Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House

by Peter Baker

  106 “quite pleased”: Cheney aide, author interview.

  CHAPTER 36: “I DIDN’T WANT TO BE THE PRESIDENT DURING A DEPRESSION”

  1 contingency plans for Obama: Peter Baker, “Bush Prepares Crisis Briefings to Aid Obama,” New York Times, December 16, 2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/17/us/politics/17transition.html.

  2 until the end of 2015: Gordon and Trainor, Endgame, 539–41.

  3 an “eviction notice”: Ed Gillespie, author interview.

  4 Just 14 American troops: Iraq Coalition Casualty Count, known as icasualties.org, http://icasualties.org/iraq/ByMonth.aspx. Note that this link goes to the page showing all coalition casualties; to get the American casualties requires using the filter at the bottom.

  5 set to the tune of a song: Rice, No Higher Honor, 703.

  6 “Colonel Qaddafi?” Bush said: George W. Bush, telephone conversation with Muammar el-Qaddafi, November 17, 2008. Notes of call provided to author.

  7 “About the only thing that”: George W. Bush, remarks, Kennedy Center honors ceremony, White House, December 7, 2008, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXH8ww1XACE.

  8 “We’ve still got a few weeks”: Rice, No Higher Honor, 722.

  9 asked Washington for: Bill Vlasic and David M. Herszenhorn, “Pursuing U.S. Aid, G.M. Accepts Need for Drastic Cuts,” New York Times, December 2, 2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/business/03auto.html?fta=y.

  10 “If he told me he made a decision”: Dick Cheney, author interview.

  11 “There is no way in heck”: Rattner, Overhaul, 34–36.

  12 passed the House that night 237 to 170: U.S. House Clerk’s Office. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll690.xml.

  13 “consider other options if”: Dana Perino, statement, December 12, 2008, http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/12/20081212.html.

  14 “I remember what it was like”: Administration official, author interview.

  15 “This is the farewell kiss”: Steven Lee Myers and Alissa J. Rubin, “Iraqi Journalist Hurls Shoes at Bush and Denounces Him on TV as a ‘Dog,’ ” New York Times, December 15, 2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/15/world/middleeast/15prexy.html?pagewanted=all.

  16 “I’m okay,” Bush told: Video of incident. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xKFh4PYmmc&feature=related.

  17 “was white as a sheet”: Draper interview.

  18 “Don’t worry about it”: Video of incident. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xKFh4PYmmc&feature=related.

  19 “Maliki’s guards start beating”: Douglas Lute, author interview.

  20 “Hey, please, don’t worry”: Administration official interview.

  21 “That man, he represents”: Ibid.

  22 “Good reflexes”: Ibid.

  23 could not let the firms go: Joel Kaplan and Ed Lazear, author interviews.

  24 “Look, Hank, you have to”: Kaplan interview.

  25 “This is a difficult time”: George W. Bush, speech and question session, American Enterprise Institute, December 18, 2008, http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/12/20081218-2.html.

  26 “In the midst of a financial”: George W. Bush, remarks announcing auto bailout, December 19, 2008, http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/12/20081219.html.

  27 “And this year, Mr. President”: Joshua Bolten, author interview. See also Rattner, Overhaul, 41–42.

  28 “You know, it’s kind of like”: George W. Bush, news conference, January 12, 2009, http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2009/01/20090112.html.

  29 “remind and explain”: Walter McDougall, e-mail exchange with author.

  30 Guelzo suggested he focus: Allen Guelzo, e-mail exchange with author.

  31 “The presidency did not eat”: John Lewis Gaddis, author interview.

  32 “It just came out very quickly”: Ibid.

  CHAPTER 37: “SUCH A SENSE OF BETRAYAL”

  1 he granted just 189 pardons: Office of the Pardon Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, http://www.justice.gov/pardon/statistics.htm#w-bush. Barack Obama in his first years in office was comparably stingy with pardons.

  2 When the New York Daily News: John Marzulli and James Gordon Meek, “President Bush Pardons Brooklyn Home Scammer,” New York Daily News, December 23, 2008, http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-12-23/news/17911607_1_pardon-attorney-ronald-rodgers-isaac-toussie-minority-homebuyers.

  3 “Figure out some way”: The account of the pardon deliberations, where not otherwise sourced, is based on author interviews with several administration officials and others who were involved but asked not to be named.

  4 Clay Johnson, his Yale friend: Clay Johnson, e-mail exchange with author.

  5 “Not a chance”: Charlie Younger, author interview.

  6 “The Powell-Armitage thing was”: Liz Cheney, author interview.

  7 “I didn’t have anything to do”: Richard Armitage, author interview.

