By late August, the White House announced that Bush had still another version. "I think you can expect this week there might be some new language," press secretary Scott McClellan said on Aug. 30. With the exception of a "major speech" before the United Nations on Sept. 21, that speech remained the operative version for about a month, until McClellan announced on Oct. 4 that Bush would "give a significant speech."
"Today, President Bush unveiled a new stump speech," National Public Radio faithfully reported on Oct. 6.
President Bush delivers what the White House billed as a new speech in Greeley, Colo.
(Michael Robinson-chavez -- The Washington Post)
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_____White House Notebook_____
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Bush's Domestic Policy Gap (The Washington Post, Oct 12, 2004)
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Couldn't Have Said It Any Better Himself (The Washington Post, Sep 28, 2004)
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Bush's Records Keep Trickling Out (The Washington Post, Sep 14, 2004)
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A Swift Shift in Stories (The Washington Post, Aug 31, 2004)
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Do You Hear What I Hear? (The Washington Post, Aug 24, 2004)
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More White House Notebook
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Friday's Question:
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That worked so well, the White House tried the same play 10 days later. Officials told reporters Bush would make a "significant" speech Oct. 18, to be followed by still more important words Oct. 21.
On the morning of the 18th, NBC dutifully reported that Bush "is delivering what is called a significant speech."
The Bush campaign typically plays it safe with the music it plays at rallies, usually favoring catchy country tunes. So it came as a surprise last week when Bush and his brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, took the stage at a rally in St. Petersburg to the strains of "Rock & Roll, Part II" by British rocker Gary Glitter.
That would be the same Gary Glitter who did time in Britain in 1999 for possessing child pornography -- not the sort of family values the Bush campaign favors. Campaign aides said playing the song was a mistake by local staff. The error was not discovered in time to prevent an extended mix of it being played as Bush shook hands after the rally.
The Quotable Bush
"We will stand up for terror. We will stand up for freedom."
-- Oct. 18 in Marlton, N.J.
