President Bush admires of the Oval Office rug and points it out to all Oval Office visitors. So what. The Washington Post saw this as an opportunity to make President Bush look simple.
Nothing says power like the Oval Office. The paintings of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. The bust of Dwight D. Eisenhower. The desk used by both Roosevelts.
And then there's the rug. Don't forget the rug. President Bush never does.For whatever reason, Bush seems fixated on his rug. Virtually all visitors to the Oval Office find him regaling them about how it was chosen and what it represents. Turns out, he always says, the first decision any president makes is what carpet he wants in his office. As a take-charge leader, he then explains, he of course made a command decision -- he delegated the decision to Laura Bush, who chose a yellow sunbeam design.
Elizabeth Vargas, the ABC News anchor, was the latest to get the treatment. She went by last week to interview Bush before his trip to Afghanistan, India and Pakistan. Sure enough, she wasn't in the room but a minute or two before he started telling her about the carpet.
"You know an interesting story about the rug?" he asked. "Laura designed the rug."
"She did?" Vargas said.
"Yeah, she did. Presidents are able to pick their own rugs or design their own rugs."
Bush went on: "The interesting thing about this rug and why I like it in here is 'cause I told Laura one thing. I said, 'Look, I can't pick the colors and all that. But make it say 'optimistic person.' "
Mary Katharine Ham of Hugh Hewitt sees Bush's admiration of the rug as a window into his optimistic character, which it is. Too bad the Post missed an opportunity to write something of substance rather than frivolousness.
Update: A picture of said rug...
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Comments (31)
Thats that Neo-Con Media fo... (Below threshold)1. Posted by one eye buck tooth [X^B | March 7, 2006 5:31 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Thats that Neo-Con Media for ya
controlled thru Neo-Con Office of
Elizabeth Cheney, you know, the LESBIAN, that you people ignore and pretend doesnt exist, oh Horror of horrors, but yes she has control of the BBG.
But wait heres some more LIBRUL media, with OH MY A NEO-CON Crook!! And his Neo-Con Family VAlue EX-Republican congress turned Lobbyists!!
Shock!
More Neo-Con Madness
-------------------------------
As you Saw on the Last Post Susan Molinari is Paxons Wife Whom became a News Anchor for CBS whom, with her Lobbyist Husband Paxon, are NOW Supporting Tom Delay's Campaign.
I guess thats more of the 'Fair and Balanced' thing or what Rush Ditto heads wrongly call 'Librul News'
----------------------------
Yews guys shuld be angry.
why the Right wing media fooling yew into thinking that it was the left wing media..Ah guess yew think dat Busch is a Texxan as instead of a Eastern Liberal Ivey Leaguer too eh?
1. Posted by one eye buck tooth [X^B | March 7, 2006 5:31 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 17:31
2. Posted by Julian | March 7, 2006 5:35 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Well, they really HAD to replace the rug. The previous occupant of the oval office left a bunch of stains all over it.
2. Posted by Julian | March 7, 2006 5:35 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 17:35
3. Posted by SCSIwuzzy | March 7, 2006 5:45 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Thanks bucky, you've provided a text book example of the cognitive dissonance that is BDS.
3. Posted by SCSIwuzzy | March 7, 2006 5:45 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 17:45
4. Posted by bryanD | March 7, 2006 6:37 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Linus has his blanket, W has his rug (the F__ing bike fights back!) and lest we forget:http://weblog.bergersen.net/archives/2004/10/nasa_photo_analyst_says_bush_wore_a_device_during_debate.html
4. Posted by bryanD | March 7, 2006 6:37 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 18:37
5. Posted by seattle slough | March 7, 2006 6:46 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
You can year his rug routine for yourself:
Go to www.whitehouse.gov and click on "tour". Then click on "Oval Office Tour." He talks about the rug first (of course).
He does seem proud.
5. Posted by seattle slough | March 7, 2006 6:46 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 18:46
6. Posted by Maggie | March 7, 2006 7:16 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Yeah, Bush is stupid...dumb...ignorant.
And Bush just keeps pointing out the Oval Office carpet....THE ONE WITH NO, I REPEAT, NO STAINS ON IT!!!!!
