SoCalDem]

37. "Tamarrrahhh's anothuh, dayh".. or "Let them eat cake"

:)

[ailsagirl]

38. She's a space cadet, an automaton... and stupid as hell

Perfect match for Chimp.

I say this in all sincerity: I hope Chimp and all his goons get exactly what they deserve in Life.

[98geoduck]

50. Laura Bush's driving academy...

http://www.cafepress.com/bettybowers/286112

[Lorien]

39. How about having a REGULAR inauguration

instead of a f*cking diamond studded coronation!


These people are such bloody evil buffoons. :grr:

[dqueue]

40. She added, "It's HARD bein' first lady..." -NT-

[Erika]

41. Yeah,

It's really hard work.

[FizzFuzz]

143. I expect to see in-depth news briefs shortly,

with tear-jerking interviews where Laura shares what a struggle it is to keep her weight down, after all these paaaaahhrties she must attend.

:vomitingmyfuckingbrainsout:

[pinniped]

43. Death and destruction all around these assholes.

The majority of it was caused by these criminals. And I think that's just the way they want it.

Disgusting pukes.

Laura* should shut her piehole.

[Cookie wookie]

48. On NPR this a.m. programming about this little affair

"Inaugural Protesters Say They're Being Shut Out"
"Demonstrators are worried they may not get close enough to even see the limo go by..." National Coordinator Brian Becker
"But the Park Service says this time ANSWER has nothing to complain about. 'Permits come in and are acted on in the order in which they are received.' Bill Lyon a Park Service spokesman says the Presidential Inaugural Committee simply got its request in first. He admits, however, that the Park Service makes sure that the choicest real estate goes to the supporters of the president regardless of who wins the election. 'They are ultimately the sponsor, they are paying for the parade and the other organizations who have filed permits are not sponsoring the event, there's a difference there.' "

Kristen Taylor of the Free Republic "said protesters should know that this is the president's day, and that protesters are more or less uninvited guests. 'ANSWER and some of the other groups like Code Pink have allied themselves with the terrorists and with Saddam Hussein, so for them to get permitted demonstration spots along the parade ground is akin to giving Saddam Hussein and the terrorists a cheer leading section.' " End of program quote.

Now NPR is quoting freepers who say that protesters of the president are terrorist supporters! First of all, this is the America people's day, not the president's day. We don't live in a dictatorship, we don't live in a monarchy, not YET, even though they have stolen our votes and have overwhelmed the rule of law like a hoard of pirates and encamped in DC. There are at least half the American people who still believe in our Constitution as the framers intended it to be, still believe in the rule of law, and believe that the office of the presidency is one of a servant of the people not the other way around.

The program also included a description ("Inaugural Attendees Put on the Ritz") of the proud excesses of * supporters heading to DC. There was the woman from Texas who didn't want to the hassle of dealing with the airport with her fur coat, so the Ritz Carlton was renting her one (for a $15,000 deposit plus rental), etc etc.

"Nothing succeeds like excess. . . . We don't have the Olympics, we don't have the Superbowl, we don't have the Emmys, we don't have the Oscars, but every four years we do have an over-the-top celebration of democracy. It's a tradition ..... This is a see and be seen, who's the new players in town, if I'm a mover and shaker I need to meet the other movers and shakers, it's American as apple pie, so I don't see that we're going to cancel it nor do I think it's inappropriate," said Vivian Deuschl, vice pres of public relations of the Ritz Carlton Hotel.

Let them eat cake indeed.

Note: I transcribed snipped quotes. The full audio programs are at:
http://www.npr.org/rundowns/rundown.php?prgDate=13-Jan-2005&prgId=3

[Supersedeas]

155. moving and shaking while blood is spilled around the world--party up Laura

[arikara]

49. What a stupid article.

n/t

[Cookie wookie]

84. More than stupid. It is the new NPR

who quotes a freeper saying those who oppose * support terrorists. Unbelievable but true. That used to be thought of as garbage that no one but trash would use.

