Bush: I Called President Clinton For Advice On My Meeting With Obama

From CNN... President Bush says he called President Clinton for advice before he met with Obama Monday.

In the wide ranging interview, the president also discussed his meeting with President-elect Barack Obama Monday, and said he consulted former President Bill Clinton before his meeting with the future commander-in-chief.

"I remember the conversation I had with my predecessor Bill Clinton," Bush said. As a matter of fact [I] called him yesterday and said, 'Bill, I'm getting ready to meet with the new president and I remember how gracious you were to me. I hope I can be as gracious to President-elect Obama as you were to me."

Bush described the atmosphere in his Oval Office meeting with Obama as "relaxed" and said he offered the future president advice on the transition process. Bush also said Obama was specifically interested in how his two young daughters would adjust to life in the White House.

Comments

[gap08]

Well, love him or hate him, the time is coming near to say goodbye to George W. Bush. I would like to extend an invitation to anyone who has something to say to this President to post an open letter to GW at http://goodbye.us . This is a project to essentially create a time capsule of feelings and thoughts about the outgoing administration. So please, check it out and share!

[Culturemaven]

Is there more to this story? What person over the age of 10 needs advice or any discussion about how to be gracious and friendly in an upcoming meeting? What's to figure out?

[jaxdawg]

come on folks.....i think w is hearing the criticism......i really do believe that an arrogant simple texan got duped by his team.........but he did put forth his beliefs and stick to them and i hope i can say that about obama.........if i'm right about obama,,,,,the present conservative movement is/will be obsolete......let w retire to crawford and or houston to reflect on his decisions while pres in peace......

Martin for Georgia Senate!!!

[UltraDave]

Maybe Bush should have asked for Clinton's advice much sooner, or anyone's for that matter with an IQ over that of a rock.

[rbspickles]

Heh :)

[lauriemann]

In fairness to Bush (and I haven't had that thought very often over the last eight years), Clinton and George H. W. Bush got friendly nearly four years ago when they worked together to help raise money for tsunami relief. Poppy Bush has probably been talking to W. lately about the importance of an even transition period (particularly with all the problems the country has). I suspect W. Bush and Clinton may have spoken occasionally over the last few years and may be more cordial than they were eight years ago.

Being a president (and an ex-president) makes you a member an exclusive club, and it's a good thing for these people to be able to work together. The fact that Bush and Obama seem to be able to talk and not have world war 3 break out is a fine thing. They're adults - such behavior is to be encouraged. Now if only more members of Congress could behave in the same way!

[tobyjack]

Arrest, Try, Convict and Execute Bush, Cheney, Rice etal

[Ocean girl]

gosh... I don't go all mean spirited about it. Bush can't help that he is STUPID. (and I mean both of those sentences sincerely. Really.)

I think it is good of him to be gracious. I think meeting with Obama was relaxed because Obama is relaxed. I think the Obamas both made it easy on the Bushes.

Good of W to be cooperative. No matter how bad you think of him (I think worse.... though quite frankly I think he is the "whipping boy" for Chaney and isn't smart enough to make decisions that were made) have some empathy for what an utterly shameful and humiliating time this must be for him. I certainly wouldn't want to be in that situation.

Gracious is good.

[concernvoter]

Bush knew that he was dealing with a very intelligent, smart and cool young man.

[mafina]

Perhaps its the other way around, Bill calling Bush to advise him. Bill is not to be trusted, both he and Hillary are still bitter about their lose. Go away.

[carsntrucks]

Am I the only one who thinks Bush looks really messed up in that photo?

[Ocean girl]

you mean like always... *grin*

[flyteeskee]

It was probably more like "Bill, you are the closest man I know to a real black person (forget Connie and Colin Powell).

[ajax2]

Bush: I Called President Clinton For Advice On My Meeting With Obama And He Sent Me Over Some Cartoon Stick Figures To Study.

[abmabardy]

.
Fool me once .....

Sorry, but I don't buy Bush all of a sudden being "gracious".

I look at him and see only the devastation he has brought to this country and to the world to serve his greed-driven, lying and spying, constitution-desecrating, arrogant, divisive, unAmerican neocon cronies. I see 4000 plus American families sitting around Thanksgiving tables this year without loved ones who were sacrificed, not for "freedom", but so Big Oil could get its hands on Iraqi oil and push their obscene profits even higher. I see fat cats fatter than ever with disproportionate targeted tax cuts and increased revenues generated by shipping US jobs overseas. I see a struggling, suffering, divided people who were distracted, manipulated and used by a self-serving regime that laughs at their patriotism.

Sorry, Mr. Bush, your legacy is what it is, and a little disingenuous "playing nice" will simply not change it.

[swyftdahoe]

I never doubted for a second that W would be gracious about the transition. When I look at Bush, I've never seen a bad man with a bad heart. He was just in wayyyyy over his head and his incompetency (and the ill intentions and motives of those around him) just led us through 8 years of disaster.

[elderly]

Yes, definitely, let us feel sorry for poor overwhelmed W. Forget about all of the bodies laying around because of his lying, forget about the shreds of Constitution spread all over the floor of the oval office, forget about the disrepute he brought to our country for the past 8 years, forget about the sneering, learing, lying and posturing, forget about the elections stolen, the hungry and soon to be hungry caused by this, the very worst and most criminal of all presidents...................

Gracious, sincere????

He is just trying to make it less likely that he will be prosecuted if they forget to shred, steal and discard all of the evidence of wrongdoing and criminality committed by these shitheads over the past 8 years.

No graciousness or forgiveness from this writer.

[Blue in NH]

Bush: I called Bill Clinton for advice and I still didn't get a b*j in the Oval Office. It just ain't fair.