One of his most famous quotes, however, came at a stop in Bentonville, Arkansas, on November 6, 2000, "They misunderestimated me." This quote would later prompt Robin Williams to reply, "No, not really."
Perhaps the best ever blooper by the former president was his tortured try at a famous Star Trek quote delivered by Scotty: "On Earth, we have a saying: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." But when Bush tried his hand at the quote, at Nashville, Tennessee, on September 17, 2002, "this is what he actually said, "There's an old saying in Tennessee--I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee--that says, 'Fool me once, shame on, shame on you. Fool me -- you can't get fooled again."
There are many runner-ups to the above examples, but I'm sure you get the message. Former President Bush seemed to have the knack to slice and dice the English language in ways that I hadn't seen since the days of Secretary of State Alexander Haig. "We didn't lose Vietnam. We quit Vietnam;" or "The warning message we sent the Russians was a calculated ambiguity that would be clearly understood."
But tactless gaffes require another whole level of oops. Not only does the quote have to be as twisted as a pretzel, it has to show the speaker in a negative way, not just grammatically tortured, but in a way that gives the impression of someone who promotes bad policy. Earlier this year, during a speech given in New Hampshire, Romney said, "I like being able to fire people who provide services to me." For the vast majority of people who have never been in a position to fire someone, this quote sounded more like the boasting of malevolent boss than the assurance of a candidate who can separate wheat from chaff.
But that wasn't the only instance where Governor Romney presented himself in a less than favorable light. In a December, 2011, Republican debate, Texas Governor, Rick Perry, stated that Romney had been for the individual mandate as a governor, to which Romney challenged him by extending his hand and wanting to wager $10,000 on the veracity of the accusation. Again, the vast majority of Americans will probably never be able to make such a hefty bet, or even come close, and it painted Romney as a rich, eccentric individual who has trouble differentiating from casino gambling and politicking.
Even when Romney went overseas to demonstrate his foreign expertise, he wound up insulting the entire British people. As the Huffington Post reported, "The stories about the private security firm not having enough people, the supposed strike of the immigration and customs officials -- that obviously is not something which is encouraging," Romney said during an interview with NBC News that aired on Wednesday evening, stating that he found some of these potential issues "disconcerting."
As the article went on, British Prime Minister David Cameron hit back at Romney's remarks on Thursday, taking a shot at the former governor's leadership during the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. "We are holding an Olympic Games in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities anywhere in the world," Cameron said. "Of course, it's easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere."
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
1
1
1