[NVMojo]

54. the wind-up Bushford wife speaks!!!

[daleo]

55. That $40 million would be enough to run the Iraq war for about 4 hours

$100 Billion per year works out to about $11 million per hour.

[muse]

56. Ahhh. Laura uses her favorite word - "really."

I remember her first print interview when she became our First Lady and there were multiple times in the interview where she said something was "really great" or "really important". I was horrified. We went from Hillary Clinton to someone who had the descriptive linguistic skills of a middle schooler???

[XemaSab]

106. Like,

it's going to be, like, really great? And like, I got the coolest dress! Yeah! And like, all those people can, like, eat cake and get all fat! 'Cause like, cake is full of carbs, and carbs, like, make you fat! And like, I went to the tanning booth too much? And now I have, like, precancerous lesions on my chest where other girls have, like, boobs.

[JawJaw]

59. Eva Bush speaks

"They're a ceremony of our history; they're a ritual of our government, and I think it's really important to have the inauguration every time. I think it's also good for Berlin's economy, for people to come in from around the country, for the hotels to be full, and the restaurants to be full, and the caterers to be busy. I think that's important. I think there's a symbolic aspect of the inauguration that - and because of that, the symbol of the inauguration, you never want to - for any reason - cancel it or not have it."

[cornermouse]

60. "Let them eat cake".

Laura thinks????? And even if she does think, who cares?

[grace0418]

79. And we all know what happened to Marie Antoinette

although Laura apparently doesn't.

[Vidar]

100. That was the problem with the first American revolution--no guillotine.

As soon as it was one, Hamilton let the rat ass bastard aristocrats in the back door. Maybe we'll do better this time.

[MaineDem]

61. There's Inauguration and then there's Gala

Of course there has to be an Inauguration but it doesn't have to be a big event. And certainly there's no reason to spend almost $50M on it!

"Let them eat cake", said the Queen.

[The Zanti Regent]

63. Where's Kid Rock when you need him?

Killer Laura fits right in with that Pimp of the Nation song!

[lanlady]

65. shallow is as shallow does

Put the entire Bush family in a room together and they wouldn't be able to come up with a single original thought.

[llmart]

66. "And all you little peons.......

can sit in front of your TV's in your living rooms and watch us as we spend your taxpayer money so we can have a ball."

She's a friggen' idiot just like her husband. May they all rot in hell (I'm sure they will.)

[rodeodance]

67. "stand by your man"...............

[susu369]

69. Forty gazillion dollars could not buy her a brain or soul

I'm sure they didn't realize all those bloody hands are going to spoil the extravaganza.

Slather that lipstick on the pigs - or, you can't make a silk purse from a sow's ear.

No class.

[spanone]

70. Who cares what the twit thinks? NOt me

[Neecy]

73. dupe

[Neecy]

74. jeebus

Has this old drunk done ANYthing as first lady other than be shuttled out to defend the indefensible for the crime family? She doesn't even pretend to do anything - too busy drinking and popping scrips, no doubt.

I'm so sick of the self-righteousness of this woman while her husband is an agent of death and destruction and his friends are busy looting our treasury. Who in the hell is she to lecture us about what's 'appropriate'? Talk about the world being fucking upside down!

[FizzFuzz]

145. How can you SAY that?? Of COURSE she does something--

she squires the darling children around to pricey designer couture fittings. She's a mother and that's what a mother's supposed to do!!!!

Isn't that enough for you? What are you, some kind of unsubservient woman? You elitist demon librul!!! You social service peddling bleeding heart!! You just want to raise the people's taxes!!!

[Catchawave]

75. My concern about the coronation.....

...how is this going to be played in the foreign press? You remember the headlines from the election results "How can be 59 million Americans be so dumb" ?

January 20 will prove they were right.

[yorkiemommie1]

77. and the custodians and parking valets

and restroom attendants and busboys and doormen....

it's so important to keep them working!

this woman is an abomination.

[grace0418]

78. Laura Bush is "symbolic" of the typical

stepford wife. FUCK YOU, LAURA, YOU'RE A DISGRACE TO WOMEN.

