Bush In 2008: "I'm Not Going To Tell Some Gay Kid In The Audience That He Can't Get Married"

Speechwriter Matt Latimer's new book trains its gaze on the lunacy of the late-era Bush White House. And there was plenty of material.

Latimer, who first wrote speeches and congressional testimony for Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, was one of Bush's top speechwriters at the end of his administration. He has written a tell-all that has some former administration officials furious at his disloyalty and others chuckling at the foibles he's made public.

Disclosure: Latimer's bookis officially embargoed until Tuesday. I read it in manuscript form months ago and blurbed it on the back of the book, saying good things about it. But the following nuggets don't come from the manuscript -- they're from a copy I purchased from a stack at Kramerbooks & Afterwords in Washington, D.C.

Some of the best moments relating to the financial crisis -- one of the many real world consequences of the shenanigans Latimer describes -- have been excerpted in GQ already. But the book is still rich with pearls for political junkies and anybody else wondering what the Bush administration looked like from the inside.

Some of the best stuff:

• Donald Rumsfeld had to be talked out of editing his own entry on Wikipedia, which he referred to as "Wika-wakka." He was a Drudge Report reader and used to watch YouTube clips that made fun of his press conference performances.
• Bush, when told that Idaho Sen. Larry Craig had been the latest GOPer to be caught in a sex scandal involving boys or men: "What is up with all these Republicans?"
• Several years after Colin Powell left as Secretary of State, he was to appear with administration officials at an event. "In the next draft can you change 'Secretary Powell' to 'General Powell'? He prefers to go by 'General' instead of 'Secretary'," read a note from his people to Latimer, who thought it looked like the general was trying to distance himself from the White House. "I'm happy to report that the president didn't accommodate him. 'Secretary Powell' stayed in," Latimer writes.
• While Karl Rove was appearing on Fox News and writing op-eds as an independent political analyst, he was privately smearing Democrats. "Karl spread rumors through the White House that one of Obama's potential vice presidential running mates -- and a United States senator -- had beaten his first wife. 'Karl says it's true,' the president assured a small group of staffers. Then knowing Karl, he quickly added, 'Karl hopes it's true,'" reports Latimer.
• For a commencement address at Furman University in spring 2008, Ed Gillespie wanted to insert a few lines condemning gay marriage. Bush called the speech too "condemnatory" and said, "I'm not going to tell some gay kid in the audience that he can't get married." (Of course, Bush ran his 2004 campaign telling that kid just that.)
• Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "adamantly opposed" any reference to jailed Egyptian dissident Ayman Nour when Bush traveled to Egypt to promote freedom. She won.
• Bush, it turns out, is like millions of Americans: "I haven't watched the nightly news one night since I've been president," he said.
• Laura Bush, says Latimer, "was secretly a Democrat for all intents and purposes, though it really wasn't much of a secret."
• Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins is fond of sending angry, middle-of-the-night e-mails to staffers because she's frustrated that her colleague and rival Olympia Snowe gets more and better press. As a result, reports Latimer, she rips through press secretaries like 30-packs at a beer-pong tournament. (A Collins press secretary didn't respond to a request for comment.)
• Interviewing for the job, Latimer was told by Chief of Staff Josh Bolten that Bush's White House was "the most ethical administration in history." He added: "Looks like even Scooter Libby might get off."
• Latimer was asked to help with a speech for Under Secretary of Defense Douglas Feith, who General Tommy Franks famously called "the fucking stupidest guy on the face of the earth." Feith had rejected a draft from another writer. "His own writer had failed miserably at drafting some upcoming testimony to Congress. Feith was so incensed by the speech's first line that he read it aloud to me. 'Mr. Chairman, thank you for inviting me to testify today.' 'Thank you?' Feith snapped, as if he couldn't believe it. 'For inviting me'?'"
• Bush on Jimmy Carter: "If I'm ever eighty-two years old and acting like that have someone put me away."

Ryan Grim is the author of This Is Your Country On Drugs: The Secret History of Getting High in America

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Comments

[juanjo]

01:25 PM on 09/24/2009

"W" reminded me of every snarky frat boys I ever met while in college. The ones whose daddies were wealthy and who had done all they could to make sure their progeny got all the right placements. They knew the could be total screw ups and still have all the opportunities handed to them where other more deserving people were cut out because they did not have the right last name or the wealth to buy their way in the door.

[Ziploc]

09:59 AM on 09/23/2009

One does not become a nerd overnight.

He was an insignificant nerd, and then he was allowed to become a colossal nerd. There's the tragedy.

[zeeshan809]

09:13 AM on 09/23/2009

Oh I thought Bush was a gay!!

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

[chensamabindicka]

01:45 AM on 09/22/2009

Wait 'til the torture/prison rape stuff comes out.

"Now Don," Bush says to Rumsfeld," When I said I want to f*ck these boys up, I didn't mean literally."

[FantasticFourFan]

10:42 PM on 09/21/2009

Rummy tried to edit his own Wiki profile nad Cheney was deathly afraid of being made fun of on the Daily Show. If that isn't the definition of insecure I don't know what is.

[Sandpaper]

10:41 PM on 09/21/2009

I feeling nothing but despair after reading the excerpt on GQ.com.

It confirms all the fears that I had about George Bush, from his stupidity to the enabling sycophants who surrounded him.

Jeezus, it was actually worse than I had thought. It's like a bunch of middle schoolers ran the country these past eight years.

