# Bush Calls Obama to congratulate him on an "Awesome Night" **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 5, 2008, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245 "2008-11-05T08:02:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2008, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/1 "2008-11-05T08:02:30Z")
Post election thread #271568099651 + .0127i > **[Breitbart News Network](https://www.breitbart.com/)** > > Syndicated news and opinion website providing continuously updated headlines to top news and analysis sources. [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/uselection2008/3383582/George-W-Bush-congratulates-Barack-Obama-on-awesome-night.html](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/uselection2008/3383582/George-W-Bush-congratulates-Barack-Obama-on-awesome-night.html) I don’t know if this sort of call is customary or not, but I think it’s kinda nice. For all of Bush’s faults, from hearing him talk, and the stories I’ve heard about him\*, I always thought he was a pretty KIND guy, even if a totally inept (and, depending on what you believe, morally misguided) leader. Of course, “making the transition smooth” may be a wee bit difficult at this point. 😛 \*My Democrat teacher went to a speech or debate or something of his once, a comparatively small one, and said after it was over Bush went up to the front of the stage, sat with his legs hanging down, and started exchanging jokes and stories with them all. He spoke genuinely fondly of that moment, and said that behind all of the politics “Bush the person” (as opposed to “Bush the president”) is a rather friendly fellow. [[Note to mods: I had no idea where to place this, so I put it here so people could opinionate even though there’s no real debate to be had, just a news dump really.]] ---
**Author:** ![Sky\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Sky\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sky_King)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/2 "2008-11-05T12:59:42Z")
Before someone jumps in and says “No, he’s a complete asshole and I hope he dies a long, painful death” let me say I agree with you. Before he was elected the first time I had the impression that he was just a jerk. Then I saw him (on Oprah, of all places) and he seemed like a very open, regular guy. Doesn’t mean he was a good President, but he’s not mentally handicapped or an evil genius, either. Just some guy. ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2008, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/3 "2008-11-05T13:06:55Z")
I can only really remember presidents from Reagan onwards. Clinton is the only one who I hold a personal (non-political) dislike for. This is just a gut feel, immediate reaction kind of thing. Reagan, both Bushes, and Obama all seem like quite likeable chaps (though Bush Snr struck me as a little stiff and dull). Dubya seems like he’d be a good guy to go and have a few beers with. I always got the feeling he didn’t _like_ politics. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2008, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/4 "2008-11-05T21:42:07Z")
It’s a classy thing to do, and even if Bush had to speak through clenched teeth I’m glad he did it. I think things like this are why we don’t have riots and violence during elections. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2008, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/5 "2008-11-05T22:33:53Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > It’s a classy thing to do, and even if Bush had to speak through clenched teeth I’m glad he did it. Why would he speak through clenched teeth? He didn’t lose to Obama. He’s out of politics effective the instant Obama take the oath of office; ex-Presidents usually become elder statesmen and go around doing speaking engagements. Clinton and Bush 1.0 worked together on things. Heck, Bush 2.0 might have secretly been cheering for Obama; he certainly has had his differences with John McCain, and might have thought it cool the old bastard got run over by history. Anyway, I have a feeling that by this point, a two-term President is probably looking forward to getting the hell out of Washington, and is thrilled that ANYONE is willing to take the job from him. Bush and Clinton both looked 15 years older at the end of their eight year runs. I wouldn’t want to do that job, and if I was fool enough to take it I’d be willing to hand it over to Darth Vader if it got me out of there. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/6 "2008-11-06T01:43:27Z")
I remember when he came to Canada, and his “Thank you to all the people who waved at me… with all five fingers” joke, and thinking: okay, fine. You win a notch in my book. He seems like a doting dad and a truly devoted husband. I’m sure he’s a great guy, and I wish him personally the best, I just don’t ever–ever–want him as President of the United States again. ---
**Author:** ![PastAllReason](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f07891/32.png) [@PastAllReason](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastAllReason)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/7 "2008-11-06T01:45:53Z")
This thread is interesting. I find him about as likeable as Richard Nixon with markedly less intelligence. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/8 "2008-11-06T01:53:07Z")
> [@TheLoadedDog](#): > > Dubya seems like he’d be a good guy to go and have a few beers with. Isn’t Dubya a recovering alcoholic? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Punkyova](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@The\_Punkyova](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Punkyova)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/9 "2008-11-06T04:21:48Z")