[area51]

80. "It's also good for Washington's economy...."

Pickles said:

"It's also good for Washington's economy...."

Why Pickles, you fscking liar. You & your chimp hubby have been lying that our economy is going just great right now, so why the need to pump up the economy w/your B.S. coronation?


"Prosperity is just around the corner." -- Herbert Hoover
"The economy has turned a corner." -- GW Bush

Herbert Hoover = GW Bush

Neither man cared about the Depression their economic policies created.

[livinginphotographs]

91. It's not very good for Washington DC

when they're forcing the city to divert homeland security funds to protecting King George's coronation.

[benny05]

150. To the Tune of 17Million n/t

[theHandpuppet]

83. Hey Laura!

So are you and hubby going to pick up the 17-20 million it's going to cost the city (read: citizens) of DC to provide the security for your little hoedown? What about all of the businesses that will be shut down within miles of the WH (for security reasons, of course) and their lost revenues? Or the 25-mile no-fly zone that will restrict any business/tourist traffic other than that of your filthy rich Repuke financers?

[AuntiBush]

116. Exactly!

I live less than an hour from D.C. When I picked-up my local paper this morning and read about the "outrage" DC folks are feeling right now it made me double sad. Don't know if most know this, but the outer edge of the White House is strewned with some of the poorest neighborhoods in America. It's a disgrace and yes, BUSHIE & CO. are handing the bill over to these poor folks whom apparently have no say in the matter... but they're mad bigtime.

Really, nervy! But, hey... what's new!

[Stephanie]

85. The DC hotel workers are planning to go on strike

Oh god I hope they do it. All those fat cats with no place to stay. Hah ha ha ha ha.

[DrZeeLit]

88. And she has a degree in US History? Blech!

Not only is she a vapid bore, but I shudder to think of any young women considering her a role model. Obviously her own daughters do not.

This inauguration is obscene.
Period.

[texpatriot2004]

89. It's bad to cancel it but having the most costly CORONATION

EVER! That's the issue. Not having the "ritual" is not the issue Laura. It's having the most expensive one in our history during a time of "WAR", a horrid economy and with the recent disaster, it's in very poor taste dear.

"President" Chicken Little and Laura said, "Let them eat cake..."

Egomaniac that he is, he has to pat himself on the back and inflate himself...he is so pathetic!

Quick, someone give Laura her tranquilizers.

[FlyByNight]

90. Essentially, let them eat cake

She's even more ignorant than her husband.

[WhiteTara]

114. the last woman who said that

got her head chopped off!  Viva the Revolution!

[Ilsa]

92. Bushes feel the need to impress their new neighbor in Crawford,

Ted Nugent. Asshole.

These people wouldn't be moved if all of Iraq was nuked and all 150,000 soldiers and 25 million civilians were killed. It would still be "Party On George" "Party On Laura" for the whole family.

These are tacky people. Rich white trash. Very tacky, holding a celebration of that magnitude during a time of war. And sticking the citizens of DC with part of the bill.

[LiberalCompassionate]

94. They're a ceremony of our

history. they're a ritual of our government"...

She added: "I think there's a symbolic aspect of the inauguration that - and because of that, the symbol of the inauguration, you never want to - for any reason - cancel it or not have it."

LIKE symbolic ceremonies of the +1400 dead american soldiers coming home in "transfer tubes" (rummy's definition)!!! :grr:

fuckin hypocritical, self-centered, narcisstic, dangerous, me only, rotten to the core, malicious, sociopathic, racist, sexist, I am the center of the universe cabal of nincompoops ever to soil this earth!

and the same for those morans who allegedly voted for him.
:spank:

Oh...I forgot....STUPID too.

[FizzFuzz]

146. Hi LiberalCompassionate--Welcome!

I think you're in the right place.

:hi:

[Missy Vixen]

95. They know that they're in trouble

so they're sending the little hausfrau out to pacify the peasants.

