List of nicknames used by George W. Bush
Former American president George W. Bush is widely known to use nicknames to refer to journalists, fellow politicians, and members of his White House staff. His penchant for bestowing nicknames may come from his experiences with Skull & Bones, the Yale University secret society that gives every member a nickname. His was reportedly "Temporary", because he never chose a permanent one.[1]
Bush's nicknaming proclivity is noted enough to have attracted a variety of satire, including a New York Times humor piece,[2] and a Doonesbury strip where "Condi" is admonished with the phrase "Careful, Brown Sugar".
Family
- Poppy, 41, Old Man - George H. W. Bush[3]
- Bushie - Laura Bush (this is a mutual nickname)[4]
Foreign leaders
- Dino (short for Dinosaur) - Jean Chrétien, Prime Minister of Canada[5]
- Steve - Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada[6]
- Pootie-Poot - Vladimir Putin, current Prime Minister and former President of Russia[7][8]
- Bandar Bush - Bandar bin Sultan, ambassador to the United States from Saudi Arabia[9]
- Landslide - Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom[10]
- Man of Steel - John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia[11]
Staff
- Big Time, Vice - Dick Cheney, Vice President of the United States of America[8]
- Izzy, Altoid Boy - Special Assistant Israel Hernandez (for his role as provider of breath mints to the President on the campaign trail)[12][13]
- Boy Genius, Turd Blossom - Senior Advisor Karl Rove[14][8]
- Condi - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice[8]
- The World's Greatest Hero - Secretary of State Colin Powell[15]
- Big O (current), Pablo (former) - Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neill[16]
- Fredo, Speedy - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales[17][8]
- Danny Boy, Dan the Man - Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Bartlett[12]
- Ari-Bob - White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer[18]
- High Prophet, Hurricane Karen - Karen Hughes, Special Advisor; Director of Communications under Texas Governor George W. Bush[19]
- The Blade, My Man Mitch - Office of Management and Budget Director Mitch Daniels[20]
- Big Country - Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Joe Allbaugh[21]
- Brownie - Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael D. Brown[22]
- Tree Man - Unnamed forest service official[23]
- La Margarita - Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings[24]
- Tangent Man - White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card[25]
- Tiny - Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage[26]
- Light Bulb - National Energy Policy Development Group Executive Director Andrew D. Lundquist[27]
- Horny - White House Speechwriter Jonathan Horn[28]
Politicians
- Pablo - Paul Wellstone, Democratic Senator, Minnesota[29]
- Pedro - Peter King, Republican Congressman from New York[10]
- Hogan[30] - John McCain, Republican Senator, Arizona[10]
- Big George - George Miller, Democratic Congressman, California[3]
- Freddy Boy, Freddo - Fred Upton, Republican Congressman from Michigan[3]
- Congressman Kickass - John Sweeney, Republican Congressman, New York[31]
- Nellie (former), Benney (former), Benator (current) - Ben Nelson, Democratic Senator, Nebraska[32] (Daily Show, 02/28/05)
- Ellis - Chuck Schumer, Democratic Senator, New York[33]
- Bama, Rock - Barack Obama, former Democratic Senator, Illinois and the current President[34][dubious – discuss]
- Ali - Barbara Boxer, Democratic Senator, California[35]
- Frazier - Diane Feinstein, Democratic Senator, California[36]
- Sabertooth - Barney Frank, Democratic Congressman, Massachusetts[37]
- Red - Adam Putnam, Republican Congressman, Florida[38]
Journalists
- The Cobra - Maureen Dowd[39]
- Stretch/Little Stretch - David Gregory, NBC[40][41][42]
- Stretch - Dick Kyle, Bloomberg News[42]
- Super Stretch - Bill Sammon, then of The Washington Times, now of The Washington Examiner[42]
- Mikey - Mike Emanuel, Fox News [43]
- Shades - Peter Wallsten, blind reporter for the Los Angeles Times[44]
- Panchito - Frank Bruni, Reporter who covered Bush campaign in 2000 for the New York Times [45]
Others
- Kenny Boy - Kenneth Lay [46]
- Weadie, Weadnik - author Doug Wead [47]
- The Englishman - Peter McMahon, husband of Dana Perino [48]
See also
References
- ^ 'Bonesmen' for president - Countdown with Keith Olbermann - MSNBC.com
- ^ Mccall, Bruce (18 February 2001). "Yo, Sparky. Yeah, You Know Who You Are". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ a b c Trudeau, Garry (31 January 2001). CNN http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/time/2001/02/12/dubbed.html. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
{{cite news}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ KAIT - Jonesboro, AR: Our Apologies
- ^ CBC News Indepth: Canada - U.S. relations
- ^ Bush can call me 'Steve': Harper
- ^ "Analysis: Bush and Putin on nickname terms". BBC News. 23 May 2002. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ a b c d e Parade, "Bye-Bye Landslide & Fredo", 30 September 2007, p. 19
- ^ "Profile: Prince Bandar". BBC News. 7 June 2007. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ a b c http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/rnc/9719/
- ^ http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2008/s2202510.htm
- ^ a b Bush staffers well-versed in loyalty
- ^ "Names & Faces". The Washington Post. 26 June 2005. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ Borger, Julian (2 October 2003). "Boy Genius or Turd Blossom?". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ New Statesman - NS Profile - Colin Powell
- ^ Martinez, Andrés (14 January 2004). "Paul O'Neill, Unplugged, or What Would Alexander Hamilton Have Done?". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ A Gonzales resignation is not enough | Salon
- ^ JewishJournal.com
- ^ 'Hurricane Karen' blows hot for Bush - FeaturesWorld - www.theage.com.au
- ^ Slevin, Peter (4 October 2004). "In Indiana Race, Bush's Budget Blade Becomes 'My Man Mitch'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ Who Is Joe Allbaugh? - Timothy Noah - Slate Magazine
- ^ Bloomberg.com: Top Worldwide
- ^ Borger, Julian (20 May 2002). "Bush's love of Pootie-Poot Putin". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ Margaret Spellings: Media Star
- ^ Convention Dispatches: Bush Loves Those Nicknames Archives
- ^ FRONTLINE: bush's war | PBS
- ^ Washington Post
- ^ [1]
- ^ Bas, Dana (2 February 2001). "Senate Democrats welcome Bush appearance at retreat". CNN. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ [2]
- ^ http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/11/11/2007-11-11_former_rep_john_sweeney_charged_with_agg-1.html?print=1&page=all
- ^ [3][dead link]
- ^ Chuck Schumer's Political Future
- ^ The Blue State: Video: Obama displays personal appeal on Conan
- ^ [4]
- ^ [5]
- ^ [6]
- ^ [7]
- ^ Editorial: Publishing world / Maureen Dowd offers reheated morsels
- ^ Urban Legends Reference Pages: Bush on Ribs
- ^ campaigndesk.org
- ^ a b c Born, Matt (31 May 2002). "Bush snarls as White House pack closes in". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ ""Mikey" Emanuel's Embarrassing Moment". Retrieved 2008-06-01.
- ^ Cornwell, Rupert (16 June 2006). "Bush shows his sensitive side, telling blind journalist: 'I'm interested in the shade look'". The Independent. London. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ [8]
- ^ The Smoking Gun: Archive
- ^ The New York Times > Washington > In Secretly Taped Conversations, Glimpses of the Future President
- ^ Baxter, Sarah (9 December 2007). "Bushs cool blonde is a northern gran". The Times. London. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
