Tuesday, July 10, 2007

I’m a high expectations person


Oh sure, many of the top positions in the Department of Heimat Security remain unfilled, but who needs them when you’ve got Michael Chertoff, who is able to predict terrorist attacks in the US this summer because he has a “gut feeling.”

Bush spoke today to the Greater Cleveland Partnership. CLE+! CLE+!


He talked tough, even violently, about taxes: “we acted and cut taxes -- and cut them hard”.


Talking about taxes brought out the exceedingly rare triple – yes, I said triple – In Other Words: “Most small businesses are Subchapter S corporations or limited partnerships. In other words, they pay tax at the individual income tax rate. So, therefore, when you cut income taxes on everybody who pays taxes -- in other words, when you lower the rates, it affects the ability of small businesses to keep capital; in other words, keep more of what they earn.”

After that, the single In Other Words he used talking about health care was rather unsatisfying: “And the reason I emphasize private insurance, the best health care plan -- the best health care policy is one that emphasizes private health. In other words, the opposite of that would be government control of health care.” I think be believes that was some sort of logical argument. He says that he will “resist Congress’s attempt to federalize medicine.” You didn’t even know Congress was trying to federalize medicine, did you?

He mentioned that he’d visited the Cleveland Clinic, where they let him play a video game at the Center for Advance Study of Therapies for Brain Injury.


I assume the video game must be one of their therapies for brain injury. Sadly, they could not help with his, for lack of a better word, brain, and after a few moments he got bored and wandered away.


Anyway, he said the Clinic had something called outcome books. “In other words, we’re willing to be measured, says the good doc.”

He again complained about sick people not having to pay their own medical bills: “How many of you have ever actually tried to price a medical service? Probably not many. ... Well, if somebody else pays the bills, why do you care what the cost is at the time of purchase?” Er, who is this argument aimed at? Why would anyone want to be price a medical service, or to have to care what the cost is at the time of purchase? Is anyone clamoring for a system under which they make decisions not based solely on medical needs, but financial ones?

He also said, “we’ve got to relieve the pressure on the pig farmer.” How true. How very true.

He talked about energy. He said, “If you’re really interested in the environment, like a lot of people are...” then you have to support nuclear power. But only if you’re really interested in the environment.

Before turning to the war portion of the speech, he said, “So my stop here has been really aimed at heralding technology. You got to be optimistic about America’s future, because of some of the great technologies that are taking place.” For example, this fuel cell forklift they let him play with.


He had some bad news to break: “I regret I have to tell you we’re in war.” Although it’s okay if you don’t believe him: “Some in America don’t believe we’re at war, and that’s their right.”

He talked about the enemy: “These folks aren’t isolated folks, you know, they just kind of randomly show up. They have an objective.”

He said about Iraq, “And I fully understand how tough it is on our psyche. I fully understand that when you watch the violence on TV every night, people are saying, is it worth it?” Dude, watching violence on tv is always worth it.

“I want to tell you, yes, we can accomplish and win this fight in Iraq.”

He says Congress should “give General David Petraeus a chance to come back and tell us whether his strategy is working.” “That’s what the American people expect. They expect for military people to come back and tell us how the military operations are going.” (Update: having now seen the video, I’ve added italics to show the strong emphasis he put on both instances of the word military in that sentence, indicating that mere politicians should not itch to interfere with matters which they do not understand.)


YOU GOTTA BELIEEEEVE! “And I strongly believe it. And I strongly believe we will prevail. And I strongly believe that democracy will trump totalitarianism every time. That’s what I believe. And those are the belief systems on which I’m making decisions that I believe will yield the peace.”

In the Q&A, someone asked him about NASA, and he said that he, personally, had changed NASA’s mission to make it more “relevant.” What it used to do: “orbiting in a space shuttle – in a space station.” What it will do: Mars, baby!

A Pakistani asked about public diplomacy in the Muslim world, and how when he visits Pakistan, they tell him he’s crazy to live in the US. Bush says that no doubt the questioner tells those Pakistanis, “I love living in America, the land of the free and the home of the brave,” then asks him if he’s a Muslim, and tells him the US is a great country where he can worship freely, although I’m pretty sure he’s free to be a Muslim in Pakistan. Then he said that the US isn’t at war with Islam, because “we’re not facing religious people, we’re facing people whose hearts are filled with hate, who have subverted a great religion.” Yeah, ‘cause hate and religion have always been totally incompatible.

I haven’t seen the video, but I gather he made a 13-year old who asked a question about immigration cry by responding sarcastically.

About education: “And so I strongly believe it’s in the national interest to say, we expect you to read -- unless, of course, you happen to believe they can’t. I’m a high expectations person.”

A high expectations person! That’s the funniest thing we’ve ever heard!


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