President Sets Classy Tone

George Bush reserves comment

Former United States President George W. Bush said he would not criticise President Barack Obama because his successor "deserves my silence" and said he planned to write a book about the 12 toughest decisions he made in office.

Bush declined to criticise the Obama Administration in his first speech since leaving office.

He said he wanted Obama to succeed and it was important that the new President had support. "I think it is essential that he be helped in office."

Hate to belabor the point, but this is why we love the man so. Not just for his steadfast leadership during times of unparallelled peril. Not just for his determination to destroy the evil that surrounds us. His refusal to take a cheap shot at a man famous for cheap shots at his own expense speaks volumes about the character and wisdom of George W. Bush.

America did not deserve him.

More on President Bush's Visit to Calgary

George W. Bush arrives in Calgary

CALGARY -- Dining on bruschetta, Mista salad and a trio of pasta, former U.S. president George W. Bush charmed staff and patrons at a Kensington restaurant last night.

Bush touched down in the city yesterday ahead of a speaking engagement today organized by the Calgary Chamber of Commerce.

"It was incredible," said Osteria de Medici waiter George Morrison, 40, who served the former commander in chief at the popular Italian eatery on 10 St. N.W.

"He was a gentleman, funny and a down-to-Earth kind of guy. We even got some pictures with him."

Chris Chapman, 24, was enjoying dinner with his mom, Suzanna, when Bush suddenly walked in.

"I was sitting in the corner and looked up and saw him walk by," he said. "I tried pointing him out to my mom but she didn't get to see him."

Bush wasn't the only high-profile guest there last night, said Chapman, as Calgary Flames forward Olli Jokinen happened to walk in minutes before.

"I saw (Jokinen) first and thought that was pretty cool then George Bush comes walking in," he said.

Wearing a dress shirt, slacks and long coat, Bush was greeted by customs officers on the tarmac at Calgary International Airport just after 6 p.m. before being ushered to dinner in a Cadillac limousine.

Members of Bush's security detail were seen at the Hyatt Regency hotel ahead of his arrival yesterday afternoon, as were members of the Calgary Police Service dog unit.

Today's speech marks Bush's first public remarks since leaving the White House in January with one of the lowest approval ratings in U.S. history.

Bush is expected to address a crowd of 1,500 at the Telus Convention Centre, remarking on his eight years in the Oval Office.

But not everyone is welcoming the former most powerful man in the world. Members of the group Lawyers Against the War labelled Bush a war criminal for his actions in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, as well as the alleged torture of detainees at Guantanamo Bay and wrote to Canadian government officials demanding his entry into Canada by barred.

Tickets to today's invite-only event reportedly sold for $400 each and members of the media have been barred from hearing Bush's comments.

Not a bad evening. You go out for some Italian food, enjoy yourself, see a hockey player, and oh yeah, you get to be in the same room as the GREATEST LIVING HUMAN BEING.

Not a bad evening at all.

President Gives Speech in Calgary

Former President Bush Backs Obama’s Efforts to Repair Economy

March 18 (Bloomberg) -- Former President George W. Bush delivered a “folksy” one-hour speech to a Canadian audience in which he backed efforts by his successor, Barack Obama, to repair the U.S. economy and financial industry, said people who attended the event.

Bush, 62, made the comments yesterday, in his first address since leaving office in January, to 1,400 people attending the $400-a-person Calgary lunch, said Jason Enns, a private wealth manager who attended. The invitation-only crowd took almost two hours to file into a downtown convention center as about 200 protesters shouted insults at them and criticized the president’s policies on Iraq and Afghanistan.

“He told us: ‘Wall Street had a big party and now we’re dealing with their hangover,’” Enns said in a telephone interview after the event.

Enns said the former president expects Obama will do a “fantastic job” and he will provide help and advice if he’s asked for it by the new president. Members of the media weren’t allowed to attend the event.

Bush told the Calgary audience, which is home to Canada’s oil and natural gas industry and companies like EnCana Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp. unit Imperial Oil Ltd., the U.S. will need the crude produced from the oil sands of northern Alberta, he largest reserves outside the Middle East, Enns said.

Obama and Canada’s Prime Minister Stephen Harper pledged last month to take concerted efforts to counter the global recession and begin a new effort to develop clean-energy technology. Obama said before his visit to Canada that oil from the tar sands can be made into a clean energy source. Canada is the biggest supplier of oil to the U.S.

‘Folksy’ Side Rules
“He let his folksy side rule,” said William Andrew, chief executive officer of Calgary-based Penn West Energy Trust, who attended the speech. “He came off as humble as he can be.”

The former president, who received a standing ovation, had "high
praise for Obama," Peter Yates, a Calgary lawyer with dual U.S.-Canadian citizenship, said Bush provided an “entertaining” speech. Yates said he registered for the 2004 election to vote against Bush.

“He was very affable,” said Yates. “My impressions of him haven’t changed. A folksy, affable guy, but I don’t agree with his policies.”

Bush told the crowd the biggest adjustment since returning to private life is reacquainting himself with everyday chores from walking the dog to running errands at the hardware store for his wife, Laura, Enns said.

Well, there you go. If the President is willing to give Barack HUSSEIN Obama the benefit of the doubt, then I feel we should all join him. After all, who did HUSSEIN Obama bash the most over the past two years? President Bush. And if he, of all people, can turn the other cheek in a Christlike manner, then who are we to hold grudges?

I am proud to support such a humble but wise man.

President to Author Book on Decision-Making

Former President George W. Bush to write book

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Former U.S. President George W. Bush will write a book about some of the decisions he made during his eight years in office, which will be published by the Crown Publishing Group in 2010.

Washington lawyer Robert Barnett told Reuters the book was tentatively called "Decision Points." He declined to disclose the financial terms of the deal.

Crown is a division of Random House, which is part of the German media giant Bertelsmann AG.

Barnett said the book would focus on decisions made by Bush ranging from his relationship with family members to sending troops to Iraq and the response to Hurricane Katrina.

Barnett -- known for brokering publishing and media deals for Bill and Hillary Clinton, Bush's successor, Barack Obama, and Bush's former aide Karl Rove -- also brokered a book deal for former first lady Laura Bush.

Her memoirs are also due to be published in 2010 by Scribner, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, part of CBS Corp.

Laura Bush said in a statement she would "tell the stories of the extraordinary events and people I've met in my life, particularly during my years in the White House."

The publisher did not reveal terms of Laura Bush's deal, although publishing experts have said she could command a multimillion-dollar advance.

Bush's former secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, has also agreed to a book deal with Crown Publishing Group. The first book, a memoir of her time in the Bush administration, is tentatively scheduled to appear in the autumn of 2011.

It would be followed a year later by a book about her upbringing in Birmingham, Alabama, where she was born in 1954. Rice, an African-American, grew up amid segregation and during the civil rights movement in the United States.

Well, this is great news. And who better to write a book on decision-making than perhaps the man faced with the most momentous decisions in generations?

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates on this highly-anticipated work.

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And I promise that I won't go AWOL anymore like I have the past several weeks. I'm sorry if I let you or the President down.