ABC SAID THE APPLAUSE WAS STAGED!

[aquart]

It was "initiated by a member of the White House staff."

[Rick Myers]

1. It was right on cue!!!

:grr: Absolutely staged!

[Nite Owl]

2. Wow

that's all I can say.

[kitkat65]

3. Doesn't surprise me

The handshakes looked polite and that's about it

[democracyindanger]

8. I was thinking what I'd do

if I was a soldier on stage like that and had to shake the Humanzee's hand. I decided I'd smile, shake his hand, and right after he turned, when the cameras were still on me I'd keep smiling and "absent-mindedly" wipe my hand on my pant leg.

[kitkat65]

13. You have no idea how much I was hoping to see that

They were well behaved, those boys.

[LiberalFighter]

29. CNN's: Mood split in military town ahead of Bush visit

A new statewide poll released Tuesday shows increasing doubt in military-friendly North Carolina over whether the war is worthwhile.

Forty-two percent of 600 active voters questioned Friday through Sunday agreed the war has been worth it, but 49 percent say it has not, the poll conducted for The News & Observer of Raleigh and WRAL-TV found. The survey by Research 2000 had a sampling error margin of plus and minus 4 percentage points. In January 2004, the survey found 58 percent of North Carolina voters saying the war was worthwhile.

Source

[Mist]

4. It sounded brief and desultory.

[Stand and Fight]

7. See my post below.

The soldiers were surely told when to clap and how long to clap -- no shit. Down to the seconds.

[DinahMoeHum]

5. You're kidding, right ????? LMAO !!!

Sheesh, Bush is such a worn-out douchebag.

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

[laugle]

22. thanks for the laugh of the night LOL n/t

[Stand and Fight]

6. That was my thought as a former soldier.

That's the sort of thing that happens all the time. You wouldn't believe the sort of shit that they exercise control over when you're in the military, folks. I guarantee you the soldiers were "instructed" how to sit, when to clap, how long to clap, how to look, when to stand, when to sit... Well, you get it. It was staged.

[Jade Fox]

11. No doubt that's the real reason he chose to speak.....

in front of a military audience. None other is as controllable.

Thank you for your service, Stand and Fight. :hi:

[Stand and Fight]

20. Thank you for NOT being a war-mongering piss-ant. n/t

[lachattefolle]

12. And still some didn't applaud. That's the only way they can passively

resist. I know, cuz all the time when we go to Army events and the chaplain prays, I don't bow my head. The best I can do.

[laugle]

24. But did you see the two guys falling asleep,

I got my husband to watch with me, so that we could throw our
usual ping-pong balls at the TV.  And just as they panned to
the soldiers falling asleep, my husband let out a big snore. 
15 minutes is his limit. LOL

[Stand and Fight]

26. There's a good reason for that...

The soldiers were more than likely made to practice -- yes, PRACTICE! -- their roles. Lame, but I know how the Army works for cheese-dick stuff like this. :eyes: Sad, but true.

[Misunderestimator]

9. And even Wolf Blitzer said that the troops didn't "HooHaa" once...

And that the only time they did interrupt the speech to applaud, they were reserved.

[uppityperson]

10. NBC said "reason to go into Iraq was WMDs. They didn't exist. Now he says

the reason was to prevent Iraq from attacking USA like happened on Sept 11.

[KeepItReal]

14. An Iraq-led attack on the U.S. would have gotten the whole place nuked

State-sponsored terrorism cannot be hidden very well.

We traced the Pan-Am bombing over Scotland right to Libya.

Governments have too much beauracracy to keep secrets.

[SweetLeftFoot]

25. Lockerbie

Bit off topic but the boy Meghrabi (sp?) who is currently doing time for that is a patsy.

[laugle]

17. I also heard Bush say that

the reason the soldiers went to fight in Iraq was, to spread FREEDOM!! That lying sack of S--t!

[laugle]

18. I also heard Bush say that

the reason the soldiers went to fight in Iraq was, to spread FREEDOM!! That lying sack of S--t!

[laugle]

19. I also heard Bush say that

the reason the soldiers went to fight in Iraq was, to spread FREEDOM!! That lying sack of S--t!

[Steely_Dan]

27. I heard you the first time

[laugle]

30. At first I wondered what you meant,

I thought, did I say that twice, then I realized it posted twice. I've had some weid ass things happening tonight. I had to log myself in even though I nevered logged out. Must be a conspiracy! LOL

[Steely_Dan]

33. No worries...

Didn't mean to sound confrontational...

[Zen Democrat]

15. I noticed a lot of the troops didn't applaud. Many sat on their hands.

[laugle]

16. I noticed only some people applauded, and some people were falling asleep!

[AAARRRGGGHHH]

21. This surprises me

because I heard the speach on ABC radio (I was in my car). Their coverage was SO one-sided and positive towards * (Well, what I could hear above the swallowing was, anyway). They didn't have Pelosi's response, and the only Dem voice you heard was a 15 second snippet of JK's speach on the Senate floor.

That's AWESOME to hear!

[Supersedeas]

23. Props and Cannonfodder too...what a bonus for Bush constituencies

[zulchzulu]

28. Why would this be seen as ANY kind of surprise

If they didn't cheer, they would be sent off to Iraq pronto to be a "pole" for KBR. Oh wait...that's what they will be.

[Skittles]

31. I think the surprise is that the media would report it

ya know?

[aquart]

32. But they DID NOT cheer.

They applauded politely but ONLY when the White House advance team started the applause.

[emrenz]

34. No hostiles...

The President's handlers have not put him in front of a potentially hostile audience since he took office. That's why he's so oblivious to public opinion. His Town Hall meetings feature a hand-picked audience, we now know many of his press conferences have "President-friendly" reporters planted, and any protester in a public appearance (or a motorcade) are kept well out of site in their so-called "safe zones."