Bush Takes a Brief Break from Relaxing to Rake in $7 Million

[stevedeshazer]

President Bush never seems happier or more relaxed than when he is back here at his ranch. But this weekend, unwinding proved particularly profitable: He raised $7
million from Texas Republicans with minimal effort and was whisked back to his own living room by sunset — exactly how the rest of his summer is shaping up.

Mr. Bush spoke at two fund-raisers, one on Friday night in Dallas and another on Saturday evening in Houston, delivering a version of his new campaign speech at each stop. The speech is about 2,700 words
long. So, if this weekend was representative, his campaign coffers swell by about $1,300 a word — not bad for a weekend, especially one primarily devoted to tending to the ranch.

The new speech starts with an elephant joke: Mr. Bush says that, at a nature reserve in Botswana during his recent Africa trip, "I learned a lot about our party's mascot."

In Houston, he next told the crowd of about 700 that "you're laying the groundwork for what is going to be a great national victory in November of 2004." Then he praises his staff and refers to Vice President
Dick Cheney, no slouch at fund-raising either in recent weeks, to set up his other laugh-line of the night.

"Our country has had no finer vice president than Dick Cheney," Mr. Bush said at both fund-raisers, and then, after waiting for the applause to die down, he added: "Mother may have a different thought." It is
a reference, of course, to President Bush's father, who served as a far less influential vice president to Ronald Reagan than Mr. Cheney is to the current president.

more: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/21/politics/campaigns/21BUSH.html?ex=1059364800&en=73a8dae4401c6afb&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE

on edit fixed link

[Frances]

1. I think it is obscene

how Bush is raising all this money while our soldiers are being maimed and dying. I just finished reading the Washington Post story about the amputees and this was just too much on top of that.

[glarius]

4. The media constantly ridiculed Clinton for being a fund-raiser calling

him a money grubber etc....but when it comes to Bush they practically drool in admiration for his fund-raising capacity....Disgusting!!

[jab105]

2. This story made me pissy...

I HATE HIM!!

[NYC]

3. Raising money and relaxing at the ranch.

Doesn't waste any time or effort paying attention to the U.S. soldiers. No need for him to concern himself with them. Just raise money & relax.

Why doesn't he raise some money to be used for the benefit of the troops? Send them clean drinking water, fresh food, other things they need? Doesn't he have enough time to raise money for them?

[young_at_heart]

6. Maybe he could raise money for the uninsured

CBS News had a week-long series about the "money crunch" and how people are struggling just to put food on the table. It was terribly sad to see such dire straits for so many folks....and then to read about Bush blithely gathering millions for his own personal use is sickening!

[benfranklin1776]

5. Nice to know Junior's priorities are focused.

As soldiers are dying daily because the Iraqi opposition has taken him up on the challenge to "bring it on" he blissfully kisses the corporate ass to save his own sorry political posterior. The need to kiss has been accelerated since the plan to sell "Mission Accomplished" pictures of the codpiece in chief isn't quite working out as Karl had planned. Of course he will need all of that money if he has any hope at all of winning his first Presidential election.

[caledesi]

7. Excuse me, but how can this moran relax?

With troop dying daily in Iraq
With the economy at the lowest level going
With the loss of what, 3 million jobs?
With the shadow of Tony Blair's resignaton in sight <resignation or recall, he's out...and the new PM will have to pull the Brits out of Iraq asap>
His polls are taking the tubes <yeah, we know he doesn't listen to polls...bs>

He's not drinking O'Douls...that's for sure.

[benfranklin1776]

10. Easy I guess.....

....for a man who evidently has no conscience. Gotta wonder about the nature of the underlying personality disorder which produces such callous behavior.

[uberotto]

8. Only 7 Million...

What, was he only able to convince one family friend to give him money this weekend.

Or maybe he's running out of pieces of the U.S. to sell off to big business.

[unfrigginreal]

9. Our troops are baking in the desert and Bush jokes to reporters...

"Let me turn down my air conditioner — how y'all doing out there?"

[moondust]

11. Whatever he raises is utterly meaningless

to anyone who truly values democracy.

[stevedeshazer]

13. Not sure what you mean

I value democracy, and it matters a lot to me that the Republican Party is raising all this bribery money.

Explain?

[moondust]

18. Put it this way.

If all U.S. citizens truly valued democracy--as I perceive most all Canadians do--you would not have to be concerned about bribery at all and the piles of dough would be meaningless as they should be.

[geomon]

19. Bullsh*t

If you do not think that the money does not currupt the system through influence then you are in a fantasy world.

The money raised in campaigns are bribes why would a corporation or a PAC give large amounts of money they are doing so in order to influence the candidate.

The democrats are just are guilty if you take the time to look at the numbers.

You are wrong in your assertion that the money is meaningless.

Money is power to influence. Any candidate that takes corporate or PAC moniy should be tried for treason.

[moondust]

20. You obviously don't understand.

Sorry but I don't have time to explain it to you.

[geomon]

21. how insightful!!

Well I guess that you don't care enough to help the situation. You must be soooo busy...or , most likely, you are full of it. Are all your posts so rhetorical?

[Frances]

12. You know if Bush likes heat so much

why doesn't he go to Afghanistan and Iraq and see what it's like when the enemy is "bringing it on?"

[Maddy McCall]

14. That very headline spells bad PR for Bush...

NYT's headling is not good news for bush. The headline would spur most Americans to wonder why he is relaxing when he should be more concerned with the downward spiral that is Iraq, not to mention saving his buddy Blair's ass from the scandal in which he is now involved.

I love the headline. HE isn't taking a break from work, he is taking a break from RELAXING. LMFAO!

[PartyPooper]

15. This monster has no shame.

Instead of raising $millions for his second installation...why won't he visit the exhausted and beleagured troops in Iraq? Can't he even manage a stop at Walter Reed and pay those folks a visit? I guess not.

God forbid, he might get a sense of what death and destruction he's wreaked on his fellow American citizens...as well as our "allies"...and, of course, all of the innocent Iraqis.

And, the really scary part in all of this, is that demented, self-righteous right-wingers are eagerly lining up to give him money! How utterly disgusting!

It looks to me like we've reached the bottom of the barrel when it comes to depravity. It can't get any worse than this!

[progressivebydesign]

16. He nauseates me..

The NYT was not flattering... How dare that little jerk say that he "inherited a recession"? He's a liar. He "liberated" Iraq and Afghanistan? If that's liberation, I'm thinking these people would like their old lives back. He's a pig for evoking the war, while the troops suffer over in Iraq and.. hey, don't we still have troops in Afghanistan?? I think the media can do a great service portraying him as the heartless, priveliged, aging frat boy he is.

:mad:

[drscm]

17. Those who contribute to this "man,"

are as evil as he is.

I cannot believe that any of them actually believe a single empty word he utters. They can't be that stupid. They all know what he says is an absolute farce designed as a cover what he actually is.

What they do support is what he actually does: raping the environment; borrowing and spending; increasing corporate welfare and tax giveaways to the rich; using american lives for his oil wars; promising and switching; and trampling on the poor, the middle class, and those who will have to pay for his deficit in the future.

His words, like his politicization of the deaths of the 3,000 on 9/11, are nothing but a cover for his crimes against humanity and the ordinary citizens of the nation.

On edit:

What did he learn from the party's mascot at the nature reserve in Botswana during his recent Africa trip?

Republicans love f@cking...AMERICA.

[Aidoneus]

22. what a great image

Thousands all over the country lose their jobs every month, but his rich friends still have millions to spare. :eyes: