Bush: 'I Miss Being Pampered' Post-Presidency

THE VILLAGES, Fla. — Former President George W. Bush says he doesn't miss much about the White House, just the pampering. Bush told more than 3,000 people at a sprawling central Florida retirement community on Saturday that he misses the convenience of Air Force One and never waiting in traffic jams. The 43rd president said, most of all, he misses being commander in chief of the U.S. military.

In his 30-minute speech, he talked about what it was like to return the salute of men and women.

The Villages retirement community is heavily Republican. Many in the crowd waved American flags and wore hats noting their military service.

Bush is on a national tour promoting his new memoir, "Decision Points."

Comments

[anitaj]

08:55 PM on 11/15/2010

Pres. Bush misses the pampering? I miss the Constitution.

[ex-eye-in-the-sky]

06:13 PM on 11/15/2010

I thought Cheney wore pampers more than Bush did. Who knew.

[joeyfoto]

04:41 PM on 11/15/2010

George W. Bush — a pathetically small man in who committed big crimes at a critical time. How harshly the world judges him is little compensation for the damage he has done.

Deaf and blind to the suffering he caused, this silly ghost-written fabrication pours the salt of W's foolish presidency into open-wounds of all who suffer for his arrogance and incompetence.

Ex-President George W. Bush made big mistakes and learned nothing from them — his is not an American tragedy, it's a farce, which mocks the democracy that made such an imbecilic administration possible.

[bluegardenia]

05:52 PM on 11/14/2010

The best quote of the week has to come from Michael Moore who on the Bill Maher show on Friday night said "the new Bush book Decision Points belongs in the Crime section of the Library".

[glitz]

04:49 PM on 11/14/2010

He put all of our soldiers in danger by authorizing waterboarding. He put our Country in the same catagory as those we have condemned for conducting torture. He put our military commanders in a vague position of indecision in the treatment of prisoners. He has made us the subject of ridicule with our allies. We are no longer the good guys.

[Kenyatta J Yamel]

04:44 PM on 11/14/2010

It must have been pretty cool killing Iraqis from the White House.

[WarrenPease]

04:43 PM on 11/14/2010

So *that's* why the US hasn't signed on to the World Court -- Bush would not receive the proper pampering in Helsinki.

[WarrenPease]

04:42 PM on 11/14/2010

Do you think Bush really cuts his own brush when he visits his ranch?

[montn2]

04:29 PM on 11/14/2010

He might miss the pampering but we sure do not miss him or his wars.

[Tully Mars 63]

03:43 PM on 11/14/2010

You know George if you'd just man up and turn yourself in for your war crimes and do your time they'd likely bring your meals right to your room/cell. Likely even fly you on a private jet to the prison you'd serve your time at.

Just a thought.

[paulita]

03:36 PM on 11/14/2010

You all need to watch this interview- it is too much!

[paulita]

03:33 PM on 11/14/2010

George Bush-" I knew there were laws against torture and I wasn't going to break the law--but then the legal opinions came back and I did water boarding." C-Span booktv.

Of course the law came back in your favor because you and Yu determined what the law was going to be.

I mean he doesn't get it at all!

[montn2]

04:29 PM on 11/14/2010

Yu was a puppet.

[doctordoubt]

05:10 PM on 11/14/2010

Actually, sadly, so was Bush.

[signgrrl]

07:30 PM on 11/14/2010

he gets it - he just doesn't care.

[paulita]

03:28 PM on 11/14/2010

"This is not an attempt to re-write history or to change my legacy, this is to show how I made decisions as the President." George W. Bush- C-Span booktv

Yea, sure..

[ProgressiveOregonian]

03:21 PM on 11/14/2010

Bush has no conscience. He doesn't. His cronyism and absolute theft of anything not nailed down proves just that. It would take many volumes just to describe in minor detail what he did ethically wrong in his 8 long years. If the American people really understood what he did they would not stand for imprisonment, that would not be good enough.

On example is Halliburton no bid contracts. Think about that just for one moment, and what that means. But no one does and instead goes to get a bowl of ice cream and watch American Idol.

He will never ponder, sad at lonely, at the window sill. But I wish he would sit sad and lonely in a jail cell being waterboarded daily as many times as Kalid Sheik Mohammad. 183 times. One has to wonder how much torture a person goes through before they tell you they are Mickey Mouse...

[montn2]

04:31 PM on 11/14/2010

Haliburton has BILLIONS of taxpayer dollars and most of what we got in return was sloppy work.

[Jaxy]

06:00 PM on 11/15/2010

Yup. Sloppy work that resulted in American troops being electocuted ... for being so impertinent as attempting to take a simple cleansing shower.

[MisteRational]

03:15 PM on 11/14/2010

He doesn't miss serving the people. He doesn't miss the opportunity to make history. He doesn't miss meeting with World leaders. He doesn't even miss "spreading Freedoms"...no, he misses being pampered and flying in a jet at taxpayer expenses and"not waiting in traffic"!
He does miss sending our soldiers to their death for corporate profit and personal vendettas.What a great man. We were lucky to have him.
Now, if only he would go away again.

[paulita]

03:37 PM on 11/14/2010

That exactly what I said. Faved!

[signgrrl]

07:32 PM on 11/14/2010

he never "served the people", at least the ones making $250,000 or less