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Pres. Bush sat down for an interview with NBC's Williams. Portions aired across all NBC/MSNBC platforms:
On his Katrina legacy: "When it's all said and done, the people down here know that I stood in Jackson Square and I said we're going to help you, and we delivered. And that's what matters. ... My heart and my soul is to help these people, and they know it. ... I'm confident we will rebuild this part of the country."
On what could have been done better: "I think we should have better coordination with the state and local government. The enormity of the storm just overwhelmed all aspects of government, and I believe had we been better coordinated, communicated better, moved equipment better, coordinated better on who is responsible for troops, we could have done a better job."
Asked if the U.S. fought the "wrong war" in regards to the war on terror: "Did we fight the wrong war? Naturally, I have no doubt. The war came to our shores, remember that. We had a foreign policy that basically said, let's hope calm works, and we were attacked."
More: "They weren't Iraqis, nor did I ever say that Iraq ordered that attack, but Iraq is part of the struggle against the terrorists. ... I think fighting this war is the absolute right thing to do. Now, in terms of image, of course I worry about American image. We're great at TV, and yet we're getting crushed in the PR front. And so we work hard and try to work smart about how we get a message out that says, we respect Islam, we just reject the ideology of extremists who kill innocent people to achieve political objectives. ... We retreat, they follow us. And I see this clearly as day. I mean, I understand the challenge and I also understand the frustrations of our citizens."
He continues: "I personally do not believe Saddam Hussein picked up the phone and said to al Qaeda, Attack America."
On his relationship with his father: "My relationship is adoring son."
Williams: "You talk shop?"
Bush: "Sometimes, yea, of course we do. But it's a really interesting question. It's kind of conspiracy theory at its most rampant. My dad means the world to me -- as a loving dad. He gave me the greatest gift a father can give a child, which is unconditional love. ... He understands what it means to be president. He understands that oftentimes I have information that he doesn't have. And he understands how difficult the world is today. And I explain my strategy to him, I explain exactly what I just explained to you back there how I view the current tensions, and he takes it on board, and leaves me with this thought, I love you son."
On his legacy: "First of all, there's no such thing as short-term history as far as I'm concerned. I think that you can't judge a presidency based upon, a moments notice. ... Eventually my standing in history will be judged by people 30 or 40 years from now who will be able to take an objective look, at whether the decisions I made led to peace and prosperity. You know, this is a job where you make decisions. And you do what you think is right. And you let people recognize, and the people are gonna say what's on their mind at the moment. But I read 3 histories of George Washington last year. The first President of United States is still being analyzed by historians, which oughtta say to this president and future president, 'Do what you think is right and eventually historians will figure out whether it made sense or not.'"
On why he read Camus: "I was in Crawford and I said I was looking for a book to read and Laura said you oughtta try Camus. I also read three Shakespeare's."
Williams: "A few months ago you were reading the life story of Joe DiMaggio by Richard Ben Cramer."
Bush: "Which was a good book."
Williams: "You've been on a Teddy Roosevelt reading kick."
Bush: "Well I'm reading about the battle of New Orleans right now. I've got an eclectic reading list." More: "The key for me is to keep expectations low."
Williams: "How have you been read wrong?"
Bush: "I dunno. I frankly don't pay that much attention. I don't wanna hurt people's feelings, but..."
Williams: "Still not watching television, huh?"
Bush: "I watched a good baseball game" (NBC, 8/29).
On his Katrina legacy: "When it's all said and done, the people down here know that I stood in Jackson Square and I said we're going to help you, and we delivered. And that's what matters. ... My heart and my soul is to help these people, and they know it. ... I'm confident we will rebuild this part of the country."
On what could have been done better: "I think we should have better coordination with the state and local government. The enormity of the storm just overwhelmed all aspects of government, and I believe had we been better coordinated, communicated better, moved equipment better, coordinated better on who is responsible for troops, we could have done a better job."
Asked if the U.S. fought the "wrong war" in regards to the war on terror: "Did we fight the wrong war? Naturally, I have no doubt. The war came to our shores, remember that. We had a foreign policy that basically said, let's hope calm works, and we were attacked."
More: "They weren't Iraqis, nor did I ever say that Iraq ordered that attack, but Iraq is part of the struggle against the terrorists. ... I think fighting this war is the absolute right thing to do. Now, in terms of image, of course I worry about American image. We're great at TV, and yet we're getting crushed in the PR front. And so we work hard and try to work smart about how we get a message out that says, we respect Islam, we just reject the ideology of extremists who kill innocent people to achieve political objectives. ... We retreat, they follow us. And I see this clearly as day. I mean, I understand the challenge and I also understand the frustrations of our citizens."
He continues: "I personally do not believe Saddam Hussein picked up the phone and said to al Qaeda, Attack America."
On his relationship with his father: "My relationship is adoring son."
Williams: "You talk shop?"
Bush: "Sometimes, yea, of course we do. But it's a really interesting question. It's kind of conspiracy theory at its most rampant. My dad means the world to me -- as a loving dad. He gave me the greatest gift a father can give a child, which is unconditional love. ... He understands what it means to be president. He understands that oftentimes I have information that he doesn't have. And he understands how difficult the world is today. And I explain my strategy to him, I explain exactly what I just explained to you back there how I view the current tensions, and he takes it on board, and leaves me with this thought, I love you son."
On his legacy: "First of all, there's no such thing as short-term history as far as I'm concerned. I think that you can't judge a presidency based upon, a moments notice. ... Eventually my standing in history will be judged by people 30 or 40 years from now who will be able to take an objective look, at whether the decisions I made led to peace and prosperity. You know, this is a job where you make decisions. And you do what you think is right. And you let people recognize, and the people are gonna say what's on their mind at the moment. But I read 3 histories of George Washington last year. The first President of United States is still being analyzed by historians, which oughtta say to this president and future president, 'Do what you think is right and eventually historians will figure out whether it made sense or not.'"
On why he read Camus: "I was in Crawford and I said I was looking for a book to read and Laura said you oughtta try Camus. I also read three Shakespeare's."
Williams: "A few months ago you were reading the life story of Joe DiMaggio by Richard Ben Cramer."
Bush: "Which was a good book."
Williams: "You've been on a Teddy Roosevelt reading kick."
Bush: "Well I'm reading about the battle of New Orleans right now. I've got an eclectic reading list." More: "The key for me is to keep expectations low."
Williams: "How have you been read wrong?"
Bush: "I dunno. I frankly don't pay that much attention. I don't wanna hurt people's feelings, but..."
Williams: "Still not watching television, huh?"
Bush: "I watched a good baseball game" (NBC, 8/29).
so stop all the bush threads now people!
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