Bush defines sovereignty

[Silicon]

Is this a new bushism?




http://www.majorityreportradio.com/weblog/archives/Bush%20-%20Tribal%20Sovereignty.mp3


Generally, I'm against Bushisms, because they generally are trips of the tongue or things in which his ideas are clear even when he's having a tough time articulating them.

This, on the other hand, is Bush answering a question about something he clearly has not thought about, nor has he been briefed on - tribal sovereignty.

He's asked what Tribal Sovereignty means in the 21st century, and what it means for disputes between tribes and the Federal Government.

He only hears the first part of the sentence, and starts trying to define the WORD "sovereignty". He finds that he cannot, without referring to the word itself. We know what the word MEANS, Mr. President. What he was asking is WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU?


And yes, that's a crowd of journalists you are hearing laughing at his inability to answer. This was at the Unity2004, the largest journalistic convention ever.


Here's a write up in the daily news:
http://www.nydailynews.com/08-08-2004/news/politics/story/220138p-188900c.html

[Ladewig]

As Al Franken said: "In fairness to President Bush, there’s more to being president than being articulate, intelligent, and knowledgeable."

[TragicMonkey]

It can't be reassuring for the new government of Iraq to hear that Bush can't define "sovereignty".

[Nitpick]

Oh you guys are so unfair...

What's wrong with "Tribal sovereignty means that... it's sovereign"? That's not inarticulacy, it's... well, poetry, art.
Just consider it a kind of "a rose is a rose is a rose" :p

[demon]

From the NY Daily News article:
"sovereignty is well ... sovereignty, and if you have sovereignty you are sovereign."


Can't argue with that eh?!?!:D

[Ladewig]

Originally posted by TragicMonkey
It can't be reassuring for the new government of Iraq to hear that Bush can't define "sovereignty".


I defy you to find anything that the new government of Iraq will find reassuring.

[TragicMonkey]

Lol. You're right. I'd hate to be those guys. Or their insurance company.

[Regnad Kcin]

And GWB has the largest campaign war chest in history. It must be because his supporters believe him to be just the very best candidate for the position, right? Right?

[Tony]

Originally posted by Silicon

http://www.majorityreportradio.com/weblog/archives/Bush%20-%20Tribal%20Sovereignty.mp3


Whoa, that's bad. Your analysis:

...is Bush answering a question about something he clearly has not thought about, nor has he been briefed on - tribal sovereignty.

Is spot on.

[LostAngeles]

:hb:

Oh dear...

Well, maybe there was a lot of mind? We all have brain farts.

:hb:

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear...

[Questioninggeller]

I thought this was funnier than the sovereignity quote from the same article.

"You can't read a newspaper if you can't read," the President said at one point when he spoke about the success his administration has had in teaching children how to read. and he did it in front of

With more than 7,500 registrants, Unity 2004 was, by far, the largest journalistic convention ever in the U.S.

[peptoabysmal]

And for the same group Kerry is applauded for repeating this falsehood (from the story):

"The harsh fact now is that in the last election, more than 1 million African-Americans were disenfranchised in one of the most tainted elections in history," Kerry said. "We have to see to it in November that every vote counts and every vote is counted."


Side bet: most of the folks at Unity2004 are already voting for Kerry anyway, so the net result hasn't changed.

[dsm]

Originally posted by peptoabysmal

Side bet: most of the folks at Unity2004 are already voting for Kerry anyway, so the net result hasn't changed.


You'd probably lose that bet. This is a conference of "journalists", after all. How many of their readers who may have been waffling about who to vote for will now know who to vote for because of ammunition like this that GWB has given them to work with.

:D

[Batman Jr.]

I guess his lurid religiosity extends into the definition of "sovereignty"; he just accepts the word and is content with its simply being without the slightest bit of curiosity as to what it actually is.

[dsm]

Originally posted by LostAngeles
:hb:

Oh dear...

Well, maybe there was a lot of mind? We all have brain farts.

:hb:

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear...

"What a waste it is to lose one's mind. Or not to have a mind is being very wasteful. How true that is."

How prophetic of Dan Quayle!

:D :D

[LostAngeles]

Originally posted by dsm
"What a waste it is to lose one's mind. Or not to have a mind is being very wasteful. How true that is."

How prophetic of Dan Quayle!

:D :D

Huh, apparently I was so in shock I wrote "of" instead of "on his".

[Tricky]

Originally posted by peptoabysmal
And for the same group Kerry is applauded for repeating this falsehood (from the story):
"The harsh fact now is that in the last election, more than 1 million African-Americans were disenfranchised in one of the most tainted elections in history," Kerry said. "We have to see to it in November that every vote counts and every vote is counted."

What's this all about, Pepe. We're talking about people using words they don't understand. Whether "1 million African-Americans were disenfranchised " is highly debatable because the word "disenfranchised" can cover a lot of ground. However, I am certain that Kerry knows the definition of the word, and the way he used it was semantically correct.

Bush, on the other hand, appears to use words for which he does not understand the meaning. There's an old saying that if you can't explain something to a young child, then you don't really understand it yourself. I'd really hate to have Dubya as a substitute teacher.

[hgc]

Originally posted by Questioninggeller
I thought this was funnier than the sovereignity quote from the same article."You can't read a newspaper if you can't read," the President said at one point when he spoke about the success his administration has had in teaching children how to read.
Aha! So that's why Bush doesn't read newspapers (http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2003/9/23/173118.shtml).

[Silicon]

Originally posted by Questioninggeller
I thought this was funnier than the sovereignity quote from the same article.


quote:"You can't read a newspaper if you can't read," the President said at one point when he spoke about the success his administration has had in teaching children how to read.


See, that's the kind of Bushism I'm against.

It's CLEAR what he means, it's only unclear to read it out of context.

Clinton (a much better public speaker by almost any measure) would have found a way to say the exact same thing, but would have actually achieved the poetic effect that W's speechwriters are grasping at here.

[daenku32]

"Soverign" is a good, 'God-given' word.*

That's good enough for Bush! Why need to define it?




*Just as "Christianity" is a good, 'God-given' religion

[zakur]

Originally posted by Silicon
Clinton (a much better public speaker by almost any measure) would have found a way to say the exact same thing, but would have actually achieved the poetic effect that W's speechwriters are grasping at here. But that's the point - Bush's speechwriter's were NOT involved. He was talking sans prompter, off-the-cuff. Clinton could ad lib. Bush most certainly cannot. More on Bush's Unity conference address:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/gate/archive/2004/08/10/eguillermo.DTL