  8 “I’m sorry, Scooter”: Joshua Bolten, author interview.

  9 “I am innocent”: William Burck, author interview.

  10 “This sucks,” Bush said: Dan Bartlett, author interview.

  11 “Can I talk to you a minute?”: Condoleezza Rice, author interview.

  12 “Just make up your mind”: George W. Bush, Decision Points, 104–5.

  13 “I got this list of people”: Jim Langdon, author interview.

  14 “the manifestation of one of our worst”: Juan Carlos Zarate, author interview.

  15 “Is the Secret Service going”: Peter Baker, “Obama’s War over Terror,” New York Times Magazine, January 4, 2010, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/magazine/17Terror-t.html?pagewanted=all.

  16 “Enjoyed working with you”: White House memo, January 19, 2009, provided to author.

  17 “many fond memories”: George W. Bush, telephone conversation with Vladimir Putin, January 19, 2009. Notes of call provided to author.

  18 “The place was going condo”: Bolten interview.

  19 “Okay, I’m going over”: Draper interview.

  20 “It’s like Noah’s ark”: Ibid.

  21 “Cheney looked like hell”: Joel Kaplan, author interview.

  22 “Joe, this is how you’re”: Dick Cheney, In My Time, 517.

  23 “I thank President Bush”: Barack Obama, inaugural address, January 20, 2009, http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/president-barack-obamas-inaugural-address.

  24 “That was a hell of a speech”: Peter Baker, “On Plane to Texas, Critiques of the Speech,” New York Times, January 22, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/us/politics/22web-baker.html.

  25 “Come on, Laura”: Peter Baker, “Obama Takes Oath, and Nation in Crisis Embraces the Moment,” New York Times, January 21, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/us/politics/21inaug.html?pagewanted=all.

  26 “We will brief you”: David Axelrod, author interview.

  27 “He looked relieved, thrilled”: Draper interview.

  28 “Frankly, all of us were worried”: Kaplan interview.

  29 “George Bush’s two terms”: David Addington, interview with R. J. Cutler for The World According to Dick Cheney, a documentary aired on Showtime in spring 2013.

  30 “Nice plane, Mick”: Mick McMurry, author interview.

  31 “He was in excruciating pain”: Bill Thomson, author interview.

  32 “For Dick, he was pretty”: McMurry interview.

  33 “It was a nonstop party”: Draper interview.

  34 “He was very huggy”: White House aide, author interview.

  35 “not a word” disparaging: Baker, “On Plane to Texas.”

  36 “Just stay strong”: Video by Ken Herman, Cox Newspapers, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI0eRJuIrT8.

  37 “I have the privilege”: George W. Bush, speech to supporters, Midland, Tex., January 20, 2009, http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/01/bush_returns_to_texas.html. See also Jim Rutenberg, “Bushes Have a Warm Homecoming in Texas,” New York Times, January 2
1, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/us/politics/21bush.html. Also see C-Span video, http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/283465-1.

  EPILOGUE: “THERE IS NO MIDDLE GROUND”

  1 “It was designed for the two”: Dick Cheney, author interview.

  2 “deserves my silence”: Ian Austen, “Bush Gives First Speech Since Leaving Office,” New York Times, March 17, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/18/world/americas/18canada.html?_r=0.

  3 “The American people are not”: Barack Obama, speech, National Archives, May 21, 2009, http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-national-security-5-21-09.

  4 “In the fight against terrorism”: Dick Cheney, speech, American Enterprise Institute, May 21, 2009, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0509/22823.html.

  5 “Dick feels an obligation”: Bill Thomson, author interview.

  6 “Cheney thought that was shameful”: Stephen Hadley, author interview.

  7 “Threatening to prosecute CIA”: Liz Cheney, author interview.

  8 “He’ll never criticize Bush”: David Gordon, author interview.

  9 “Dick was terribly upset”: Bernie Seebaum, author interview.

  10 “The statute of limitations”: Barton Gellman, “Cheney Uncloaks His Frustration with Bush,” Washington Post, August 13, 2009, http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2009-08-13/politics/36798654_1_channels-of-american-policy-richard-b-cheney-john-p-hannah.

  11 “This is not the right word”: Bush friend, author interview.

  12 back into “the swamp”: Peter Baker, “Now Appearing: George W. Bush,” New York Times, November 6, 2010, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/07/weekinreview/07baker.html.

  13 “When I saw his hand go”: Dinner party guest, author interview.

  14 “I’m for Mitt Romney”: George W. Bush made the comment on May 15, 2012, when ABC News caught up with him after an event unveiling a collection of interviews with world dissidents. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/05/george-w-bush-im-for-mitt-romney/.

