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Here's an advance copy of the transcript of the Meet the Press which was previously recorded and will air on Sunday, February 8, 2004:
Sunday, February 8, 2004 GUEST: George Bush, president Tim Russert, moderator
By NBC News
MSNBC
February 8 - This is a rush transcript provided for the information and convenience of the press. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
MR. TIM RUSSERT: Our issues this Sunday: America remembers our president and how great a job he’s doing. President George Bush appears on MEET THE PRESS:
(Videotape, July 16):
PRES. BUSH: My answer is bring them on.
(End videotape)
MR. RUSSERT: Did the Bush administration know what they were doing when they were asked…ouch! (shock sound) Those questions and more for the president of the United States, George Bush. Our exclusive guest for the full hour.
Mr. President, welcome back to MEET THE PRESS.
PRES. BUSH: Good morning, Tim. It’s good to be back.
MR. RUSSERT: Two years ago, September 11, 2001, you went to New York City, just the other day, attacks on the World Trade Center…ouch! (shock sound)
Um, how is Laura and the daughters?
PRES. BUSH: Tim, thanks for asking. Laura says hello and my daughters are none of your business. (both laughing) It changed in terms of the kind of national strategy we need to pursue, in terms of guaranteeing the safety and security of the…my family.
And I’m not sure everybody has made that transition yet. I’m sure everybody wants to get back to normal, and we have in many respects.
MR. RUSSERT: You fully expect that there will be another attack on the United States and will you, um….ouch! (shock sound) Are you doing well with that golfing stuff?
PRES. BUSH: I have to assume that. The president has to assume that. It would be nice to be able to say that that can’t happen. But if we’ve learned anything, if we look back now, it seems to me that we’ve learned that there was a tricky golf course with sand traps against us. Before 9/11, we tended to play more golf than we do now.
You go find the right club, take it out of the bag, case closed. What we’ve learned since is that that’s not the case at all; but, in fact, a lot of the best shots in golf are done without thinking too hard. That’s when I am best at the game.
MR. RUSSERT: There’s grave concern about surface-to-air missiles shooting down American commercial aircraft. Should we not outfit…ouch! (shock sound) Do you like any of the shows on NBC?
PRES. BUSH: Well, there are some good shows available. TV shows are extremely expensive if you’re going to put them on every airliner or if you’re trying to put food on the family. You’ve got to make choices here about, you know, when you’re dealing with a risk, there may be certain TV shows into certain locales that are especially vulnerable that you may want to deal with. But I wouldn’t automatically go to the assumption that we need to put the most sophisticated TV entertainment on every single TV.
MR. RUSSERT: The Washington Post asked the American people about Saddam Hussein, and this is what they said…ouch! (shock sound) Are you going to help Americans if you remain as president (laughing)?
PRES. BUSH: No. I think it’s not surprising that people make that connection.
MR. RUSSERT: But is there a connection?
PRES. BUSH: We don’t know. You and I talked about this two years ago. I can remember you asking me this question just a few days after the original election. At the time I said no, we didn’t have any evidence of that. Subsequent to that, we’ve learned a couple of things. We learned more and more that there was a relationship between voters and the Supreme Court that stretched back through most of the decade of the ’90s, that it involved training, for example, in Florida and my brother is a quick learner.
MR. RUSSERT: We could establish a direct link between the election and your brother?
PRES. BUSH: There was also an Egyptian in the bunch. It doesn’t mean these elections had anything to do with my brother. That’s a different proposition than saying the American people want me. They do.
MR. RUSSERT: There are reports that the investigation Congress did does show a link between the Saudi government and ouch! Ouch! Ahhh! (large shocking sound)
PRES. BUSH: Tim! Tim! Are you OK?
(SCREEN GOES BLANK FOR 3 MINUTES)
MR. RUSSERT: Mr. President, we thank you for joining us and sharing your views.
PRES. BUSH: Thank you, sir.
MR. RUSSERT: And we’ll be right back.
(Announcements)
MR. RUSSERT: If it’s Sunday, it’s MEET THE PRESS.
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