President George Bush dodges a reporters who threw is shoes at him while visiting Iraq 12 - 14 -08

http://www.WhatWouldYouSayToThePresident.com President Bush made a farewell visit Sunday to Baghdad, Iraq, where he met with Iraqi leaders and was targeted by an angry Iraqi man, who jumped up and threw shoes at Bush during a news conference.




President Bush, left, ducks a thrown shoe as Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki tries to protect him Sunday.

1 of 3 Bush ducked, and the shoes, thrown one at a time, sailed past his head during the news conference with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in his palace in the heavily fortified Green Zone.

Throwing shoes at someone, or sitting so that the bottom of a shoe faces another person, is considered an insult among Muslims.

The man was dragged out screaming after throwing the shoes.

As the man continued to scream from another room, Bush said: "That was a size 10 shoe he threw at me, you may want to know."

Bush had been lauding the conclusion of a security pact with Iraq as journalists looked on. Watch Bush duck the shoe

"So what if the guy threw his shoe at me?" Bush told a reporter in response to a question about the incident.

"Let me talk about the guy throwing his shoe. It's one way to gain attention. It's like going to a political rally and having people yell at you. It's like driving down the street and having people not gesturing with all five fingers.

"It's a way for people to draw attention. I don't know what the guy's cause is. But one thing is for certain. He caused you to ask me a question about it. I didn't feel the least bit threatened by it.

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"These journalists here were very apologetic. They ... said this doesn't represent the Iraqi people, but that's what happens in free societies where people try to draw attention to themselves."

Bush then directed his comments to the security pact, which he and al-Maliki were preparing to sign, hailing it as "a major achievement" but cautioning that "there is more work to be done."

"All this basically says is we made good progress, and we will continue to work together to achieve peace," Bush said.

Bush's trip was to celebrate the conclusion of the security pact, called the Strategic Framework Agreement and the Status of Forces Agreement, the White House said.

The pact will replace a U.N. mandate for the U.S. presence in Iraq that expires at the end of this year. The agreement, reached after months of negotiations, sets June 30, 2009, as the deadline for U.S. combat troops to withdraw from all Iraqi cities and towns. The date for all U.S. troops to leave Iraq is December 31, 2011.

Bush called the passage of the pact "a way forward to help the Iraqi people realize the blessings of a free society."

Bush said the work "hasn't been easy, but it has been necessary for American security, Iraqi hope and world peace."

Bush landed at Baghdad International Airport on Sunday and traveled by helicopter to meet with President Jalal Talabani and his two vice presidents at Talabani's palace outside the Green Zone.

It marked the first time he has been outside the heavily fortified Green Zone in Baghdad without being on a military base.

The visit was Bush's fourth since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003.

Afterward, Talabani praised his U.S. counterpart as a "great friend for the Iraqi people" and the man "who helped us to liberate our country and to reach this day, which we have democracy, human rights, and prosperity gradually in our country."

Talabani said he and Bush, who is slated to leave office next month, had spoken "very frankly and friendly" and expressed the hope that the two would remain friends even "back in Texas."

For his part, Bush said he had come to admire Talabani and his vice presidents "for their courage and for their determination to succeed."

As the U.S. and Iraqi national anthems played and Iraqi troops looked on, he and the Iraqi president walked along a red carpet. Watch President Bush and Iraq's president walk the red carpet »


In remarks to reporters, National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley, who traveled with Bush, described the situation in Iraq as "in a transition."

"For the first time in Iraq's history and really the first time in the region, you have Sunni, Shia and Kurds working together in a democratic framework to chart a way forward for their country," he said.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• President George Bush
• Iraq
• Iraqi Prime Minister
• Nouri al-maliki
• Shoe
• Reporter
• Throws
• Dodges
• Iraq War
• Baghdad
• Press
• Conference

[arielmagne]

Americans can not feel proud of Bush.

He led USA to a crisis.

However he has very good reflexes to avoid the flying shoes!! ja ja

[bmr461]

Ha that was great George Bush is quick. Bush is a good man and was a great president.

[obrijanamaca1985]

@shadowC10ne Bush didn't lead anyone to death, crisis and ruins. Bush was a political puppet.

Even if he did led them to all that , it was not his intention. You see, even Obama became a president, a very intelligent man, at least appears like one. He promised he'll stop the war and made other unfulfilled promises too. Yet he can't stop the war. Presidents are puppets in the hands of much higher and powerful people that are behind the curtains. George Bush was a good man, and still is. The end.

[PoIiticaIIylncorrect]

If you rewind the tape, you can see his throws were perfect. Bush just dodged them.

[Cudira187]

HAHA....haahahaha...haha... haaahahaha....haaah..... good times, good times!! I still cant decide wheter I should laugh at Bush or the nuthead that trowing the shoes!! But this vid is funny as fucked. I didnt know Bush can Matrix move, and the nuthead cant throw, he miss two times. lol.

[hipstermi]

Well you got to give it to Bush...it was a good dodge! And come on, this guy had TWO shots and still couldn't connect.

[Xtsco11]

hahaah bush is a right tool, isnt throwing your shoes in iraq like a really bad thing? AS in it means that the person getting the shows thrown that them is extremely hated? ahah

[Retrocheckz]

why the fuck was he in Iraq,. whats sick is that bush said it was cool and shook hands with him, but the man got the hell beat out of him in ''America''.(he was brought for questioning). this is to tell you our country lies alot and destroys there own constitution 40 million for Clinton sex scandal 4 million 4 9/11 relief support

[Colin2k41]

@arielmagne really? clinton fucked the economy and bush didn't land at katrina because it slow evacuation process

[shadowC10ne]

You don't understand that guy who threw his shoe at Bush. It was a good gesture.

He was saying:

"Thank you Bush for invading my country and turning it into a ruin where families end up with their children killed because of 'smart bombs' and 'collateral damage'.

We iraqis love you so much. Here's a shoe!"

[MinnesotaJDM]

So I guess if it wasn't bush in office that we wouldn't have gone to war and that we would have just shrugged 9/11 off. Glad Obama is in office pulling our troops out... oh wait Obama hold the record for most troop deaths in a single month even though bush ruled for 8 years... Wow Obama. Good job.

[DavyCrockettFan1]

@arielmagne I do. He lowered taxes for the middle class. Since Obama got in office my taxes went UP ! Obama wants to take our troops out of Iraq and Afganastan when we need them there to protect our homeland. Have you noticed there hasn't been an attack on us since 9/11 ? There will be attacks on us EVERY day if we lower our homeland security due to withdrawing troops from this war.