  15 “He’s a golf-a-holic now”: Charlie Younger, author interview.

  16 “I decided I was going to get”: Harrington, “Dubya and Me.”

  17 “I’ve never seen a happier”: Wayne Berman, author interview.

  18 “I’m often asked, do you miss”: George W. Bush, joint presentation with Bill Clinton at IHS Forum at CERAWeek, Houston, March 11, 2011. The event was closed to reporters, but a transcript was provided to the author.

  19 “I actually found my freedom”: Peter Baker, “Bush Dips a Toe Back into Washington,” New York Times, May 15, 2012, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/16/us/politics/george-w-bush-briefly-visits-washington.html.

  20 “It was more like meeting”: Valerie Jarrett, author interview.

  21 “carrying out Bush’s 4th term”: Ari Fleischer, Twitter message, June 6, 2013. He wrote: “Drone strikes. Wiretaps. Gitmo. O is carrying out Bush’s 4th term. Yet he attacked Bush 4 violating Constitution. # hypocrisy.”

  22 “There’s no doubt that whatever”: Jay Winik, author interview.

  23 “In retrospect, I probably”: George W. Bush, Decision Points, 259.

  24 Seventy-one percent: Presidential Approval Ratings—George W. Bush, Gallup, http://www.gallup.com/poll/116500/presidential-approval-ratings-george-bush.aspx.

  25 Academic scholars: Presidential Expert Poll, Siena College Research Institute, July 1, 2010. The survey of 238 presidential scholars ranked Bush at 39th of the 43 presidents, down from 23rd in a 2002 survey. https://www.siena.edu/pages/179.asp?item=2566.

  26 “Oh sure. I don’t think”: Dick Cheney, interview with Matt Lauer, Today, August 30, 2011, http://video.msnbc.msn.com/msnbc/44328388#44328388.

  27 “There’s no need to defend myself”: George W. Bush, interview with USA Today, April 21, 2013, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/04/21/george-w-bush-interview-library/2099093/.

  28 “The tendency in life is to feel”: Bush presentation at CERAWeek.

  29 49 percent of Americans now expressing favorable views: Gallup poll, June 1–4, 2013, http://www.gallup.com/poll/163022/former-george-bush-image-ratings-improve.aspx.

  30 “saved us from another Great Depression”: John Harwood, “Fed Chairman’s Departure Casts a New Light on the Bush Legacy,” New York Times, July 27, 2013.

  31 “Decades from now”: George W. Bush, Decision Points, 476–77.

  32 “You’re leaving as one”: Former aide, author interview.

  33 “I just don’t think he would”: Ari Fleischer, author interview. In his memoir, Rove wrote: “Would the Iraq War have occurred without WMD? I doubt it.” See Courage and Consequence, 339.

  34 “I’m convinced that President Bush”: Richard Armitage, author interview.

  35 “I am very respectful of how”: Donald Rumsfeld, author interview.

  36 “It breaks my heart”: Karen Hughes, author interview.

  37 “The first grave mistake”: McClellan, What Happened, 210.

  38 “You can say he made”: Joseph Lieberman, author interview.

  39 “If Iraq had gone well”: Michael Gerson, author interview.

  40 “Wall Street got drunk”: George W. Bush, comments during closed fund-raiser caught on amateur video and posted on the Internet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bT29fq0slGc.

  41 “You have to ask the question”: David Frum, author interview.

  42 “intense, personal, dedicated efforts”: Donna Brazile, “Brazile: Bush Came Through on Katrina,” CNN.com, April 25, 2013. http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/25/opinion/brazile-katrina-bush.

  43 “Two years after you left”: Peter Baker, “Bush and Cheney, Together Again at Groundbreaking,” New York Times, November 16, 2010. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/17/us/politics/17bush.html?_r=0.

  44 “He was a great vice president”: Ibid.

  45 “You know, it’s been cordial”: George W. Bush, interview with C-Span, aired April 24, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8gMEqiVcr0&feature=youtube.

  46 “From the day I asked Dick”: George W. Bush, speech at opening of George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, April 25, 2013. http://foxnewsinsider.com/2013/04/25/transcript-read-fmr-president-george-w-bushs-address-library-dedication.

  47 “everything went blank”: Dick Cheney, In My Time, 524–25.

  48 “Ever since the heart transplant”: Mary Cheney, conversation with author.

  49 “Well, if that’s true”: David Hume Kennerly, author interview.

  50 “Something happened in Washington”: Sandy Kress, author interview.

  51 “Bush had a little bit”: Wayne Berman, author interview.

  52 “He’s his own man”: Joe O’Neill, author interview.

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