Bush Curses Hezbollah's Actions at G-8 Lunch
- From: "lkgeo1" <lkgeo1@xxxxxxx>
- Date: 17 Jul 2006 11:26:24 -0700
Bush Curses Hezbollah's Actions at G-8 Lunch
President's Use of Expletive Caught on Tape
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (July 17) -- A microphone picked up an unaware
President Bush saying on Monday Syria should press Hezbollah to "stop
doing this [expletive]" and that his secretary of state may go to the
Middle East soon.
Bush was talking privately to British Prime Minister Tony Blair during
a lunch at the Group of Eight summit in St. Petersburg about an upsurge
of violence in the Middle East, not realizing a microphone was
transmitting what he said.
"I think Condi (Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice) is going to go
pretty soon," Bush said.
Blair replied: "Right, that's all that matters, it will take some time
to get that together." Rice said on Sunday she was thinking of going to
the Middle East if it would help.
Blair said Rice has "got to succeed" if she goes to the region. Bush
replied: "What they need to do is to get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop
doing this [expletive]."
The U.S. president blames Syria and Iran for supporting Hezbollah
guerrillas operating in southern Lebanon.
Bush also seemed to complain about U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan
wanting an immediate ceasefire to stop the violence between Israel and
Hezbollah.
"I don't like the sequence of it," Bush said. "His attitude is
basically ceasefire and everything else happens."
Blair said: "I think the thing that is really difficult is you can't
stop this unless you get this international presence agreed."
G8 leaders, in a statement on Sunday, suggested the U.N. Security
Council should consider an international security and monitoring
presence along the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Later, Bush said he felt like telling Annan to telephone Syrian
President Bashir Assad "and make something happen."
"We're not blaming Israel and we're not blaming the Lebanese
government," he said.
The two leaders also appeared to chat about the Doha Round of world
trade talks, stalled by lack of common ground among governments on farm
subsidies and intellectual property rights.
"I just want some movement. Yesterday I didn't see much movement, the
desire to move," said Bush .
"It may be that it's impossible," Blair replied.
Ultimately Blair noticed the microphone and hastily switched it off,
but not before the recording had reached news media.
In the chummy conversation between long-time allies, Bush teased the
British leader about a sweater Blair had apparently given him.
"Thanks for the sweater, it was awfully thoughtful of you. I know you
picked it out yourself," Bush said.
"Oh, absolutely," said Blair.
07/17/06 07:25 ET
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