With the winds of war blowing, we are in the hands of the most powerful man in the world, George W. Bush. Now, no one is claiming, as Plato did, that states should be governed by philosophers, but it would be good for them to be in the hands of someone with clear ideas. It’s instructive to look at some sites on the Internet that have collected Bush’s famous sayings. Among those sayings that have no date or place, I’ve found: “If we don’t succeed, we run the risk of failure,” “It’s time for the human race to enter the solar system,” “It isn’t pollution that’s harming the environment, it’s the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.”
To journalists: “I would have to ask the questioner. I haven’t had a chance to ask the questioners the question they’ve been questioning” (Austin, Texas, January 8, 2001). “I think if you know what you believe, it makes it a lot easier to answer questions. I can’t answer your question” (Reynoldsburg, Ohio, October 4, 2000). “The woman who knew that I had dyslexia—I never interviewed her” (Orange County, California, September 15, 2000).
Politics: “Illegitimacy is something we should talk about in terms of not having it” (May 20, 1996). “I believe we are on an irreversible trend toward more freedom and democracy—but that could change” (May 22, 1998). “I am mindful not only of preserving executive powers for myself, but for predecessors as well” (Washington, January 29, 2001). “We are ready to work with both parties to reduce the level of terror to a level acceptable to both sides” (Washington, October 2, 2001). “I know there is a lot of ambition in Washington, obviously. But I hope the ambitious realize that they are more likely to succeed with success as opposed to failure” (Associated Press interview, January 18, 2001). “The great thing about America is that everyone should vote” (Austin, December 8, 2000). “We want anybody who can find work to be able to find work” (60 Minutes II, CBS, December 5, 2000). “One of the common denominators I have found is that expectations rise above that which is expected” (Los Angeles, September 27, 2000). “It’s very important for folks to understand that when there’s more trade, there’s more commerce” (Summit of the Americas, Quebec City, April 21, 2001).
Education: “Quite frankly, teachers are the only profession that teach our children” (September 18, 1995). “We’re going to have the best educated American people in the world” (September 21, 1997). “I want it to be said that the Bush administration was a results-oriented administration, because I believe the results of focusing our attention and energy on teaching children to read and having an education system that’s responsive to the child and to the parents, as opposed to mired in a system that refuses to change, will make America what we want it to be—a literate country and a hopefuller country” (Washington, January 11, 2001). “The public education system in America is one of the most important foundations of our democracy. After all, it is where children from all over America learn to be responsible citizens, and learn to have the skills necessary to take advantage of our fantastic opportunistic system” (May 1, 2002).
Science: “Mars is essentially in the same orbit . . . Mars is somewhat the same distance from the Sun, which is very important. We have seen pictures where there are canals, we believe, and water. If there is water, that means there is oxygen. If oxygen, that means we can breathe” (November 8, 1994). “For NASA, space is still a high priority” (September 5, 1993). “Natural gas is hemispheric. I like to call it hemispheric in nature because it is a product that we can find in our neighborhoods” (Austin, December 20, 2000). “I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully” (Saginaw, Michigan, September 29, 2000).
Foreign countries: “We spent a lot of time talking about Africa, as we should. Africa is a nation that suffers from incredible disease” (press conference, June 14, 2001). “I [spoke] recently with Vicente Fox, the newly elected president in Mexico. He’s a man I know from Mexico. I talked about how best to expedite the exploration of natural gas in Mexico and transport it up to the United States, so we become less dependent on foreign sources of crude oil” (first presidential debate, October 3, 2000). “The problem with the French is that they don’t have a word for ‘entrepreneur’ ” (discussion with Prime Minister Tony Blair). “Do you have blacks too?” (to President Fernando Cardoso of Brazil, April 28, 2002). “After all, a week ago, there were—Yasser Arafat was boarded up in his building in Ramallah, a building full of, evidently, German peace protesters and all kinds of people. They’re now out. He’s now free to show leadership, to lead the world” (Washington, May 2, 2002). “More and more of our imports come from overseas” (Beaverton, Oregon, September 25, 2000). “I understand that unrest in the Middle East creates unrest throughout the region” (Washington, March 13, 2002). “My trip to Asia begins here in Japan for an important reason. It begins here because for a century and a half now, America and Japan have formed one of the great and enduring alliances of modern times. From that alliance has come an era of peace in the Pacific” (Tokyo, February 18, 2002).
2002