The most memorable part was when Dana Perino was told that 77% of those polled thought that the country was on the wrong track, she asked, "Who on earth is in the other 23 percent?"

We are screwed for many a years down the road.

[stop the spin]

04:43 AM on 09/22/2009

Pretty boring and pedestrian.

Not nearly as colorful as cigars and intern comments...

[MichB1]

07:55 AM on 09/22/2009

Wow, that's a pretty F-ed up way to go through life. Good luck with that.

[James McDaniel]

10:14 PM on 09/21/2009

I am regularly amazed by the unfairness of pitting Bush fans against Obama fans when it comes to evaluating the fact content of their respective arguments.

[James McDaniel]

10:03 PM on 09/21/2009

For those of you memory challenged. LOL

[rwl-maine]

08:14 PM on 09/21/2009

I can' really speak to the list of stuff in the book-- but I am pretty familiar with the Collins folks.
His assertion that Collins "rips through press secretaries like 30-packs at a beer-pong tournament."

Is not accurate:

My recollection is as follows:

Mark Woodward served for one year, and returned to the BDN.

Felicia Knight stayed for 5 years - which is an eternity in that business --incidentally Felicia Knight returned to the Collins camp as deputy campaign manager in 2008.

Felicia was replaced by Jen Burida who was there for 6 years, and got bumped up to Deputy Chief of Staff.

Kevin Kelly - who was already in the press office for several years moved up to take Jen's place.

So, by my account that is 4 press folks in 13 years, which is pretty good in my experience.

I just post this - because I know the facts in this case--and it makes me question the book in general - as this is a pretty easy to check fact.

[Sportsbabe]

07:42 PM on 09/21/2009

This headline cracked me up. I can just hear the Bush drawl.

[Fred Hood]

07:40 PM on 09/21/2009

I think bush should pay for his own library...

[JazzyJim]

08:09 PM on 09/21/2009

Why would there be a library - he doesn't read, ask Yale. Better yet, ask GWBush! LOL.

[PamperedHousecat]

11:29 PM on 09/21/2009

How could you say that?
Why, Michelle Maklin even said during the election, that GW Bush was one of the most articulate, learned presidents this country has had, and Obama had no skills in comparison.

[bettyboop30]

10:48 PM on 09/21/2009

A man who can read and doesn't is worse off than a man who cannot read at all.

[BikeFreak]

07:27 PM on 09/21/2009

Bush should hope to live to be 82 years old and have the ability to be seen in policy circles again.

Really, that was offensive, George!

[stop the spin]

04:45 AM on 09/22/2009

Maybe he can play the Race Card like yellow Jimmy Carter!

[hrc04]

06:21 PM on 09/21/2009

I've pretty much said all I'm gonna say on Bush, so forget about him for a minute...

"While Karl Rove was appearing on Fox News and writing op-eds as an independent political analyst, he was privately smearing Democrats." If you're privately smearing Dems, but appearing on Fox news, then you're publicly smearing Democrats.

"Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins is fond of sending angry, middle-of-the-night e-mails to staffers because she's frustrated that her colleague and rival Olympia Snowe gets more and better press." You want more press, Susan Collins? Say you'll vote for a public option. Stand outside the capitol and yell it to anyone who will listen.

[Palemoon]

05:41 PM on 09/21/2009

Pretty much proof that President Bush was never in charge of his administration. Everyone telling him how to behave, what to say and what to do. I sure hope President Obama isn't going through all of that. But I'm sure he is with the way every initiative seems to implode around him.

I think this insight into the Bush administration is the perfect example into what is wrong with DC. It's bad enough that every single Congressperson has dozens of staff members who are always getting into each others way. But so do the cabinet members and, yes, even the President.

What we need is limit their staff size. Presidents can get a single advisor for when they need a second opinion, we'll call them the Vice President. Otherwise, the President should only be hearing his cabinet members. Even then, the President should still have the right to overrule them. When I vote for President, I'm voting for the President. I'm not voting for a few hundred handlers who answer to no one.

[JBS]

05:57 PM on 09/21/2009

He was in charge. Sez so right there in the Constitution.

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

He's the one left the lights on even if there was nobody home.

[Palemoon]

06:54 PM on 09/21/2009

What I mean is, he was listening to everyone else rather than forming his own opinion on something. Same thing is happening with Obama, unfortunately.

[LightningJoe]

01:40 AM on 09/22/2009

What's wrong with this post? Let me count the ways...

"...this insight into the Bush administration ILLUSTRATES (not "is") the perfect example into what is wrong with DC..."

So you say the problem is that the staffers are taking over the asylum, and need weeding out. Give the President one (1) staffer, who's also the VP, and then give him "permission" to ignore that staffer's advice -- as if he needs permission?

All this does is take away all of the President's power, information, and legitimacy. The staff involved includes all of the people who run the White House, the press handlers, the interface folks for communications with all the Three-Letter Acronyms (the TLA's). In short, everyone in government who wasn't voted for, is a staffer.

Eliminate them all, you say?

We know what side you're on, now.

The Tom Delay (shrink government until you can drown it in a bathtub) side.

[roudy]

05:14 PM on 09/21/2009

Saw bush on the tube last night at the Dallas-Giants game. His team got whipped. He should be getting used to that feeling by now.

[sbmulqueen]

08:47 PM on 09/21/2009

I am neither a Bush fan nor a Cowboys fan but I don't think a 2 point loss is whipped. It was rep.ul.si.ve seeing him there though.