For this year's "Foot In Mouth" award I hereby nominate:
"Barbara Bush Sees Silver Lining in Disaster
Relocation Working for Refugees Who Are 'Underprivileged Anyway'
By PAM EASTON, AP
HOUSTON (Sept. 6) - Former Presidents Bush and Clinton got smiles, hugs
and requests for autographs when they met with refugees from Hurricane
Katrina - but it was Bush's wife who got attention for some of her
comments.
Barbara Bush, who accompanied the former presidents on a tour of the
Astrodome complex Monday, said the relocation to Houston is "working
very well" for some of the poor people forced out of New Orleans.
"What I'm hearing, which is sort of scary, is they all want to stay in
Texas. Everyone is so overwhelmed by the hospitality," she said during
a radio interview with the American Public Media program "Marketplace."
"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were
underprivileged anyway, so this is working very well for them."
Her comments came as the two former presidents visited with hundreds of
the 23,600 hurricane refugees and announced the creation of the
Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund.
"We're most anxious to roll up our sleeves and get to work," George
H.W. Bush said. "It will take all of us working together to accomplish
our goal. This job is too big for any one group."
Clinton said he thinks the federal government's response to the tragedy
should be examined. But for now, he said, the focus should be on
helping the refugees restart their lives.
"There is still a lot of anger. There is still a lot of confusion, but
I don't think we should be surprised," Clinton said. "These people lost
everything and the experience they had in the Superdome or the
convention center was horrible."
The elder Bush said he doesn't like the criticism leveled at his son,
President Bush, but added, "As a president it goes with territory."
As the Bushes entered a shelter set up at the Reliant Center with Texas
Gov. Rick Perry, Perry and Barbara Bush immediately gravitated toward
two children, while former president Bush shook hands with a group of
men.
After a brief exchange with one girl, Barbara Bush grabbed her hand and
took her to meet her husband. Barbara Bush placed her arm around the
girl's back and the child smiled widely as she talked with the former
president.
Clinton toured the shelter with his wife, Sen. Hillary Clinton of New
York, and Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.
Obama, picked up a little girl who brought him a small heart she had
made in a makeshift daycare center at the shelter.
"What's your name, sweetie? You look so pretty," Obama said to the
girl. "You made this heart and you decided to give it to Bill Clinton,
didn't you?"
The little girl, named Kearra, shook her head affirmatively.
"Well, I give you my heart," Clinton said, giving the tiny toddler a
hug. "You're beautiful. Thank you for the heart."
09-06-05