A Bedtime Kiss for Chirac

Posted on February 22, 2005

President Bush had dinner with French President Jacques Chirac this past week. USA Today shares some tasty tidbits about President Bush's trip to Europe to win fences. So, how is the Charm Offensive going, anyway?

One clue: the headline for one Belgian newspaper's story about Bush's dinner with Chirac read: "The Mission: a Night Kiss for Chirac Before Bedtime." Maybe it sounds better in Flemish (the language of that particular newspaper), but it's hard to imagine USA Today, for example, running a headline like that. Bush has definitely got some better comedy writers for this trip.

In his first European speech of the trip, he joked about his cool reception by Europe. "More than 200 years ago, Benjamin Franklin arrived on this continent to great acclaim," said President Bush. Citing John Adams' description of Franklin's popularity, he continued, "There was scarcely a peasant or a citizen....who did not consider him as a friend to humankind." "I have been hoping for a similar reception, but Secretary (of State Condoleezza) Rice told me I should be a realist." That line drew big laughs in the crowd. So, how did the dinner with Chirac go? Pretty well, it seems. The two world leaders dined on lobster risotto with truffle sauce and beef filet with bordelaise sauce. Chardonnay and cabernet wines were served. They also served up the infamous pommes frites, or as they were known for awhile "Freedom Fries." To the Flemish newspaper's dismay, no one reported whether Chirac did, indeed, receive a kiss goodnight.