I am recovering from watching CNN...

They were covering a National Literature Convention, and they televised Laura Bush reading a welcome home "poem" by our acting President.

For curiosity, I ran it past the Spell Checker in my MS-Word program. It gave it a Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level of 1.3.

This does not strike me as rising to the level of being worthy of political debate. It definitely struck me as a national embarrassment though, to have the CNN commentator say "Stay tuned for a piece of Presidential Poetry;" and then hear a piece of elementary school level drivel read by his librarian wife.

I don't know how has it been handled on the FAUX news channel, and I have no intention of tuning in Rush Limbaugh to hear him praise the president's writing skills. I would like some input from other AD members.

Does it leave you feeling embarrassed for Laura Bush?
Does it contribute to a growing body of evidence that the Democrats stand a chance in 2004?
Will it further your support of our President in his efforts to vanquish world terror? (Or would that fit better as a topic in "Defending the Indefensible?)

The question to comment on: How does this "Presidential Poetry" inspire you?

I think she ought to go back to France and hook up with Jacques Chirac.

That was a nice kiss!

Of course we have no idea how a troglodyte like our Commander-In-Chief romances his wife in private. But the kiss Laura Bush received on the hand is far more eloquent than Dubya's doggerel.

Laura Bush is a warm and sweet person. I think she deserves better.

LOL! Oh my, I hadn't heard this one.

HM...I feel decidedly uninspired by the president's handiwork. I'm slightly embarrassed for Laura, but she did elect to read the thing on national television. Why? My husband wrote me a tremendous poem and he made me swear not to show it to anyone. Bush's poem doesn't rise to the level of Dr Seuss.

On the bright side, Bush could've paid someone to write the poem (I think I remember that from a movie or television), but he obviously wrote it himself. Now, we are left to ponder what this means. I don't know.

Dear Dubya,
Roses are red
Violets are blue
Oh my lump in the Presidency
I won't miss you!

BAHHAHHAA...Wouldn't that just be too deliciously ironic?

LOL! Hey, that poem was better than Dubya's !!!

It inspired me to bust a gut laughing.

I have to agree with Mrs. P as far as wondering why Laura would read it publicly. I've received love poems, and I know that sometimes you don't realise how bad it is when you get caught up in the emotion- but this is really bad. And anyway, surely other people had seen it before she read it in public.

I'm stuck on the line, "Oh my lump in the bed." I can not figure out what that means. I've already spent too much time trying to figure it out. Would someone be kind enough to explain this to me?

I love Poetry and the President and so I have been inspired by his poem to write my own...

Roses are red
Violoets are blue
George, this thing sucks.

On a defensive note, I have to say that I believe the poem was a joke. If they were serious about the president releasing a poem... they would've had his speech writer do one, just like Clinton did. Further more, I find my presidents skills at foriegn diplomacy and national policy to be more important than his poem writing ability and I happen to believe he's doing a great job of being president. You might not, but as best as I can tell, he's governing well.

Now, I'm inspired too. We should all write our own poetry:

Roses are red
Violets are violet
If your poetry sucks
It's best to remain silent

In answer to your curiosity, Jaime, he's referring to the body he puts his back against in bed for support. That's why it's a little bit of a backhand slap to Mrs. Bush: she could be replaced with a firm pillow that can be plugged in to approximate body temperature, or she just lies there.

This scenario reminds me of an exchange between Lady Astor and Winston Churchill.

Lady Astor: If you were my husband, I would give you poison.
Churchill: Madam, if I were your husband, I would take it.

Roses are red
Violets are blue
Oh my, lump in the bed
How I've missed you.
Roses are redder
Bluer am I
Seeing you kissed by that charming French guy.
The dogs and the cat, they missed you too
Barney's still mad you dropped him, he ate your shoe
The distance, my dear, has been such a barrier
Next time you want an adventure, just land on a carrier.
link

Dear Laura,
Roses are red,
Violets are Blue.
Oh my lump in the bed,
I missed you. Bush Jr.




Poetry should please by a fine excess and not by singularity.
It should strike the reader as a wording of his own highest thoughts,
and appear almost as a remembrance.

John Keats


A glance into the deep and very intellectual thoughts of GW...

Thanks for the verse:
It's the thought that counts.
But lit'rary skills?
You haven't an ounce.
Yeah, violets are blue
And roses are red,
But you called me a lump -
Now kindly drop dead.

-- Laura Bush

LOL! Good one, Wertz.

Maybe making this little poem public was Laura Bush's subtle way of saying,
"Now do you see what I've got to put up with?!"

Obviously Laura Bush was sent to Europe to do damage control after Dubya ran roughshod over the European leaders. It would do Dubya well to treat that lady better, starting with his expressions of affection.

Roses aren't blue
And violets aren't red
Now pack up your jammies,
Get outta my bed!!!

--Laura Bush