George W. Bush and the Almighty

George W. Bush is considered by some to be a man of "faith." Others think he knows not what "faith" means. A few are quite sure he's just plain stupid. Molly Ivins, God rest her soul, said he was a moron.

To help you decide, we're posting a few "God" comments from G.W., culled from a list of 50. I thought these were some of the "best." You can read all of them here.

1. "I am driven with a mission from God. God would tell me, 'George go and fight these terrorists in Afghanistan'. And I did. And then God would tell me 'George, go and end the tyranny in Iraq'. And I did." - Sham el-Sheikh, August 2003.

2. "I trust God speaks through me. Without that, I couldn't do my job." - Lancaster, PA, July 9, 2004

3. "I'm also mindful that man should never try to put words in God's mouth. I mean, we should never ascribe natural disasters or anything else to God. We are in no way, shape, or form should a human being, play God. - Washington, D.C., Jan. 14, 2005

4. "God loves you, and I love you. And you can count on both of us as a powerful message that people who wonder about their future can hear." - Los Angeles, CA, Mar. 3, 2004

9. "And there's nothing more powerful in helping change the country than faith -- faith in Dios." - National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast, May 16, 2002

13. "We can never replace lives, and we can't heal hearts, except through prayer." - Enterprise, Alabama, Mar. 3, 2007

16. "I couldn't imagine someone like Osama bin Laden understanding the joy of Hanukkah." - White House, Dec. 10, 2007

17. "I see an opportunity at home when I hear the stories of Christian and Jewish women alike, helping women of cover, Arab American women go shop because they're afraid to leave their home." - Washington, D.C., Oct. 4, 2001

19. "I did denounce it. I de- I denounced it. I denounced interracial dating. I denounced anti-Catholic bigacy...bigotry." - In response to people unhappy with his visit to the far-right Bob Jones University in South Carolina, Feb. 25, 2000.


Below are some additional "God" and non-God statements from G.W. Bush provided by readers of Times Online:

"This crusade, this war on terrorism is going to take a while." - Sept. 16, 2001

"I really appreciate leaders from around the globe who have come to share in prayer with us today. It reminds me that the Almighty God is a God to everybody, every person." - 51st Annual Congressional Prayer Breakfast, February 6, 2003

[G.W.'s father said this in response to a question at a press conference: "I don't know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God."] (The problem runs in the family!)

"I appreciate that question because I, in the state of Texas, had heard a lot of discussion about a faith-based initiative eroding the important bridge between church and state." - January 29, 2001


Here are a few more familiar "Bushisms" most of which are not directly related to God:

"For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible - and no one can now doubt the word of America."

"Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."

"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them."

"I know what I believe. I will continue to articulate what I believe and what I believe - I believe what I believe is right."

"If this were a dictatorship, it would be a heck of a lot easier - so long as I'm the dictator."

"I'm the commander - see, I don't need to explain - I do not need to explain why I say things. That's the interesting thing about being President."

"Our nation is chosen by God and commissioned by history to be a model to the world."


Yikes!