02-20-2005, 12:48 PM
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#1
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Golden Member
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Bush- the POT smoker...
Private tapes shed light on candidate Bush
Conversations on political foes, drugs recorded by old friend
The Associated Press
Updated: 9:36 p.m. ET Feb. 19, 2005NEW YORK - Private conversations with George Bush secretly taped by an old friend before he was elected president foreshadow some of his political strategies and appear to reveal that he acknowledged using marijuana, The New York Times reported Saturday.
The conversations were recorded by Doug Wead, a former aide to George W. Bush’s father, beginning in 1998, when Bush was weighing a presidential bid, until just before the Republican National Convention in 2000, the Times said in a story posted on its Web site.
The tapes show Bush crafting a strategy for navigating the tricky political waters between Christian conservative and secular voters, repeatedly worrying that evangelicals would be angered by a refusal to bash gays and that secular Americans would be turned off by meetings with evangelical leaders.
On one tape, Bush explains that he told one prominent evangelical that he would not “kick gays, because I’m a sinner. How can I differentiate sin?”
Candid talk about foes, drugs
In early tapes, Bush dismisses the strength of John McCain for the nomination and expresses concern about rival Steve Forbes. He also praises John Ashcroft as a promising candidate for Supreme Court justice, attorney general or vice president.
Bush also criticizes then-Vice President Al Gore for admitting marijuana use and explains why he would not do the same.
“I wouldn’t answer the marijuana questions,” he said, according to the Times. “You know why? Because I don’t want some little kid doing what I tried.”
According to the article, Wead played 12 of the tapes to a Times reporter. He said he recorded them because he viewed Bush as a historic figure. He is the author of a new book on presidential childhoods.
The White House did not deny the authenticity of the tapes.
“The governor was having casual conversations with someone he believed was his friend,” White House spokesman Trent Duffy said, referring to Bush.
© 2005 The Associated
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Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well- warmed, and well-fed."
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02-20-2005, 12:54 PM
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#2
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RE: Bush- the POT smoker...
I cannot tell you what contempt I hold for such a "friend". As much as I despise Richard Clarke this guy takes the cake.
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"Yankees fans who say “flags fly forever’’ are right, you never lose that. It reinforces all the good things about being a fan. ... It’s black and white. You (the Mavs) won a title. That’s it and no one can say s--- about it.’’
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02-20-2005, 01:54 PM
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#3
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Diamond Member
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Hippie Hollow
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
Oh My God!! - not the pot.
Effects of this dangerous killer narcotic has turned our beloved leader into a war monger... right reeds?
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02-20-2005, 04:27 PM
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#4
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
"Oh My God!! - not the pot.
Effects of this dangerous killer narcotic has turned our beloved leader into a war monger... right reeds?"
Classic, pure republican spew at its best. If it were Clinton being accused of this, there would be 20 replies by now, all bashing him..but instead, its "Oh my God, not the pot"... I am sure he didnt inhale anyway...unreal
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Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well- warmed, and well-fed."
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02-20-2005, 04:44 PM
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#5
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Diamond Member
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
Quote:
Originally posted by: reeds
Classic, pure republican spew at its best. If it were Clinton being accused of this, there would be 20 replies by now, all bashing him..but instead, its "Oh my God, not the pot"... I am sure he didnt inhale anyway...unreal
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Reeds this ain't news... everybody in America between the age of 45-60 has tried marijuana. For some reason this particular AP writer decided to sensationalize a miniscule part of the overall "Secret Bush Tapes" story. (Gee, I wonder why)
Besides its been widely reported that Bush WAS a cokehead with drinking problem... that's your story - and it has come and gone. I can assure you no one in America is shocked by the news Bush 'may have tried weed'.
The Clinton story was actually a story because he tried to spin it. " I did smoke pot once, but I didn't inhale." Smooth move Billy - I would hope the leader of the free world would be smart enough to know how to get high.
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02-20-2005, 08:07 PM
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#6
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
of course i am not shocked bushy tried weed.
Yes, Clinton may have spun it, but it was still an admission.. Did Bush come out and admit he was a coke head? If he has, I wasnt aware of it...
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Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well- warmed, and well-fed."
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02-20-2005, 08:20 PM
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#7
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Guru
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RE: Bush- the POT smoker...
I forgot, clinton tried it but didn't inhale.. It wasn't a story about clinton, except his pathetic attempt to hide it. I think clintons sexual harrassment IN OFFICE and draft dodging was more of an issue than his not "inhaling".