Bush is as smart as a fox.
6. Posted by Maggie | March 7, 2006 7:16 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 19:16
7. Posted by JD | March 7, 2006 7:17 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
There seems to be a new variation of troll around here recently.
Can anybody explain how to write a post like Bucky's ? I cannot even begin to imagine the time and effort spent to come up with such drivel.
7. Posted by JD | March 7, 2006 7:17 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 19:17
8. Posted by jp2 | March 7, 2006 7:28 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Wow. Just read his NSA spying program isn't being investigated. Quite a shock. Hopefully the lawsuits will bring about a sea change. No accountability. Sorry for going off topic.
8. Posted by jp2 | March 7, 2006 7:28 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 19:28
9. Posted by Oyster | March 7, 2006 7:29 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I came by expecting some of the usual intelligent discussion I see here often. But not this post! I'll just scroll down to the next one. Bubye, bucky.
9. Posted by Oyster | March 7, 2006 7:29 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 19:29
10. Posted by Darleen | March 7, 2006 9:20 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Oh for heaven's sake.... GW loves Laura, is proud of her and makes one of her designs to the Oval office a point of pride.
But hey, marriages where the man and woman actually love each other is something the relationship-phobic/dysfunction members of the Left cult resent.
10. Posted by Darleen | March 7, 2006 9:20 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 7, 2006 21:20
11. Posted by jack | March 8, 2006 12:25 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
What's the big deal? So did Bill Clinton. Well, it was a rug...and it was near the Oval Office.
11. Posted by jack | March 8, 2006 12:25 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 00:25
12. Posted by Synova | March 8, 2006 12:51 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
It's a great rug.
And you *can't* dis a guy who makes a point of bragging on his wife.
12. Posted by Synova | March 8, 2006 12:51 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 00:51
13. Posted by jc | March 8, 2006 1:11 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Can anybody explain how to write a post like Bucky's ? I cannot even begin to imagine the time and effort spent to come up with such drivel.
Smoke a couple of dozen doobies and watch MTV for 72 hours straight and Bucky's post will make perfect sense to you.
13. Posted by jc | March 8, 2006 1:11 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 01:11
14. Posted by Paul | March 8, 2006 3:02 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Like so many things with the media, I *thought* they had a point until I SAW the rug... Damn thing IS good looking. I'd be proud of it too.
If I'm ever President, I'll get another made just like it.... And be sure to mention it to wennies in the press.
14. Posted by Paul | March 8, 2006 3:02 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 03:02
15. Posted by Son Of The Godfather | March 8, 2006 4:38 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
So... We went from the Cheney-shooting non-story to an invisible "civil war" in Iraq to the President's admiration of a rug his wife designed...
The term "grasping at straws" comes to mind.
(What headline next?... BREAKING: "Bush prefers Coke to Pepsi!!"
15. Posted by Son Of The Godfather | March 8, 2006 4:38 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 04:38
16. Posted by Nicholas | March 8, 2006 5:57 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Not only is that's a very nice rug, but it fits in with the decor perfectly.
16. Posted by Nicholas | March 8, 2006 5:57 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 05:57
17. Posted by jpm100 | March 8, 2006 6:13 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Bush, carpet, toss in a Clinton reference and I'm sure there's one hell of a dirty joke there somewhere.
17. Posted by jpm100 | March 8, 2006 6:13 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 06:13
18. Posted by Dodd | March 8, 2006 8:33 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Who's simple?
Vargas expressed dutiful admiration for the rug and then tried to move on to more serious issues. Noting that Bush has two daughters in their twenties, she asked, "Any chances of a White House wedding for either of them, do you think?"
IOW, 'Enough about your rug, Mr. President. Let's have some gossip about your daughters.'
18. Posted by Dodd | March 8, 2006 8:33 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 08:33
19. Posted by seawitch | March 8, 2006 8:44 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
It's a beautiful rug and President Bush is clearly proud that Laura designed it. What's the big deal? The man loves his wife and her accomplishments.
