Matt Latimer Book: Bush Knocked Other Pols While President

President Bush mocked other prominent politicians behind their backs while in office, according to a new book by former speechwriter Matt Latimer.

Last month, the Washington Post reported that ex-Bushies were feeling a "growing nervousness" over what might be in their old colleague's tome. The October issue of GQ includes some eye-opening excerpts from the book.

Of Obama, Latimer writes that Bush came in to rehearse a speech fuming. The New York Daily News reported:

This is a dangerous world," he said for no apparent reason, "and this cat isn't remotely qualified to handle it. This guy has no clue, I promise you."

Bush thought Hillary would be the Democratic nominee. "'Wait till her fat keister is sitting at this desk,' he once said (except he didn't say 'keister')," Latimer wrote.

But Bush was perhaps most critical of vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin:

"I'm trying to remember if I've met her before. I'm sure I must have." His eyes twinkled, then he asked, "What is she, the governor of Guam?" [...]

"This woman is being put into a position she is not even remotely prepared for," he said. "She hasn't spent one day on the national level. Neither has her family. Let's wait and see how she looks five days out." It was a rare dose of reality in a White House that liked to believe every decision was great, every Republican was a genius, and McCain was the hope of the world because, well, because he chose to be a member of our party.

A former aide to Palin and Bush disputed the account, saying the two were close.

"There is no air, no space between them," he told CNN. "Sarah Palin is a big fan of George Bush, and she has said publicly she was proud he was Commander-in-Chief when her son Track was in Iraq."

Latimer also writes that at one point, Bush appeared not to understand his own administration's proposal to deal with the economic crisis.

One of the president's staff members anxiously pulled a few of us aside. "The president is misunderstanding this proposal," he warned. "He has the wrong idea in his head. ... It wasn't that the president didn't understand what his administration wanted to do. It was that the treasury secretary didn't seem to know, changed his mind, had misled the president, or some combination of the three.

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Comments

[zeeshan809]

02:49 PM on 09/18/2009

Well Bush was not a genious that he should have mocked others. I think its hard for him to even think straight.

http://next-world-war.blogspot.com

[deneufeldt]

10:04 PM on 09/17/2009

If he really said Palin was not remotely prepared to be VP it would be one of the very few times I agree with him.

[LA2000]

07:19 PM on 09/17/2009

Matt Latimer had me until the part where he refused to support McCain because McCain had been too critical of Bush.

Umm, yeah. That's because McCain was right all along. He was right when he said that the Bush tax cuts were a bad idea we couldn't afford. He was right to object to the administration's moral abdication on torture. In fact, I would dare say that on every point where Mr. McCain challenged the Bush administration, McCain was right and Bush was wrong.

Republicans like Matt Latimer are why I am a registered republican voting democrat since 2000. I may be a republican, but I know a bad candidate (and party) when I see one. George Bush and the extremist wing of the GOP had disaster written all over them from day one.

[OldBro70]

06:56 PM on 09/17/2009

While I was not a fan of President Bush, it appears that the advisers who gave him counsel were themselves lacking in morals, leadership abilities, and concerns for the well being of the country. They were taking over from a adminstration that was leaving a economy with a surplus, high employment, and a world that looked favorable on a president that had been impeached but not convicted. I believed that President Bush's advisors did not serve him well, they were so busy making up their agendas and did not remember one of the cardinal rules that The Boss is to be protected at all cost. In the end the Boss has to take the ultimate respnsibilty for his adminstration sucesses or failures.

[Rowdy9er]

06:39 PM on 09/17/2009

Bush wasn't qualified to be the door man.

[Fremon]

06:35 PM on 09/17/2009

I love one of the comments I heard that Bush declared himself "qualified" to be either President or Commander in chief as opposed to Obama. What Bush was qualified for was to be either a janitor or governor of Texas. Had he not been his family's son he would have been the janitor. And that is not to disparage janitors but to indicate his qualifications.

[qxav949]

06:08 PM on 09/17/2009

If he truly did say what is quoted about former candidate - now President Obama, it's laughable to say the least. No one enters that office knowing what to do and expect. The tragedy is after spending 8 years and leaving the country worse off than you met it. Happy trails, GWB.

[skibiketrash]

04:57 PM on 09/17/2009

History books in the future will not be nice to GWB as long as his former aids continue to make a buck telling it!

[arevolutionofone]

04:42 PM on 09/17/2009

This would be hilarious if it it weren't truly frightening.

[RedSox61]

04:31 PM on 09/17/2009

I am one of the biggest bush bashers there is - but honestly , this is low-life - President's shouldn't have to worry about tell alls - especially from people that are close to them....

I think he was a useless president - but this making money off of someone else like this - it just shows you what kind of society we have become....

[emilyringstrom]

03:06 PM on 09/16/2009

As I wrote during the primaries, and thereafter during the run for the White House: "You know you're in trouble, when you make Bush look smart!" ;o)

[Deschris]

07:51 AM on 09/16/2009

While we are on the subject of President Bush we should really rev this thing up.Apparently one of the school districts which kept their kids away from President Obama's speech to the kids last week recently ok'd the same kids going to see/hear a proposed speech by Bush.Then oh..oh..someone objected and they had to cancel the affair...and all these protests are not race based? Huh! give me a f***g break.

One good thing about the cancellation is that their oh so pure little kiddies won't have to listen to a whole bunch of nothings.BTW can anyone on this post find the pictures of all the black,latino,asian and white parents who wanted their kids to hear the president.The reason I'm asking is while viewing FOX ,CNN and MSM I got the impression that these parents were either unamerican,unpatriotic or don't exist

[Fremon]

06:40 PM on 09/17/2009

I heard the same thing. It was amazing to hear that the district that wouldn't let the kiddies hear Obama, bused them to listen to Bush. I fear for the educational future of these kids if they think the two are intellectually equal. But then again, it is Texas and one could expect more. If you think Bush was a one off as Governor of Texas, remember Rick Perry is governor today. It is the Texas way "all hat and no cattle".

[MIKEBC]

07:49 AM on 09/16/2009

The last 8 years were a very dark period in Americas history.

[northstar11]

07:25 AM on 09/16/2009

not even his own father was up to the job --junior said he answers to a higher father.----ie who cares what daddy thinks he aint high enough to sway me.

[MIKEBC]

07:48 AM on 09/16/2009

Junior tried to finish off what his old man started and he failed, our Texas sheriff bit off more than he could chew.

[Tim303]

02:50 AM on 09/16/2009

You have to admit he was good with people in a sort of good with animals type of a way. Sort of animal cunning. Remember what he said about "our body language" re: him and Cheney? On the other hand, there's a bit of the Bush silver spoon thing. His remarks on Palin and Obama are actually the same--they are disqualified on the basis of social status, they're just "not the right type."