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"Yankees fans who say “flags fly forever’’ are right, you never lose that. It reinforces all the good things about being a fan. ... It’s black and white. You (the Mavs) won a title. That’s it and no one can say s--- about it.’’
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02-20-2005, 08:33 PM
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#8
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RE: Bush- the POT smoker...
Is this you reeds??
--------------
Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY): Well, you know, they are manipulating the media, they did it in the very beginning through intimidation. They would intimidate the people in the, uh, in the press conference. And ... they would ask — they would allow questions to be asked only of people that they knew were going to ask the right kind of questions, from their point of view. And, you know, that has its effect, had, had its effect on people. People have been — people in the media have been intimidated. The media has changed in the last four years. People have changed in the last four years. They’ve had a very very direct, aggressive attack on the, on the media, and the way it’s handled. Probably the most flagrant example of that is the way they set up Dan Rather. Now, I mean, I have my own beliefs about how that happened: it originated with Karl Rove, in my belief, in the White House. They set that up with those false papers. Why did they do it? They knew that Bush was a draft dodger. They knew that he had run away from his responsibilties in the Air National Guard in Texas, gone out of the state intentionally for a long period of time. They knew that he had no defense for that period in his life. And so what they did was, expecting that that was going to come up, they accentuated it: they produced papers that made it look even worse. And they — and they distributed those out to elements of the media. And it was only — what, like was it CBS? Or whatever, whatever which one Rather works for. They — the people there — they finally bought into it, and they, and they aired it. And when they did, they had ’em. They didn’t care who did it! All they had to do is to get some element of the media to advance that issue. Based upon the false papers that they produced.
Audience Member: Do you have any evidence for that?
Congressman Hinchey: Yes I do. Once they did that —
Audience: [Murmuring]
Congressman Hinchey: ...once they did that, then it undermined everything else about Bush’s draft dodging. Once they were able to say, ‘This is false! These papers are not accurate, they’re, they’re, they’re false, they’ve been falsified.’ That had the effect of taking the whole issue away.
Audience Member: So you have evidence that the papers came from the Bush administration?
Congressman Hinchey: No. I — that’s my belief.
Audience Member: OK.
Congressman Hinchey: And I said that. In the very beginning. I said, ‘It’s my belief that those papers, and that setup, originated with Karl Rove and the White House.’
Audience Member: Don’t you think it’s irresponsible to make charges like that?
Congressman Hinchey: No I don’t. I think it’s very important to make charges like that. I think it’s very important to combat this kind of activity in every way that you can. And I’m willing — and most people are not — to step forward in situations like this and take risks.
Audience: [Clapping and cheering.]
Congressman Hinchey: I consider that to be part of my job, and I’m gonna continue to do it.
__________________
"Yankees fans who say “flags fly forever’’ are right, you never lose that. It reinforces all the good things about being a fan. ... It’s black and white. You (the Mavs) won a title. That’s it and no one can say s--- about it.’’
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02-21-2005, 12:56 PM
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#9
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Golden Member
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: TX
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
I'm impressed, really. Every newsperson in the country would love to get their hands on something to use to paint W as a bad guy and this is the best they can dig up.
I think it's great. It shows to me that he is consistent whether in the public eye or talking to a friend. It shows that in private he isn't a homo-hater. It shows that he really is a God fearing man. It's not just a political face. He did actually nominate Ashcroft. This strengthen Bush in my eyes.
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02-21-2005, 02:45 PM
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#10
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Member
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Posts: 695
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
Quote:
Originally posted by: jacktruth
I'm impressed, really. Every newsperson in the country would love to get their hands on something to use to paint W as a bad guy and this is the best they can dig up.
I think it's great. It shows to me that he is consistent whether in the public eye or talking to a friend. It shows that in private he isn't a homo-hater. It shows that he really is a God fearing man. It's not just a political face. He did actually nominate Ashcroft. This strengthen Bush in my eyes.
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02-21-2005, 07:23 PM
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#11
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Platinum Member
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
Vinne and reeds you forgot the other part of the tapes, Bush - the non GAY Hater.
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02-21-2005, 07:47 PM
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#12
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Golden Member
Join Date: May 2001
Posts: 1,811
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
*YAWN*
__________________
Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well- warmed, and well-fed."
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02-21-2005, 09:58 PM
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#13
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Platinum Member
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Plano, Tx
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RE: Bush- the POT smoker...
