He definitely appears to have certain limitations. The impression I receive is of a lack of mental flexibility, and a dangerously narrow view of the world. On some occasions, GWB looked drunk to me; a lot of people have suggested that he’s an untreated addict who sometimes has a “dry drunk”.
I don’t know if he’s actually stupid, but in public appearances he speaks as if his listener were a slow-witted child. (Though he may be on to something; last November, in man-on-the-street interviews, I heard a voter say “I like President Bush because he doesn’t make everything complicated. He presents things in simple black-and-white.” I don’t think it was satire.)
I have read somewhere (no, I don’t remember where, and have no cite, so maybe I’m wrong) that at one time he was told that his speech sounded too aristocratic or too educated for the target he was trying to reach, and that he was coached to be more humble and common, with the result we now see.
I also have heard that he may have a degree of dyslexia. If that is in fact the case, I wish that he had owned up to it, as an example of how one can be successful regardless of that problem. Sort of how James Earl Jones will mention that he has a problem with stuttering. All speculation, I know.
Without getting into politics, I have often wished that Mr. Bush were more facile and eloquent in his speech. After 9/11, for example, we badly needed a Churchill, and I envied the British the excellent rhetoric of Tony Blair. Of course, some of his constituents aren’t all that happy with Mr. Blair, either, so perhaps that’s not the most important thing, or else all of their politicians are just as well spoken.
That President Bush does not come across as a good public speaker (whether or not that’s an affectation of some sort, I don’t know), but poor public speaking skills don’t indicate stupidity.
Perhaps he has suffered some brain damage from all the alcohol and drugs?
Yes, I think he comes off as stupid and disingenuous. Whether it’s an act or the real deal remains to be seen. If he is much smarter than he acts why carry the act as far as he does? If he just wants to be folksy, it seems he could do it without the stupidity.
Fair enough. I’d say that perhaps his seemingly poor concentration when speaking, as well as his tendency to “divert” from the text he’s supposed to read from, would indicate that he might not be up to a normal level of intelligence - but yes, i’d agree with you in that it’s not as clear as poor public speaking = stupidity.
Bush has stage fright. I’ve read numerous accounts of people who say that the ‘private’ George Bush is nothing like the public one. A lot of people on both sides of the aisle will tell you that. In person he’s charming, competant, professional. Put him in front of a podium and he stammers, overcompensates with silly grins and gestures, and in general doesn’t come across well.
You’ll notice from time to time that he occasionally gives a speech of real conviction, and his passion overcomes his fears. And then he turns in some pretty good performances.
I think he is a crafty motherfucker, playing a stupid act, and the game that he is playing is NOT in America’s best interests, and is not INTENDED to be in America’s best interests. It’s an attempt to place themselves at the top of a feudal aristocracy when the world moves to a globalized system, and there is no where else to expand to that will be outside of their sphere of influence, especially if they control the ability to go to space.
I think Bush’s achilles heel is his vanity, and not his intellect.
As others have written, I think Bush consciously speaks in a different way when he is doing so publically. Unfortunately, what he perceives as being “populist” can also sound condescending or unintelligent to some listeners - there can be a sense of a “let me dumb this down so you can understand me” attitude.
