Laura Bush Discusses Jenna's Wedding During Myanmar Press Conference

A White House press conference given by First Lady Laura Bush took a bizarre and insensitive twist when the focus of the conference, the devastation wrought by a powerful cyclone in Myanmar, switched to Jenna Bush's upcoming wedding. While the reporters and the First Lady bantered back and forth about Jenna's wedding details, MSNBC left up their chyron, saying "First Lady Talks About Deadly Cyclone In Myanmar." They also continued to show images of the devastation in Myanmar while Mrs. Bush offered more information about the wedding, including the "Texas limestone altar" built by her husband.

Watch footage of the press conference below.

Comments

[Dadam]

Where's McCain when you need him?
"Dumb c*nt" would've surmised my thoughts just fine.

[SharonB]

Why? It was wrong when McCain said it and you are wrong for using it as well. That is a filthy nasty name. Surely you were raised better than that.

[squander123]

What IS it about this word? How and why does it get to be the 'absolutely worst word ever', worse than other expletives? Taking that attitude seems to imply that there really IS something appauling about that part of a woman's body, and that comparing someone to it is the most insulting thing you can do to them...If there isn't, then the word isn't any worse than expletives which refer to various parts of a man's body.

Whether it's a good thing to call you wife is a slightly different matter - there are many, many terms I wouldn't be impressed by my husband using to me, but that one isn't any worse than the rest of them...

[coolkraft]

class....none...that is what the Bushes have....she is a stepford wife...he is a clone of his mother...cant wait until they are gone

[Dadam]

I wish my wife would've worn her "Not My First Lady" tee shirt to work today.

[SharonB]

This headline is not really fair.
HuffPo does this a lot to people that they do not like... I have seen it done to Hillary Clinton over and over on here. And, even though I cannot stand Hillary Clinton, it is not fair when it happens to her, either.
What was Laura Bush supposed to say when she was asked about the wedding? Bush and his family are not my favorite people on the planet, but come on...! It's not like she was asked about the cyclone and said, "Who cares about THAT???? Here is the china pattern my daughter picked out!"
She was asked reated questions and answered them Simple.
I blame Bush and his people for sending her out there to comment on Myanmar.

The Bush family and the Clinton family both do enough real idiotic things that can be honestly reported... do we REALLY have to write fake headlines like this??????

[America08]

Sharon I understand how you feel. I too consider myself a fair person. However, when Mrs. Bush was asked the question concerning the wedding she could have brought it back the Myanmar. She could of easily of done that. Instead, she goes right off track with them. I think HuffPo's headline was right on point. Again, it is this current administrations "Flippent" attitude that makes people mad.

[SharonB]

Thanks for being an understanding person. I whole heartedly agree with you.

[2008WakingFromaNightmare]

For god's sake, the the this mis-administration has been in place for 7 years and they're not new to this. If they were capable or sensitive to anything outside their tight belittling circle it would have been easy to say 'thank you for asking, but I'm here to talk about an unspeakable tragedy that has just happened to...." Really - it's not that hard if you are a genuine person.

[kroses98]

HER HUSBAND DOESN'T HAVE A 27% FOR NOTHING!!!!!!!

AND SHE'S MARRIED TO THE IDIOT!!!

WHAT DOES THAT SAY ABOUT HER?

[going2ireland]

What was Laura Bush supposed to say when asked about the wedding?

Well, for starters "I don't think this is the appropriate time to discuss this."

Or, how about "It is something I do not care to discuss in light of the tragedy in Mynamar"

There was a multitude of things she could have said.

[sandiegoconservative]

And if she said that you would be calling her an "elitist" or indicating that she is being evasive to the press. She can't win either way with you fools.

[kiki1966]

Boy, I can't stand the Bush family. (Although I watched American Experience last night about the elder Bush and was reminded that he was actually pretty moderate back in the 70s and early 80s before he hooked up with that nut Reagan.)


Here's what I saw: Laura was gathering her papers as she was thanking everyone for the congratulations on Jenna's wedding and it looked as though she was finishing up the press conference.

I'm not defending her--she could have told everyone that she would put out a written statement on wedding details at some future time--but I do blame the unprofessional behavior of the reporters first and foremost. She was talking about Myanmar (formerly Burma, as everyone always notes) and some reporter clearly couldn't wait to spit out questions about the wedding.

Obviously, the Myanmar story was boring and they were just sitting there like grade-schoolers thinking, "Pick me! I have a question!! Pick me!!"

Both at fault, the reporters more so, methinks.

[NoSillyName]

Why was Laura out in front about Myanmar? Where was George? Too drunk to come out? Or did someone tell him it would look bad to be talking about helping others when he was absent during Katrina?

And who gives a damn about Jenna's wedding plans?

[filo]

Where was George?


Myanmar has no oil so....screw 'em send Laura out.

[SharonB]

Apparently the reporters who repeatedly asked questions about it.