19. Posted by seawitch | March 8, 2006 8:44 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 08:44
20. Posted by Alex | March 8, 2006 10:58 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Of course he likes the rug, it is something that was design by someone he cares. Obviously, she returns the feeling to spend time and effort to design something that fit in the room's decors but still reflect his character. May be it is a foreign concept to Elizabeth Vargas that 2 persons can care, love and be proud of the other accomplishments.
20. Posted by Alex | March 8, 2006 10:58 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 10:58
21. Posted by The Dude | March 8, 2006 11:10 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
That rug really ties the room together.
21. Posted by The Dude | March 8, 2006 11:10 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 11:10
22. Posted by epador | March 8, 2006 11:53 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
JT, how could you miss the great irony of the next line of questioning as provided by Dodd? It is a great rug, and in a great office. Note how he isn't sitting behind a desk, but right in an oval of chairs, yet at the head of the Presidential Seal.
Of course, then my dirty mind takes over, and wonders how long the camera that took that bird's eye image has been in the Oval Office and if there aren't somewhere hidden in a locked archive some interesting images of the last president and his intern.
22. Posted by epador | March 8, 2006 11:53 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 11:53
23. Posted by epador | March 8, 2006 11:54 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Oops, I mean KP, got my posts reversed.
23. Posted by epador | March 8, 2006 11:54 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 11:54
24. Posted by Paul Zrimsek | March 8, 2006 1:40 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Does uxoriousness count as a "high crime or misdemeanor"? It sure sounds like the sort of thing that might, doesn't it?
24. Posted by Paul Zrimsek | March 8, 2006 1:40 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 13:40
25. Posted by Paula | March 8, 2006 2:56 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I'm guessing the President's pride in the rug comes from its connection to his wife. That's sweet, not stupid.
25. Posted by Paula | March 8, 2006 2:56 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 14:56
26. Posted by bethright | March 8, 2006 3:17 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
But hey, marriages where the man and woman actually love each other is something the relationship-phobic/dysfunction members of the Left cult resent.
Posted by: Darleen at March 7, 2006 09:20 PM
Darleen,
When did you get out of the asylum? They had you locked-up for a pretty long time, and this site was all the better for it. I hope the electro-shock helped...
Funny you should talk about the "love" of people on the right. If you ever read anything other than the National Enquirer, you'd know that the divorce rate is higher in "red" states than in "blue" states. In fact, MA has the lowest divorce rate in the country.
Why do you make it sooooo easy for us to show what a moron you are?
26. Posted by bethright | March 8, 2006 3:17 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 15:17
27. Posted by Nomorelies | March 8, 2006 8:41 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Put the rug on ebay and watch the bids go through the stratsophere. Bucky, you don't make a bit of sense.
27. Posted by Nomorelies | March 8, 2006 8:41 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 20:41
28. Posted by Donna | March 8, 2006 9:57 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I think that is a really attractive rug
28. Posted by Donna | March 8, 2006 9:57 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 8, 2006 21:57
29. Posted by Son Of The Godfather | March 9, 2006 4:01 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I think today Powerline has a story on Vargas, the ABC "reporter" who has rug envy... Seems she likes to cherry-pick her poll numbers to suit her agenda...
She quotes the flawed "32% approval" numbers, while ignoring her own stations "41% approval" numbers... Among other things.
No bias there
29. Posted by Son Of The Godfather | March 9, 2006 4:01 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 9, 2006 04:01
30. Posted by Mikey | March 9, 2006 1:02 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Guys, don't be so hard on Bucky. All of the words in bucky's post make perfect sense. Just not juxtaposed to one another.
30. Posted by Mikey | March 9, 2006 1:02 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 9, 2006 13:02
31. Posted by EndlessEcho | March 10, 2006 12:40 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
bethright,
Congratulations on a pathetic attempt to use a useless statistic. All you've proven is that in states that have voted republican, there is a higher percentage of divorce. What you haven't proven is whether the number of people getting divorced are republican, democrat, or other. For all we know the percentage of people getting divorced could vote republican or they could vote democrat. All these red vs. blue state statistics are just petty attempts to make one side feel better than the other. It's a good way to keep us divided by giving us poor statistics.
31. Posted by EndlessEcho | March 10, 2006 12:40 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 10, 2006 00:40