You know they've hit the panic button when the elder Barbara Bush makes an appearance to say roughly the same thing; I'm predicting that it will happen within the next 72 hours.

Evidently, Mr. Rove has miscalculated. This will stick in the minds of those who actually have a conscience. How low can the polls go?

Julie

[Skittles]

123. yup, this is good

they're having to justify their unseemly little party.

[leftchick]

96. Laura honey, don't tell us this horseshit! Tell it to these guys......

.. whata dumbass...

[shayes51]

102. Exactly!

[MrBenchley]

98. Watching rich people mince around a dance floor, laughing

is sure to cheer up people who have lost their job or a loved one....

[grasswire]

103. Mrs. Nixon had a good cloth coat -- Laura's is cashmere

This time, Mrs. Bush will be wearing winter white, a color that suggests a certain chic understanding that restraint can be the most powerful form of expression. The suit is a customized version of a blue-trimmed beige tweed style that originally appeared in de la Renta's fall collection.
http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/images/I548-2005Jan11


In winter white, there is also an unabashed proclamation of wealth. Clearly, one is not concerned with such banal issues as bad weather or the cost of dry cleaning. Winter white is crisp, pristine, a little aloof. It is not a warm and fuzzy color. Winter white -- a slightly more antique shade than the searing white one might wear in July -- is elegant. It will have the effect of a dazzling crystal on a sunny January day. And if fate should bring gray skies, the white will help to create a moody, nearly monochromatic image. Either way, Mrs. Bush is sure to stand out in the sea of men dressed in dark overcoats.

Mrs. Bush's inaugural gown, which was created especially for her, also shows fashion panache. In choosing a pale blue with hints of gray and silver, Mrs. Bush again distances herself from the Washington cliche that one's patriotism is in direct proportion to the amount of red, white and blue draped over one's body.

http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/images/I528-2005Jan11


In making her choices, de la Renta says, Mrs. Bush focused on her own sense of style and not on how a particular color or silhouette might look on television, from a distance or in the pages of history.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A64249-2005Jan10.html

Lots more crap at the link.

[Ilsa]

117. I think her inaugural gown, with the tiny belted waist

might not be flattering for her waistline. The other gowns might be okay, but I don't think she is thin enough for that one.

[fooj]

104. Sure...DC should be thrilled...they have to use Homeland Security $

to fund this garish inauguration-and the pack of thieves are letting them foot the bill! And they are "BLUE", right? Oh yes, I think they are quite pleased. God help me- I HATE ALL OF THIS HYPOCRISY! Where's the outrage? Am I the only one who needs Anger Management Training over this BS?

[timtom]

105. I couldn't agree more!

Now...if we can just hold on to some of those other pesky traditions like...oh...THE RIGHT TO VOTE...WITHOUT ANY BULLSHIT? See? There's a nice tradition. Let's hold on to that one.

Then there's the one about...CONGRESS HAVING THE RIGHT TO DECLARE WAR!

and, CONGRESS GETS TO MINT OUR MONEY (as opposed to some vague, banking consortium).

[Ziggy_0253]

107. Let's hope the Twins...

....don't get arrested for being drunk and disorderly.

Meanwhile, Jebbo visited South Asia with Colin Powell to pick up some boffo China White for "Just say NOelle."

[teakee]

125. yeah and realize that it is a ball room floor not a bar room floor

Since there are pics on the net of them both sprawled out drunk on the floor of a bar :beer:, let's hope they act 'lady like' for Mommy and Grandma Babs. Have you seen the sketches of their dresses, very pretty ---but daring. Cut very low in the front and back, two-sided tape would be a good idea, Daddy doesn't need a 'wardrobe malfunction' mucking up his big day. :wow:

[Solly Mack]

111. I suddenly feel like Madame DeFarge hearing Marie Antoinette

speak.

[hyphenate]

112. Gee

I honestly don't know what to say. But I think that in 4 years the idiotic 49% of the population of this country better take a hard look at themselves, see the excess of this fucking administration, and wonder how the hell they got the misnomer of "compassionate conservatives" when all around the world people are starving, dying and in desperate straits and they're celebrating with lobster dinners, hilarity and hedonism.

