Welcome Idiots to the White House

On a day when the Washington Nationals played their very first game, the George W Bush greeted your World Champion Red Sox at the south lawn. Bush asked them what took them so long, and David Ortiz replied...

The wind.

AS RELEASED BY THE WHITE HOUSE

MARCH 2, 2005

SPEAKER: GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES


BUSH: Please be seated, unless you don't have a chair.
(Laughter.) So, like, what took you so long? (Laughter.) Welcome.
And welcome to the citizens of the Red Sox Nation. (Applause.) I'm
proud to be joined by the Vice President. He's a Chicago Cubs fan.
So, like, he knows what you've been through. (Laughter.) We're
really glad you're here.
There's been a lot of people in this town waiting for this day to
come. Some have said it would be a cold day when the Red Sox made it
here. (Laughter.) I am honored to welcome the world champs, the
mighty Boston Red Sox, to the White House. (Applause.)

I want to welcome the members of the Massachusetts delegation who
are here. I know that Senator Kennedy is here. Senator Kerry is on
his way. We have just finished a ceremony honoring Jackie Robinson.
I know members of the congressional delegation are here from like
Massachusetts -- and everybody else that claims to be a Red Sox state.
(Laughter.) You all are welcome here. I appreciate the Commissioner
coming. And, Bob, it's good to see you. I thank the members of my
Cabinet who are here. I appreciate the Mayor being here, the Mayor of
Boston. (Applause.) You've had a heck of a year, Mayor. (Laughter.)

I want to thank and welcome my friend, Tom Werner and Larry
Lucchino. I'm sorry John Henry is sick. You know, Lucchino, I knew
you'd amount to something eventually. (Laughter.) I appreciate the
way this team played baseball. You know, it took a lot of guts and it
took a lot of hair. (Laughter and applause.) It took a great manager
and coaching staff -- (applause) -- and I'll never forget calling
Terry Francona after the team won the championship, and he -- the only
thing I remember him saying was, it's all -- it all depended upon the
players, which is why he's a good manager, isn't it?

I appreciate the fact that Dom DiMaggio and Jimmy Piersall are
with us. (Applause.) You guys represent a lot of great Boston Red
Sox players that a lot of us grew up watching play, and you're welcome
here in the White House, and you're representing a great tradition of
wonderful folks.

You know, the last time the Red Sox were here, Woodrow Wilson
lived here. (Laughter.) There were only 16 teams in baseball then.
After the World Series victory in 1918, a reporter from Boston said,
"The luckiest baseball spot on Earth is Boston, for it has never lost
a World Series." (Laughter.) That's one optimistic writer.
(Laughter.)

Senator, welcome. Good to see you. Only time I -- I like to see
Senator Kerry, except when we're fixing to debate. (Laughter.) If
you know what I mean. (Laughter.)

No one really expected the answer to the curse of the Bambino
would come from a group of players that call themselves "idiots,"
except for maybe idiots who don't understand baseball. This is a heck
of a team. This is a team that came together from South Korea and
Dominican Republic, from Anchorage, Alaska, Fort Riley, Kansas, and
incredibly enough, Midland, Texas. (Applause.) Oh, yes. Finally,
somebody from Midland amounted to something. (Laughter.)

I love the way this team played, and so do baseball fans. I
mean, this is a team that won eight games in a row when it wasn't
supposed to. It's kind of courage, and a couple of stitches. You
answered 86 years of prayer. That's an amazing feat, isn't it? I
mean, when the Red Sox won, people all over the world cheered. They
cheered in New England, and they cheered in Baghdad, Iraq.
(Applause.) One guy said -- from Boston -- he said, "Now we just have
to wait for the other six signs of the apocalypse." (Laughter.)

I really appreciate what Boston does off the field, too. The
Jimmy Fund is a classic example of a sports franchise giving something
back to the community in which they play. You created the Red Sox
Scholars, which awards scholarships to disadvantaged fifth graders. I
appreciate what individual players do. I know firsthand what the
Schillings do, the Shade Foundation to work to prevent skin cancer and
the -- and Shonda and Curt's leadership in the battle against Lou
Gehrig's disease. I appreciate what the Red Sox are doing in the
Dominican Republic with Senor Octubre.

But most of all, our purpose here is to welcome champs. We wish
you all the best in the upcoming season. We know that you've been
able to do what has been viewed to be the impossible. And just like
that sportswriter said in 1918, you know, Boston is the place to cover
champs.

Welcome to the White House. May God continue to bless you all.
(Applause.)

END