El cambio you can believe in

Yesterday, Bush was interviewed by Peru’s América TV, in advance of his trip to Peru today. He used the interview to demonstrate his excellent Spanish:

Q: Mr. President, you built a relationship with Peru because you have a close friendship with President Toledo --

BUSH: Sí.

Q: -- with former President Toledo, which held the negotiations in favor of FTA --

BUSH: Sí.

And:

President Garcia is muy amable.

And:

Q: One last question, President -- Mr. President. Elected President Obama said in his slogan, his campaign slogan, that change is the main thing for America.

BUSH: El cambio.

IN OTHER PALABRAS: “ours is a country that promoted free and fair trade, which is the best way to help nations develop their economies. I mean, in other words, you’re a Peruvian farmer, you’d like to be selling into U.S. markets, and -- because it’s a big market.”

WHAT GEORGE IS CERTAIN A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD SAID: “when I was on TV, for example, after 9/11, I was talking about securing the United States and the war on terror. And so I’m certain a lot of people in the neighborhood, Central and South America, said, well, he’s only focused on the Middle East; he doesn’t really seem to care about us.”

CAPITALISM WITH A CHIMPY FACE: “And the only thing the United States tries to do is to show the human side of the philosophy that most leaders embrace, which is freedom, free markets, free trade, and social justice.”

Getting a jump on those memoirs, George talked about his legacy:

WHAT DEMOCRACY IS: “Democracy is more vibrant in parts of the world that didn’t see democracy.”

WHAT TRADE IS: “Trade is -- agreements are more abundant now.”