Laura Bush and Burma: Echoes of Disaster

First Lady Laura Bush held a rare press conference today about the cyclone that struck Myanmar (Burma) that may have killed up to 50,000.

AFP today:

"US First Lady Laura Bush accused Myanmar's military rulers Monday of failing to warn their citizens in time about a killer cyclone and pressed the junta to accept US aid in the disaster's wake. 'Although they were aware of the threat, Burma's state-run media failed to issue a timely warning to citizens in the storm's path,' Bush said in an unusual appearance at the White House briefing room podium. 'It's troubling that many of the Burmese people learned of this impending disaster only when foreign outlets, such as Radio Free Asia and Voice of America, sounded the alarm,' she said. Washington calls the country Burma."

Not that Burma's military government doesn't deserve to be criticized for the treatment of its people. But then, of course, there's this:

Washington Post, 1/06: "In the 48 hours before Hurricane Katrina hit, the White House received detailed warnings about the storm's likely impact, including eerily prescient predictions of breached levees, massive flooding, and major losses of life and property, documents show. A 41-page assessment by the Department of Homeland Security's National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center (NISAC), was delivered by e-mail to the White House's 'situation room,' the nerve center where crises are handled, at 1:47 a.m. on Aug. 29, the day the storm hit, according to an e-mail cover sheet accompanying the document...The documents shed new light on the extent on the administration's foreknowledge about Katrina's potential for unleashing epic destruction on New Orleans and other Gulf Coast cities and towns. President Bush, in a televised interview three days after Katrina hit, suggested that the scale of the flooding in New Orleans was unexpected. 'I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees. They did anticipate a serious storm,' Bush said in a Sept. 1 interview on ABC's 'Good Morning America.'"

Laura Bush urged Myanmar to take the foreign aid to help its people. Of course, if Myanmar uses the U.S. as its example, they'll likely refuse it.

Clip AFTER THE JUMP...

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American Idol Part 1: Bush Gives Back?

President Bush and Laura Bush made a valiant attempt to attach themselves to the fundraising juggernaut that is Idol Gives Back, last week's fundraising show for impoverished children which raised more than $70 million.

TRANSCRIPT:

GEORGE: Good evening. Laura and I are pleased to join you tonight and thank you for raising millions of dollars for children living in poverty in America and Africa.

LAURA: Because of your generosity, African children will receive bed nets to protect against malaria, and some of America's poorest children will get medical care and healthy food.

GEORGE: We thank all American Idol viewers who have shown the good heart of America, and we thank all the celebrities who participated - including Bono - and all the contestants who sang their hearts out for these children. Say Laura, do you think I oughta sing something?

LAURA: I don't know darling. They've already seen you dance.

END.

They've also seen Bush strum the guitar while thousands waited for assistance they never received in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It makes one wonder whether his sagging approval rating inspired the sudden interest in the plight of America's poor.

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George and Laura Bush Get Down in the Rose Garden

Yesterday was Malaria Awareness Day and the first couple marked the occasion by busting a few dance moves with the West Africa Dance Company in the White House Rose Garden.

No doubt George and Laura need to blow off some steam given all the suffering they endure.

Video after the jump...

(Gallery at Shakesville via Wonkette)

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Who Suffers Most from Bush's Iraq Policy?

Laura Bush on who suffers most over the President's war in Iraq:

"No one suffers more than their president and I do when we watch this, and certainly the Commander in Chief who has asked our military to go into harm's way."

The families of the soldiers coming home in bodybags may think otherwise.

Video at AmericaBlog.

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Laura Bush: Iraq stable "except for the one bombing a day that discourages everybody." [tr]

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Laura Bush: Iraq stable "except for the one bombing a day that discourages everybody."

Status reports from our fronts:

Dick Cheney in Afghanistan: "A suicide bomber blew himself up this morning outside the main gate of the United States military base at Bagram while Vice President Dick Cheney was inside. Mr. Cheney was not hurt in the attack. The blast killed and wounded American soldiers and Afghan and Pakistani truck drivers and laborers waiting for access at the gate. The incident was at the first security gate of the base, far from where Mr. Cheney was staying. The Associated Press reported that the Taliban claimed responsibility and said Mr. Cheney was the target of the attack."

Laura Bush to Larry King on Iraq: "I hope that they can build their government and reconcile with each other and build a country. This is their opportunity to seize the moment, to build a really good and stable country. And many parts of Iraq are stable now. But, of course, what we see on television is the one bombing a day that discourages everybody." (transcript)

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