Bush planning "emotionally delicate" photo ops at Katrina and 9/11 sites

[Human Torch]

Family Time at Kennebunkport

By Peter Baker
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 25, 2006; A03

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/24/AR2006082401462_pf.html



As on any presidential vacation, Bush could not entirely free himself from the job as he engaged in a little telephone diplomacy to help assemble a U.N. stabilization force for Lebanon and rally international pressure against Iran's nuclear program. He telephoned Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the morning, then issued a statement in the afternoon thanking French President Jacques Chirac for agreeing to send more troops to Lebanon. The president will also find the volatile domestic debate over the war in Iraq following him here as protesters aligned with peace activist Cindy Sheehan plan to picket a Bush family wedding Saturday. Sheehan and her supporters have made it their mission to follow the president on his vacations to confront him about the war.

In a preemptive move of sorts, Bush met on his arrival here at an elementary school with families of five slain service members -- three who died in Iraq, one killed in Afghanistan and another killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the Pentagon. The president often meets with relatives of the fallen, and, as usual, Thursday's hour-long session was behind closed doors with no public comments or photographs.

Still, the visit to the rocky Maine coast was meant to be a last chance for Bush to relax before embarking on a pair of emotionally and politically delicate trips and then heading into a high-stakes campaign season. The day after returning from Kennebunkport on Sunday, Bush plans to head to the Gulf Coast to mark the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and soon after will travel to the sites of terrorist attacks to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Much as his parents love it, the family compound at Walker's Point is not the president's favorite getaway, but he limited his stay at his cherished ranch outside Crawford, Tex., to nine days this summer. Last year's month-long sojourn in Texas stirred anger among critics who complained that he was slow to cut short his vacation when Katrina was bearing down on New Orleans.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/24/AR2006082401462_pf.html

[tridim]

1. Make us proud NOLA Dems

You know what to do.

[iconoclastic cat]

2. Okay, whose bright idea is this? The Chimp is supposed to be delicate?

Yeah, that'll happen. This will blow up in his face.

[zbdent]

3. Meaning that no Dem will be visible within miles of the photo-ops

(yet another "free speech zone" quarantine ...)

[grytpype]

4. What's with this 9/11 visitation?

Has he visited 9/11 spots on previous anniverseries? I don't think he's been back to the WTC.

[DoYouEverWonder]

19. I think he showed up for the 1st & 2nd Anniversaries of 9-11

and of course he was in NYC for the Repug luv fest, but other then that he rarely goes near the place.

[paparush]

5. That Photo - Bush fishing in Crawford, TX circa 2025

[The Wolf]

7. "emotionally delicate"?? One of those funny GOP oxymorons,

like "compassionate conservatism" or a Communist Wal-Mart (I always thought they were one in the same).

[Lisa]

17. sounds better than "emotionally manipulative ..."

and "stage-managed to the hilt", doesn't it.

[Mist]

6. I'm pretty sure this bunch can't do "delicate" any more than they

can do "nuance."

[Mad_Dem_X]

8. "his cherished ranch in Crawford"

Spare me. That so-called ranch (are there even any animals on that property?) was built right before the 2000 elections, in preperation for W's "win," so he'd look like a "real" cowboy. :eyes:

[paulk]

9. it used to be a pig ranch, before Bush bought it

yee - haw

[MaineDem]

10. Where's Laura??? n/t

[gratuitous]

11. "Delicate" yeah

Here's Bush with his new best friend Rockey Vaccarella in the French Quarter.

And in the Ninth Ward.

And next to a hastily reconstructed levee.

And at an impromptu taping of "Girls Gone Wild."

And hung over and retching into the gutter on Bourbon Street.

[Human Torch]

12. From Crooks & Liars:

Jon Stewart vs. Rockey
By: Jamie Holly on Friday, August 25th, 2006 at 9:38 AM - PDT

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2006/08/25/jon-stewart-vs-rockey/



Jon Stewart took a good look at Rockey, the Katrina survivor who met with Bush this week, on The Daily Show last night.

Video - WMV Video - QT

Stewart: "Wow, ‘Mission Accomplished’! You got the President to meet with you, his arch friend. Wow! All you news folks were right. He is just like Cindy Sheehan, except a life-long Republican"

As Attytood points out, Rockey is a Republican and even a former GOP candidate:

And, whaddya know? Turns out that the earthy Vaccarella — a highly successful businessman in the fast-food industry — is indeed a Republican pol, having run unsuccessfully under the GOP banner for a seat on the St. Bernard Parish commission back in 1999. We don’t have a good link, but here (via Nexis) is part of his bio that ran in the New Orleans Times-Picayune on Oct. 15, 1999

ROCKEY VACCARELLA PERSONAL Republican 35.

Born in New Orleans. Grew up in Arabi and Chalmette. Lived 11 years in Meraux. Married, two children. Graduated from Chalmette High, 1982. Attended St. Bernard Community College.

Director of operations, Lundy Enterprises, as manager of 31 Pizza Hut restaurants and 450 employees. Former general restaurant manager of Popeye’s Chicken & Biscuits on East Judge Perez Drive in Chalmette.

And in fact, Vaccarella seemed very confident that he would be meeting with Bush when he left home, to the point where he had a date scheduled and everything:

Dinner with the President is planned for the evening of August 22nd.

Digby has even more on old Rockey.

[KansDem]

13. To Bush, "emotionally delicate" means "no farting" (eom)

[Z_I_Peevey]

14. Oh, that's a good one.

I'm stealing that.

[Lisa]

18. those are probably the exact words his aides said to him ...

Kudos to you, KansDem!

[ShortnFiery]

15. Run NOW! ==> All Petite Women of Color in New Orleans ...

or else Dear Leader's going to want to hang all over you, i.e., remember the young women he seemingly would *NOT stop touching* for those distasteful Post-katrina STAGED photo-ops? :puke:

[Imagevision]

16. No doubt Bush will count on "Rocky" for success story photo-op

NO. today looks like Katrina hit yesterday, Bush will show the 3% that have, or are currently rebuilding and waiting inline for some of Bush's 110 billion funds