We in England are watching in horror as the saga of this election unfolds. How it must be over there we can only imagine.
Bush jnr's remarks on dictatorship were reported on the main BBC and most independent news outlets, and what we heard filled us with alarm. It was "...this whole thing'd be a lot easier if it were a dictatorship... so long as I were the dictator (snorty laugh)". We note also that some bulletins edited this out, preferring to concentrate on the Greenspan meeting.
Now what happens ? Either this man is incompetent, lacking in all understanding about common diplomacy OR senile to the point that took Reagan a whole decade OR he sort of means every word of it. Remember, many dictatorships have been declared in couched terms, mock apologies, talk about responsibility, or jokery. The blatant approach has been comparatively rare in modern times but with the Death Row forming the backdrop to much of this man's electoral success, we cannot rule anything out.

Hello to you in Great Britain. Can you provide a link for these comments? An audio link or a transcript?

We haven't heard a word of this over here. Britain has consistently reported more hard news about Bush than the USA. Please keep us updated on what you find.

Nevermind, I found it. Unbelievable ... but true. Here is the transcript from the BBC. The audio link on this page did not actually provide the dictator part. Perhaps someone else can unearth this?

WHITE HOUSE WELCOME FOR BUSH

George W Bush has arrived on his first visit to the White House as president-elect, for talks with President Bill Clinton.

The two men, who were both looking relaxed, will hold a meeting in the Oval Office with their chiefs-of-staff before a private lunch.

"It's actually been such a huge honour to come as the president-elect. I am humbled and honoured, and I thank the president for his hospitality," said Mr Bush.
"I'm here to listen, if the president is kind enough to offer me advice."

Mr Clinton said the only advice he had to offer his successor was "to get a good team and do what you think is right".

Mr Bush is later due to meet his vanquished opponent Al Gore at the vice-president's residence, from where the Democratic Party candidate made his concession speech.

The future first lady, Laura Bush, has already met Hillary Clinton, to discuss the transition to the White House.

The US Electoral College completed the formality of officially electing Mr Bush president on Monday, after weeks of bitter legal wrangling over the controversial result.

Economy talk

Despite attacks by Mr Bush on Mr Clinton's character during the campaign the two men spoke congenially as they met for the first time since the election.


At a joint news conference Mr Clinton said he did not think the US economy would sink into recession.

"But we couldn't keep up 5% growth a year, you know, forever," he added.

Mr Bush declined to comment on his recent statements that he is concerned about an economic slowdown.


Healing wounds

Mr Bush met congressional leaders from both the Republican and Democratic parties on Monday.

He has said he will try to heal the wounds from the bruising presidential contest.

But, while Mr Bush has stressed his determination to press ahead with his plan for big tax cuts, both parties in Congress are more cautious.

The BBC's Paul Reynolds in Washington says the Texas governor will need all the skills he claims to have as a bipartisan leader to forge a consensus.

Having moved quickly to nominate senior members of his administration, Mr Bush arrived in Washington to start trying to be, as he has always described himself, a uniter not a divider.

With Congress almost evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, Mr Bush joked with party leaders that he might have to resort to some arm-twisting.

"I told all four that there are going to be some times where we don't agree with each other, but that's okay, he said.

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

On a more serious note, he said the closeness of the election "should make it clear to all of us that we can come together to heal whatever wounds may exist, whatever residuals there may be".

President-elect George W. Bush met with Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan Monday, discussing his proposed 10 year, $1.3 trillion tax cut. Later that morning, Bush met with Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle and House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, as well as with Republican allies House Speaker Dennis Hastert and Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott Bush. In a press conference after the meeting, Bush noted that "This might be easier if it were a dictatorship... as long as I'm the dictator."

Listen to the 10 second audio clip edited from NPR webcast, 12-18-2000.

As a child of the '60's I watched nightly both the protests of the peacelovers and the body count rise. Both of these numbers seemed to swell both independantly of each other yet parallel.. They were analogous each other in another key correlation- the people watching this madness unfold on national television every night became anesthetized to both the numbers of dead (unless of course it was Your son, grandson, etc) and to the sight of another screaming horde of the young enveloped in clouds of teargas supplied oh-so-generously by the stormtroopers.
In a visual medium such as television, one green body bag looks the same as every other- as does each throng of a thousand marching hippies with signs. It began to seem as if the stations were simply replaying the news from the night before, the only changing aspect being in location.
The extraordinary became mundane - until Kent State.
As I watched the film clips of the Seattle protests I felt transported back in time. Many survivors of the '60's felt the same. There were two noted differences though between then and now. Then there was a common focus- a laser beam of energy, action and thought directed at a discernable end point. The other difference is that somehow the stormtroopers are much more frightening in deportment, arms, and strength. It is as if they have been trained for this for years and years in expectation of an eventual rebellion by people who are waking up to the truths of the world. Perhaps they have been.
Unfortunately for the peacelovers, we have not. What we can do at this point is look to the mistakes made- and learn from them. Another mass of screaming protesters will not make a statement on the national conscious. It simply gives the fascists more ammunition to use against us- as they have so many times... and gives the infiltrators an opening, as happened at the RNC.
Many who are holding center stage currently are the ones who years ago began the process leading up to this point in history. Understand that they have decades of experience in handling us. They look at us as children tossing tantrums in the corner. And when we have seemingly disparate issues-we are in several corners, divided; all too predictable in our actions.We need to close these gaps- womens rights, the environment, economic imbalance, sweat shops, race etc. etc. and realize that all of these issues add up to One issue. That issue is the same as the one fought for in the 1960's -
Life vs. Death.
The ones who have orchestrated this coup are Pro-Death.. Let this be our focus:
The Death of democracy, the Death of Freedom. The same bell is being tolled for us all.
That being so- then I propose a March of Mourning- a Funeral dirge.
The protestors in Washington and elsewhere should - EN-MASS - dress in black from head to toe, paint thier faces white in unity, and walk in TOTAL silence -carrying no banners, no posters.. Instead, carry coffins: coffins draped in black cloth bearing one word -DEMOCRACY- in letters as scarlet as the blood of those who have died in defending it.
At the moment of the Coronation of King George the thousands of protestors should - as ONE body- silently turn thier backs on the scene of the crime.
I can think of no stronger visual or visceral impact than this. A silent, unified condemnation that would be utterly horrifying to the Pro-Death people.
This way there can be no infiltration of ranks - there can be no censure by those who would want to call us 'rioters' and 'anarchists'- and no arrests or beatings that 'they' seem to delight in.
And for those watching, an indelible image to contemplate.