TIME: Almanac 1990/1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso/time/050889/05088900.048

Text File | 1990-09-18 | 3.6 KB | 68 lines

NATION, Page 23

The Presidency

"The People's House"

By Hugh Sidey


    For the past few weeks the world has taken a cool look at
George Bush as he neared a milestone: his first 100 days in the
Oval Office. Bush has gazed back at the people and the country and
has formed impressions of his own. Listen to him: Mainly the
children now. We were in Union, N.J. We went up there to visit with
the best achievers. And for some reason through this complicated
mail system a letter had floated to our attention from a young girl
who said, "There are others of us. There are some of us who work
the hardest. I'm in a class for slow learners." And so we arranged
for the motorcade to stop, and this girl had been positioned out
there with her teacher. When we drove away -- just tears streaming
down her face, the tears. I read her letter, kind of choked up. It
was a beautiful thing that the girl had petitioned her President
and that in some way we were at least able to respond. When I
mentioned her later in this big auditorium full of the cheering
best and the brightest, I could see some of the parents nodding.
The President can give some encouragement to somebody like that.

    There are some differences (between being Vice President and
President). When you go up to Pennsylvania you see the people out
along the streets clapping. Not for George Bush, but out of respect
for the presidency. Something very moving about that, and that's
different. There's still a certain respect for the institutions in
this country. In this job you feel it more.

    I went with (Hosni) Mubarak walking down the (White House)
stairs, and I said to him, "I want you to see a little touch of our
democracy. This house is the people's house." And we walked. I
said, "Let's not go in the elevator. At this time of day there are
tourists. I don't know who they are, but I'll guarantee you they're
from all over our country." And I stopped on the stairs and said,
"This is the President of Egypt." The (people) were calling, "Hi,
George."

    King Hussein was with us at Mount Vernon. It was wonderful to
see him participating in our democracy by shaking hands with the
school kids and teachers. They were yelling, "Hey, King!" It was
a marvelous thing.

    One thing I like to share with people is the Truman Balcony.
You're looking across at the (Washington) Monument and at the
Jefferson Memorial. And you see the people sometimes. If we were
there right now, we'd see the people looking up past those
beautiful flowers and fountains. You see the people's house
symbolized by the people looking in. It's not some naive view.
We're talking about the people's house, and a continuity. I said
to Prime Minister Zaid Rifai,* "You guys have to come out here and
see something before you leave."

    Then one Sunday we were out on the third floor in the solarium
up there. There was some kind of kite festival or kite tournament,
and they had every crazy-looking Chinese kite and American kite
and airplane kite. That's why I like to sit out. You've got to see
the changes.

    I've told you how I feel about going across this country, which
we've done to some degree in this job. You look down and just think
about the wonder of our land, particularly after you've had visits
from people from abroad. You think of the tremendous diversity of
our country, its strength, its decency. It's a pride that you take
every time. I do every time I go outside.


* A day after returning to Jordan from the U.S., Riafai was sacked
  last week by King Hussein in the wake of riots over price rises.