“Make no mistake about it, I understand how tough it is, sir. I talk to families who die.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Dec. 7, 2006
“It’s bad in Iraq. Does that help?” --George W. Bush, after being asked by a reporter whether he’s in denial about Iraq, Washington, D.C., Dec. 7, 2006
“This business about graceful exit just simply has no realism to it at all.” --George W. Bush, on speculation that U.S. troops could be withdrawn from Iraq, Amman, Jordan, Nov. 30, 2006
“The only way we can win is to leave before the job is done.” --George W. Bush, Greeley, Colo., Nov. 4, 2006 (Watch video clip)
“Anybody who is in a position to serve this country ought to understand the consequences of words.” --George W. Bush, interview with Rush Limbaugh, Nov. 1, 2006
“You know, when I campaigned here in 2000, I said, I want to be a war President. No President wants to be a war President, but I am one.” --George W. Bush, Des Moines, Iowa, Oct. 26, 2006
Maria Bartiromo: “I’m curious, have you ever googled anybody? Do you use Google?”
President Bush: “Occasionally. One of the things I’ve used on the Google is to pull up maps. It’s very interesting to see – I’ve forgot the name of the program – but you get the satellite, and you can – like, I kinda like to look at the ranch. It remind me of where I wanna be sometimes.” --interview with CNBC’s Maria Bartiromo, Oct. 24, 2006 (Watch video clip)
“We’re never been stay the course, George.” --George W. Bush, attempting to distance himself from what has been his core strategy in Iraq for the last three years, interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, Oct. 22, 2006
“This morning my administration released the budget numbers for fiscal 2006. These budget numbers are not just estimates; these are the actual results for the fiscal year that ended February the 30th.” --George W. Bush, on the fiscal year that ended on Sept. 30, Washington, D.C., Oct. 11, 2006 (Watch video clip)
“One has a stronger hand when there’s more people playing your same cards.” --George W. Bush, on holding six-party talks with North Korea, Washington, D.C., Oct. 11, 2006
“I will not withdraw, even if Laura and Barney are the only ones supporting me.” --George W. Bush, talking to key Republicans about Iraq, as quoted by Bob Woodward
“I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma because there is – my point is, there’s a strong will for democracy.” --George W. Bush, interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Sept. 24, 2006 (Watch video clip)
“You’re one of the outstanding leaders in a very important part of the world. I want to thank you for strategizing our discussions.” --George W. Bush, meeting with the prime minister of Malaysia, New York, N.Y., Sept. 18, 2006
“The Patriot Act has increased the flow of information within our government and it has helped break up terrorist cells in the United States of America. And the United States Congress was right to renew the terrorist act – the Patriot Act.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C. , Sept. 7, 2006
“You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror.” --George W. Bush, interview with CBS News’ Katie Couric, Sept. 6, 2006
“I said I was looking for a book to read, Laura said you ought to try Camus. I also read three Shakespeares. … I’ve got a eck-a-lec-tic reading list.” --George W. Bush, interview with NBC’s Brian Williams, New Orleans, La., Aug. 29, 2006 (Watch video clip)
“And I suspect that what you’ll see, Toby, is there will be a momentum, momentum will be gathered. Houses will begat jobs, jobs will begat houses.” --George W. Bush, talking to reporters along the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast, Gulfport, Miss., Aug. 28, 2006
“I would guess, I would surmise that some of the more spectacular bombings are done by al Qaeda suiciders.” --George W. Bush, on violence in Iraq, Washington, D.C., Aug. 21, 2006
“The United States of America is engaged in a war against an extremist group of folks.” --George W. Bush, McLean, Va., Aug. 15, 2006
“See, the irony is that what they need to do is get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this s**t, and it’s over.” --George W. Bush, chomping on a dinner roll while talking about the Middle East crisis with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the G8 summit, St. Petersburg, Russia, July 17, 2006 (Watch video clip)
“One thing is clear, is relations between America and Russia are good, and they’re important that they be good.” --George W. Bush, Strelna, Russia, July 15, 2006
“I’ve reminded the prime minister-the American people, Mr. Prime Minister, over the past months that it was not always a given that the United States and America would have a close relationship.” George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., June 29, 2006
“We shouldn’t fear a world that is more interacted.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., June 27, 2006
“I think – tide turning – see, as I remember – I was raised in the desert, but tides kind of – it’s easy to see a tide turn – did I say those words?” --George W. Bush, asked if the tide was turning in Iraq, Washington, D.C., June 14, 2006
President Bush: “Peter. Are you going to ask that question with shades on?”
Peter Wallsten of the Los Angeles Times: “I can take them off.”
Bush: “I’m interested in the shade look, seriously.”
Wallsten: “All right, I’ll keep it, then.”
Bush: “For the viewers, there’s no sun.”
Wallsten: “I guess it depends on your perspective.”
Bush: "Touche.