The congratulatory call is fairly traditional, I think. I can’t stand Bush’s policies. However, my various relatives have been involved in Republican circles for some time. They tell me that he is actually rather shy and doesn’t like crowds. He relaxes and is friendly, funny and charismatic when things are more low key. Of course, they also tell me that Cheney is a friendly, pleasant man, so you can take that for what it’s worth. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/10 "2008-11-06T04:43:56Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Why would he speak through clenched teeth? He didn’t lose to Obama. -If he has any party loyalty -If he didn’t think Obama was a good candidate -He might see the election of a Democrat as evidence that people got so sick of him they couldn’t bring themselves to vote for a Republican. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/11 "2008-11-06T04:58:36Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > -If he has any party loyalty. I don’t think it’s impossible for a Republican to be happy that the Democrat won and be loyal to his party. Whether or not you agree with Obama’s policies, you have to admit this is an historic moment for America. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/12 "2008-11-06T05:08:02Z")
> [@PastAllReason](#): > > This thread is interesting. I find him about as likeable as Richard Nixon with markedly less intelligence. Intelligence is hard to measure but his test scores for college show that he isn’t truly dumb. He actually had better grades at Yale than John Carey who was his opponent in the previous election. His SAT scored were pretty high too putting him in at least the 98% percentile. I think he is decent guy. After all, he is a recovering alcoholic and addict that managed to pull things together. He seems like a great family man as well. I just think he suffers from rich, powerful boy syndrome. ---
**Author:** ![Engineer\_Dude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9fc29f/32.png) [@Engineer\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Engineer_Dude)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/13 "2008-11-06T13:43:48Z")
> [@Sky\_King](#): > > Before someone jumps in and says “No, he’s a complete asshole and I hope he dies a long, painful death” let me say I agree with you. That’s good. I thought the part about Bush dying painfully was the funniest. :rolleyes: Obama should have responded by thanking Bush for making the election so easy for him. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![lorene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/65b543/32.png) [@lorene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorene)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/14 "2008-11-06T15:46:23Z")
I’ve always had to reconcile my hatred of his politics and actions with his awkward, nearly endearing side that I saw in Alexandra Pelosi’s documentary [Journeys with George](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0312848/). ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/15 "2008-11-06T16:09:05Z")
> [@Jragon](#): > > \*My Democrat teacher Democrat-IC teacher. _Democratic._ Democrat is a noun, not an adjective. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/16 "2008-11-06T16:21:23Z")
'll chime in and agree that George W. Bush would have made a good _something_, just not a good President. One of my favorite parts of Obama’s book _The Audacity of Hope_ is where he describes his first encounter with Bush. I listened to the audio version, so I got to hear Obama doing his impression of W. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/17 "2008-11-06T16:27:16Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > 'll chime in and agree that George W. Bush would have made a good _something_, just not a good President. Maybe a elementary school principal. Hardware store owner? ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/18 "2008-11-06T17:02:22Z")
I remember I first got nervous about Bush in 2000 after watching one of the debates and thinking, “this is a guy that people are going to want to have a beer with – he’s got a legitimate shot at this.” He obviously resonated with a lot of folks. I have no doubt that as long as he and I stayed away from a discussion of politics, he’d be a perfectly pleasant person to hang out with. Hell, I’d love to talk baseball with him, honestly. The only thing that made me cringe about his call to Obama is that it brought back to mind the “Awesome speech, Pontiff!” comment he made a few months ago. Gah! ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/19 "2008-11-12T06:45:50Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > Democrat-IC teacher. _Democratic._ Democrat is a noun, not an adjective. I disagree, democratic implies the actual governmental system of a Democracy, you (at least **I** ) see Dem. Soandso [[I’ve seen “Illinois’ Dem. Obama did whatever” on occasion, note the possessive on Illinois]] all the time, which is usually pronounced “Democrat Soandso.” I may not be correct, or I may be imagining it, but I feel “Democratic Teacher” would mean he’s in favor of a popular democracy, whereas Democrat implies affiliation with a party. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2008, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245/20 "2008-11-12T11:47:55Z")
> [@Sky\_King](#): > > Before someone jumps in and says “No, he’s a complete asshole and I hope he dies a long, painful death” let me say I agree with you. > Before he was elected the first time I had the impression that he was just a jerk. Then I saw him (on Oprah, of all places) and he seemed like a very open, regular guy. > Doesn’t mean he was a good President, but he’s not mentally handicapped or an evil genius, either. Just some guy. Sort of reminds me of the commentary on Oliver Stone’s _W._ He described it as ‘‘the banality of evil.’’ Not in a way that implies Bush himself is evil, but in a way that implies that many catastrophes, many tragedies, just come down to some guy doing what he thinks is right. I have to say I think the way Bush has handled the Obama transition is incredibly classy. A lot of conservatives have been classy about it, in fact. Mike Huckabee comes to mind. Just on Fox News the other day he made a kind little speech about his respect for Obama as the President-elect. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-calls-obama-to-congratulate-him-on-an-awesome-night/471245.md?page=2)