[qdog112]

PATHETIC, SHAMEFUL, DISGRACEFUL, UNFORGIVABLE! She came out and made a political statement regarding the "junta". She had nothing to say about our very own "junta" and was not seen during Katrina. I wonder how many friends we made worldwide based on her "shame on you" tone while people need help.

FYI, the world has TV and they saw the same BS we saw. Perfect video for Al Quaida recruitment. To pivot from her comments about the disaster to a wedding is crazy. All she had to say was discussing the wedding is inappropriate. The MSM hyenas confirmed what we all know. It's hard to take anything positive from that press conference.

[eahce]

The whole bush elitist clan is totally clueless when it comes to dealing with the common man. In this current photo op Laura was excited to talk about Jenna's wedding while the purpose of the conference was to adress the cyclone that ravaged Myanmar. How totally insensitive can you be when tens of thousands of people have been killed to change the subject and talk about your daughters wedding. It reminds me when bush's mother refering to the people displaced in New Orleans after Katrina said that the people had it good because they had the oppurtunity to stay in the New Orleans stadium after losing their homes and possesions. These klan is downright dispicable.

[zerocoma]

Yes they are ... and the entire world knows what's important to them: nothing except themselves.

[bobo209]

Look what she married need I say more??Clue less to the end..This is our Ruling Elite..ouiii

[Phaedrus21]

Don't blame Laura Bush. Blame the country. This is exactly the kind of First Lady that voters said they wanted.

The voters wanted a First Lady who would stay in the background and not have strong political opinions. They wanted a housewife who would be more concerned with her daughter's wedding than a tragedy half-a-world away.

It's okay with the voters if she supports something non-controversial, like promoting reading. But mostly the country wanted a First Lady who would stand there and look adoringly at her husband.

If the voters wanted something different, they should have elected somebody different.

[eahce]

THEY DID REMEMBER

[kingofscotts]

They Did???

Really, I could have sworn that John and Theresa were defeated in 04'

Damn please tell us more about this inside knowledge you have concerning that election. That would be BIG news.

[JBL55]

Wasn't Laura supposed to solve the gang warfare problem?

[americanwhocares]

I was not surprised by the insensitive attitude of Laura Bush that is part and parcel of the Bush family. What I found truly disgusting, in the video, is the insensitive attitude and lack of intelligence of the majority of the White House Press Corp. For the most part they are just a bunch of sycophantic fools. (Helen Thomas is not included in that comment, she is intelligent and doing her job as a journalist, I am sure there is one or two others but that is it). They continually show why America is going downhill fast. They have abdicated their responsibility, under the protection of the US Constitution, to keep American's informed about the machinations of our government.

[jaschrod]

I could not agree with you more. Helen Thomas is almost the only true journalist alive.

[coexistor]

All that's true, but Laura Bush should have had the diplomacy and sensitivity to recognize that this was not the time nor the place for absurd chitchat about the wedding. She SHOULD have politely declined to go down that road and offer to discuss the details of the wedding separately. What an insult to the victims and their families, and it further paints Americans as idiots.

[JoeBlows]

Laura can barely carry on a conversation. The whole "press conference" was obviously scripted; she had her "answers" already prepared. Reporters don't even have the integrity to report how this is set up.
Also, I find it embarassing, on an international scale, that the US is giving only $250,000. That is only 15 seconds' borrowing from China.

[BushBites]

Our drugged up Czarina.

She must have a hell of a medicine cabinet.

[cartach]

Why don't you people give poor Laura a break? I think it's great that she actually knew a catastrophe had occurred although she probably thought that Myanmar was a resort town in Mexico.

[sheaftosser]

Hey, come on now, you're forgetting this is all about our Royal Family, the Bushes. Those people who drowned in Myanmar and New Orleans are just peasants. A little inconvenience to the royals.

[nastyvirus]

I'm no fan of the misadministration or the families who run it, but it looks like the press set her up for this great big faux pas.

[livetotell]

Laura Bush has made defending human rights in Burma a personal mission.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1213/p06s02-woap.html

[Brooklynindy]

Inappropriate was Laura Bush's failure to express outrage when this occurred in her own country a few years ago.

CNN on her conference yesterday: "And she blasted the junta, saying the lack of warning before a deadly cyclone hit on Friday was the latest example of "the junta's failure to meet its people's basic needs." "

Failure to meet its people's basic needs...New Orleans...hmm.

[gorgol]

Oh, you are so on the mark...with NEW ORLEANS linked to her and her "monster" mate...how can she condemn anyone..or any country....New Orleans drowned..while Bush played guitar..and Rice shopped in New York...no telling what Laura was doing...

[Earl]

I don't think that woman could cook a TV dinner.

[LeftLeanWing]

But she would put a lot of thought and energy into what the TV would want to eat.

[cdnnewsjunky]

cute!