When that day happens, perhaps our country will go from what it is today to being a worthy contender as the top nation in the world. It's going to be a tough climb, but I think it's a solid goal. Unfortunately, if some of these assholes who are currently in power continue to influence the vast majority of stupid ignorant bastards in the U.S., it will definitely be a far more worthy endeavor to get the fuck out of the sinking ship as soon as possible.

[Lorien]

115. A challenge; instead of kvetching on this board to each other

let's each send a letter to a local paper about this disgusting display. It's the kind of thing that Joe Sixpack can grasp; Rome and the rest of the planet is burning while Nero and his medicated wife fiddle, dance, sip champaign and piss our tax dollars away while asking for massive corporate donations FOR EVEN MORE!

Shame them publicly, not just on DU.

[fortyfeetunder]

118. "If they [DC] aren't in lockdown, they'll wish they had"

I am talking with my dad who lives in the city. He says already the Rock Creek Parkway (a convenient shortcut from NW DC to the south end) is already shut down.

Not only that, METRO service is being cut back and he said it's starting to look like a war zone, with armed guards on rooftops and manhole covers being guarded near the downtown area. And this is only Saturday....

:wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf:

[Domitan]

120. I want the Bushes disgraced

I want the BIG FALL to come!

[MadisonProgressive]

127. All I can say is:

:puke:

[MadisonProgressive]

131. She looks good in this picture...

[Malva Zebrina]

138. She looks even better in this one--will the real Laura Bush please stand

This is a bitter face, trying to look twenty, that has had a bad eye job, and whose grotesque lipstick color is bleeding into the wrinkles around her mouth, not to mention the eyelash mascara that is all clumped up.

[diamond14]

154. WOW !...hard core, long-time alcoholic and drug popper....

that PHOTO says it all....


BTW....soooo oooo MANY professional make-up artists have offered to help her FOR FREE....her make-up is so pathetically alcoholic mess...

finer lipsticks that don't bleed....proper mascara....DESIGN...colors that match and complement....

but...will she LISTEN TO THE EXPERTS....NOoooooo....bushites BELIEVE that they are PERFECT, and all their decisions can never be improved or questioned.....

so they all walk around looking like trailer tramps.....and block out any constructive suggestions with alcohol/drugs....

[truthpusher]

174. Weird...

...I found the same photo and posted , before I saw yours? Is it true, could it be? naw...

[calimary]

132. Thank you, Marie Antoinette.

Laura: "but we're ENTITLED to fiddle while Rome burns!"

Believe me, lady, there are at least 56 million of us who DO INDEED want to "cancel it or not have it." Especially if it involves YOU.

The republi-CONS are always complaining about entitlements - mainly from the poor and other unlevel-playing-field groups. But I have NEVER seen greater assumption of entitlement than I see among republi-CONS themselves - their divine entitlements to such things as privilege, corner-cutting, the White House, all the power, influence and say-so, all the money, all the connections, all the blue-blood... No wonder they hate Clinton. His success flew in the face of all that.

[GetTheRightVote]

133. It is truly sad that these kind of people run our country, right into

the ground, how moral are they ?? These people are truly just sick, belong in a happy hospital with the other nut cases, called a prison.

:kick:

[truthpusher]

134. After a while people's outside start to reflect their inside...

...is it just me, or is Laura starting to resemble:

[mountainvue]

136. So is she alluding to a poor economy? n/t

[truthpusher]

137. Even so they always blame that on Clinton and 911 n/t

[tinfoilinfor2005]

139. Busy, Busy, Busy...

Busy hotels, busy restaurants, busy caterers...those Bushes love keeping the people busy. Busy funeral homes, busy undertakers, busy prosthesis makers...Busy, Busy, Busy...

[progressivebydesign]

144. She's right INAGURATING IS party of history! BUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It can be done QUIETLY in the Oval Office, with a nice luncheon following. We're at war, you stupid cow.