–an exchange with legally blind reporter Peter Wallsten, to whom Bush later apologized, Washington, D.C., June 14, 2006 (Watch video clip)
“I tell people, let’s don’t fear the future, let’s shape it.” --George W. Bush, Omaha, Neb., June 7, 2006
“Trying to stop suiciders – which we’re doing a pretty good job of on occasion – is difficult to do. And what the Iraqis are going to have to eventually do is convince those who are conducting suiciders who are not inspired by Al Qaeda, for example, to realize there’s a peaceful tomorrow.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., May 24, 2006
“I would say the best moment of all was when I caught a 7.5 pound largemouth bass in my lake.” --George W. Bush, on his best moment in office, interview with the German newspaper Bild am Sonntag, May 7, 2006
“If people want to get to know me better, they’ve got to know my parents and the values my parents instilled in me, and the fact that I was raised in West Texas, in the middle of the desert, a long way away from anywhere, hardly. There’s a certain set of values you learn in that experience.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., May 5, 2006
“You never know what your history is going to be like until long after you’re gone.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., May 5, 2006
“The point now is how do we work together to achieve important goals. And one such goal is a democracy in Germany.” --George W. Bush, D.C., May 5, 2006
“That’s George Washington, the first president, of course. The interesting thing about him is that I read three – three or four books about him last year. Isn’t that interesting?” --George W. Bush, while showing German newspaper reporter Kai Diekmann the Oval Office, Washington, D.C., May 5, 2006
“Finally, the desk, where we’ll have our picture taken in front of – is nine other Presidents used it. This was given to us by Queen Victoria in the 1870s, I think it was. President Roosevelt put the door in so people would not know he was in a wheelchair. John Kennedy put his head out the door.” --George W. Bush, showing German newspaper reporter Kai Diekmann the Oval Office, Washington, D.C., May 5, 2006
“That’s called, A Charge To Keep, based upon a religious hymn. The hymn talks about serving God. The president’s job is never to promote a religion.” --George W. Bush, showing German newspaper reporter Kai Diekmann the Oval Office, Washington, D.C., May 5, 2006
“I was not pleased that Hamas has refused to announce its desire to destroy Israel.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., May 4, 2006
“I can look you in the eye and tell you I feel I’ve tried to solve the problem diplomatically to the max, and would have committed troops both in Afghanistan and Iraq knowing what I know today.” --George W. Bush, Irvine, Calif., April 24, 2006
“I aim to be a competitive nation.” --George W. Bush, San Jose, Calif., April 21, 2006
“I’m the decider, and I decide what is best. And what’s best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain as the Secretary of Defense.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C. April 18, 2006
“I strongly believe what we’re doing is the right thing. If I didn’t believe it – I’m going to repeat what I said before – I’d pull the troops out, nor if I believed we could win, I would pull the troops out.” --George W. Bush, Charlotte, N.C., April 6, 2006
“No question that the enemy has tried to spread sectarian violence. They use violence as a tool to do that.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., March 22, 2006
“If the Iranians were to have a nuclear weapon they could proliferate.” --George W. Bush, Washington D.C., March 21, 2006
“After the bombing, most Iraqis saw what the perpetuators of this attack were trying to do.” --George W. Bush, on the bombing of the Golden Mosque of Samarra in Iraq, March 13, 2006, Washington, D.C.
“And so I’m for medical liability at the federal level.” --George W. Bush, on medical liability reform, Washington, D.C., March 10, 2006
“I believe that a prosperous, democratic Pakistan will be a steadfast partner for America, a peaceful neighbor for India, and a force for freedom and moderation in the Arab world.” --George W. Bush, mistakenly identifying Pakistan as an Arab country, Islamabad, Pakistan, March 3, 2006
“People don’t need to worry about security. This deal wouldn’t go forward if we were concerned about the security for the United States of America.” --George W. Bush, on the deal to hand over U.S. port security to a company operated by the United Arab Emirates, Washington, D.C., Feb. 23, 2006
“And I want those who are questioning it to step up and explain why all of a sudden a Middle Eastern company is held to a different standard than a Great British company.” --George W. Bush, defending a plan to allow a company controlled by the United Arab Emirates to manage ports in the United States, aboard Air Force One, Feb. 21, 2006
“I think it’s really important for this great state of baseball to reach out to people of all walks of life to make sure that the sport is inclusive. The best way to do it is to convince little kids how to–the beauty of playing baseball.” --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Feb. 13, 2006
“I like my buddies from west Texas. I liked them when I was young, I liked them then I was middle-age, I liked them before I was president, and I like them during president, and I like them after president.” --George W. Bush, Nashville, Tenn., Feb. 1, 2006
“He was a state sponsor of terror. In other words, the government had declared, you are a state sponsor of terror.” --George W. Bush, on Saddam Hussein, Manhattan, Kan., Jan. 23, 2006