Hey it's not like it matters now, he already got re-elected. You can uncover all the dirt on him you want but unless you find out that he murdered eighteen people he's going to remain the president. Too little too late ;o
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02-21-2005, 10:29 PM
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#14
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Golden Member
Join Date: May 2001
Posts: 1,811
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
18? hmmmm...
__________________
Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well- warmed, and well-fed."
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02-21-2005, 11:13 PM
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#15
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Platinum Member
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Posts: 2,431
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
This does come as a shock to me. Too bad it took a man pretending to be George's friend, lying, being deceitful and recording a phone call to figure it out, but whatever. You'd be hard-pressed to find a man of George's age who hasn't tried a drug of any form.
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02-25-2005, 06:27 PM
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#16
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Inactive.
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 42,986
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RE: Bush- the POT smoker...
man, the apologists are out in force-- lets not talk about the subject, lets get pissed at the person who released it.
Give me a break.
And its not a big deal, but it sure gives the Republicans that jumped on Clinton something to think about, lest they become hypocritical.
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02-26-2005, 12:06 AM
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#17
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Golden Member
Join Date: May 2001
Posts: 1,811
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
"And its not a big deal, but it sure gives the Republicans that jumped on Clinton something to think about, lest they become hypocritical."
EXACTALLY- its typical republican..thats basically the point here..if it were CLINTON or another democrat, all hell would break lose..but since its Bush, its Ok...everyone has tried it..
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Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well- warmed, and well-fed."
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02-26-2005, 12:11 AM
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#18
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Guru
Join Date: May 2002
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RE: Bush- the POT smoker...
What is it some sort of shock that dubya may have smoked pot when he was young? I certainly didn't tell my children of indiscretions when younger. They didn't need to know and to be honest it wasn't any of their business.
Anything you want to admit to?
If clinton had handled this like dubya I would have been fine with it. Not "inhaling" tells a little more about his character than standing on a principal and possibly taking political heat for it. I had a lot more issues with clinton's poicies than his personal stuff. Gotcha politics is a very disruptive situation in our politic right now. I believe there are many good people who say to heck with it as someone will find out some personal item and they will be outed. Unfortunate.
Althgough his personal stuff (kathleen Wiley, paula jones, gennifer flowers, bj's in the oval office, lying under oath, attempted character assasination of an intern, obstruction of justice, sexual harrassement OF that intern ) all seemed to be stuff to me while IN office (either as governor or president), not 30 years before when in college and pretty directly is a reflection of his character.
I guess you can try to equate the two men and their indiscretions but I cannot. Not unexpected of course. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]
__________________
"Yankees fans who say “flags fly forever’’ are right, you never lose that. It reinforces all the good things about being a fan. ... It’s black and white. You (the Mavs) won a title. That’s it and no one can say s--- about it.’’
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02-26-2005, 12:13 AM
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#19
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Guru
Join Date: May 2002
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RE: Bush- the POT smoker...
Not to mention the public lynching that Lynda Tripp underwent. For some reason I don't see the same outrage in our national media, but that just could be me and I'm missing the front pages and the SNL skits.
__________________
"Yankees fans who say “flags fly forever’’ are right, you never lose that. It reinforces all the good things about being a fan. ... It’s black and white. You (the Mavs) won a title. That’s it and no one can say s--- about it.’’
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02-26-2005, 02:32 AM
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#20
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Diamond Member
Join Date: Jul 2004
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RE:Bush- the POT smoker...
I would argue an admission of drug use and/or the exposure of past drug use in 2005 is not the same sensational story it was a decade ago.
Remember how vile and disturbing the "drug epedemic" was in the mid-late 1980's. Illicit drugs were such a menance to our youth that we actually declared war on them. Scruff McGruff, D.A.R.E., Punky Brewster, etc. we all got the point. Drugs are bad, especially the gateway (to pringles) drugs like pot.
However 20 years later many politicians consider the US drug policy, especially in the case of marijuana, unsustainable, and in most cases not justifiable. We now have the push towards decriminalization, which is bolstered by numerous states instituting their own medical mary jane laws. Only the most ignorant public figures (John Ashcroft) are still lining up to demonize weed.
No matter how much money is spent, the propaganda machine is, more or less, ineffective. More people every day are realizing Marijuana is not a drug to be outlawed, but a substance to be subscribed.
Therefore in the year 2005...
Regardless of party affiliation, the Bush pot story is not as newsworthy as the Clinton pot story was. Not only because Clinton tried to spin his "drug use" with a pretty transparent rebuttle, but because the climate of drug awarness in American households was considerably different in 1992.
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