[Grace]

147. I know it is private money and all,

but I would like the President to put the money toward giving our war dead headstones. Presently the families of slain troops cover that. Families should not have to be burdened with the expense. I think $40 million would easily cover those expenses for the familes of those who fought bravely and died for our country. It's the least Bush could do, to cover what the Department of Defense left out.

[NYC Liberal]

148. Shut the fuck up, Pickles!

Who said we weren't having an inauguration? (Actually, we're not - it's more of a coronation - but that's beside the point.)

[Dulcinea]

149. Money can't buy class.

The Bush family demonstrates this once again, in spades.

[ClayZ]

151. Let the world see the PROTESTS

I just hope the world gets to see the mass PROTESTS that are happening all over this country Jan 20.

"Free Speech is the right to yell 'Theater!' in a crowded fire." -Abbie
Hoffman


Let's all yell "GEORGE BUSH....FUCK YOU... AND YOUR WHOLE AGENDA TOO!

[SunDrop23]

152. Inaugurations, Mrs. Bush said, are "an important part of our history."

Get the fuck out of here.

If you asked her in private she'd probably say "They're Muslims honey, they are all going to hell anyway."

[shantipriya]

156. Laura Bush defends Inauguration Gala

What the hell does Laura, a two bit librarian, know about
history?Why do reporters give her any importance?

[alcuno]

160. Welcome to DU, shantipriya.

Since no one at the WH will talk to them, our crack US media turns to "puff."

[Arkana]

161. Oh, please, Pickles...

why didn't you just say "We're spending an assload of cash on this coronation, er...inauguration even though there's a war going on because we're Bushes and we don't have to sacrifice."

Would have been at least honest.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

162. im happy they are so brazen now

it used to be they spoke in code. now they are comfortable and sloppy.

once we get pictures of this gala we will be able to drive the point home.

[bunny planet]

163. Why doesn't she just get it over with and say 'Let them eat cake'

Getting His and Her Fraudulency OUT of the WH will be a much more important part of our history

[Deja Q]

164. She's a nut. I've been convinced of that the day she was on Oprah, making

a big fool out of herself... And that was something like 3 or 4 years ago. Something about not being afraid after 9/11... not to mention 12/2001 wheree Laura said it was a great year. :eyes: She is simply stupid, 'nuff said.

[98geoduck]

173. I think she should be the Designated Driver...

[Ilsa]

172. I hope

they all get sick on their indulgences, trip on their gowns, and catch pneumonia like Pres. Harrison.

[truthpusher]

178. It will be like the scene in Monty Python's Meaning of Life...

[suegeo]

175. We need a big party for George. September the 11th changed everything

We need to have a big celebration, because September the 11th happened and it was a tragedy. And George was very brave on September the 11th and keeping the Amerian people safe is George's number 1 job. So you see, stop complaining about George, because of September the 11th.

[Bluebear]

177. It changed everything, you know.

And he has kept us safe since then, and September the eleventh, too.

[malaise]

179. Typical Southern belle thinking

This kind of thinking is the 2005 update of Gone with the Wind 2005. Which character is Laura Bush?
Hopefully they'll soon be 'gone with the wind'.

[demgrrrll]

181. Yes Party on Laura you and ole Prince Prospero... dance the night away

I posted this thought previously but I do feel like this soiree is in some ways like Poe's Masque of the Red Death. The rich party inside the castle locked away from the Red Death outside. They do not escape and neither will Bush in the long run.

[Theres-a]

182. What about FDR?!

[truthpusher]

185. what about FDR?

[dave123williams]

184. Right; if we don't spend 40 million on self-aggrandizement, they win.

[primavera]

186. And if Kerry had won?

Would she still think it was appropriate to blow tens of millions on an inauguration for him? Or would she then think that catering by MacDonalds would just as readilty serve the dignity of the occasion?

[Strawman]

187. "My mother-in-law says not to worry my beautiful mind about that stuff"