A lot of good all that Saudi hand-holding did, eh?
This is what you get for pandering to the Sauds: A big, fat middle finger.
What’s Arabic for flipping the bird?
President Bush failed to win the help he sought from Saudi Arabia to relieve skyrocketing American gas prices Friday, a setback for the former Texas oilman who took office predicting he would jawbone oil-producing nations to help the U.S.
Bush got a red-carpet welcome to this desert kingdom, home to the world’s largest oil reserves, and promised to ask King Abdullah to increase production to reduce pressure on prices, which soared past $127 for the first time Friday. But Saudi officials said they already were meeting the needs of their customers worldwide and there was no need to pump more.
Their answer recalled Bush’s trip to Saudi Arabia in January when he urged an increase in production but was rebuffed.
Think President Bush will think twice about opening our doors to more Saudi aviation students and making a sword-dancing fool of himself in front of the world?
Nope.
They blow off Bush on oil production.
He tells them, “OK, we’ll give you nukes.”
Like Toynbee said: “Civilizations die from suicide, not by murder.”
***
More: A commenter notes that the Sauds increased production by a scant 300,000 barrels last week. But as the White House itself said, it was token:
The White House said the increase would not be enough to lower gasoline prices, which are nearing $4 a gallon, and industry analysts called it mostly symbolic.
Justin Hart rightly takes the Bush White House to task for raising false hopes:
One rule I’ve learned about fundraising events over the years: If you set a goal and make it public you better meet it and BEAT it handily. The Bush administration cut itself again by publicly acknowledging that Bush would ask OPEC to increase production and then failing to obtain that result. If you knew there was little chance of accomplishing that goal… why publicize it as part of your mission!?
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Categories: Saudi Arabia
Confederate Yankee
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Bendover
B-b-b-butI thought the Bush Family were such good friends of the Saudi Royal Family? You mean that once again the Dhimmocrat Party got it wrong? Who’d thunk it? With friend like these….
If Booooosh won’t stand up to the pinheads pushing environmental BS and Gorebal Warming, what makes us think he’ll “jawbone” the Saudis into anything?
There seem to be two Bushes (at least): there is the Talking Bush who sometimes makes sense, or at least appears to do so, i.e. in the way the speaks of some of the world’s grim realities (e.g. parts of his speech in Israel). Then there is the Acting Bush, who appears to have been lobotomized, who goes from failure to clueless failure, not grasping in the slightest that he is putting on a embarrassing global performance unequaled since the days of Carter. The Talking Bush and the Acting Bush never come together, never are in synch, each never seeming to be even aware of the other. Yes, I am beyond complete exhasperation having advanced now to a state of utter bafflement.
If someone can give a psychological explanation of this man, I would be grateful. Seriously — what on earth is wrong with him? And “From the beginning . . .” is not an acceptable answer.
Rodham said last week that she would get TOUGH with OPEC.
Obama has NO CLUE.
G.W.BUSH asked Saudi Arabia nicely.
And McCain is on his GLOBAL WARMING WORLD TOUR….featuring Color me Green.
We’re fuqqed.
President Bush should have, could have, would have DRILLED ANWAR until ANWAR SAID……UNCLE CARIBOU!!!
But there is not political will, and no CONSERVATIVES with balls.
We could always make use of our astronomical coal reserves and use coal to liquids technology like the Chinese are now doing.
I can’t really tell about the Saudis, one report says they are willing to up production 300,000 bpd another says — I think the drive by media with their ingrained BDS may be slanting the news, pushing the dark side. The Saudis are saying the customers are not asking for the increase, but they are willing to deliver. You can’t just store oil in a bottle, you know, it’s a continuous use market with little elastic storage.
There is some rumor talk that Iran and Valenzuela are storing oil in tankers that are being held at anchor to short the market of delivery capacity — drives up the price of the spot market.
The Saudis have a capacity of about 12.5 they are currently running at about 9, so there is capacity.
I don’t know what to make of Bush! I voted for the man twice and now I cannot wait for him to leave office. This humiliating visit with his “friends”, the Saudis, is unbelievable! The man does not seem to have a grasp of reality. Perhaps he knows something that the rest of the country doesn’t but I doubt it. He cannot face down the environmental terrorists that hold this country’s resources locked up, but he can go hat in hand to these two-faced bastards and beg for help.
The real problem is any one of the three following him is liable to be worse!!! Especially Obama!!!!
Ummmm, aren’t the Saudis still offically at war with Israel? Or is that another of our Muslim-State allies?
I just can’t keep them all counted and straight, you know, which ones are going to annihilate Israel and which are going to strangle us economically with our dependency on them for oil. It’s just all so confusing.
But I know that the Dems will get us out of this mess. Obama will talk to them. How can they refuse him? He’s the one to straighten all this right out.
He’ll reason with the Saudis, the Iranians, the Syrians, the Hezbos, the Fatah-meisters, the al-Qaed-o-matics and I just know they’ll all faint, then throw down their weaponswhen they revive, double their oil production, cut the price by one-half, renounce Islam, convert to Christianity (Hell, they might even join the Reverend Wright’s Church), and give us whatever the Obam-o-rator says he wants.
And we’ll all live happily ever after.
How about Lower oil or we Nuke your a$$ for 911
OK, followup from my last comment — here is a story that confirms the Saudis had increased oil delivery by 300,000 bpd on May 10, likely to not look like they were responding to Bush.
I smell a strong aroma of drive by media BDS and electioneering in the mix. This story was a little too quick to condemn to not suspect the drive bys doing the Democrats bidding.
aj #1 L O L thanks -I need it
l. Now-speaking of ANWHAR (sp)
2. How many Saudis were in OUR jets that they stole to run them into the WTC,Pent.and one stopped before the WH?
3. Christians still not allowed to carry Bibles on streets in SA-correct?
4. Women still not allowed to drive in SA-correct?
5.Shall I go on?………………..
Now will they start drilling and making new refineries? Uh, hell no because we have to save the over populated Polar Bears. Of course we will still allow the Alaskans to hunt them. We wouldn’t want to upset cultural norms. I need to go get my BP down.
jose
I’m pretty sure you’re not allowed to take a Bible into Saudi Arabia.
Bush’s trip to Saudi Arabia was embarrassing. A complete and utter embarrassment.
Can someone please ask Dana Perino what on earth Bush was doing going “hat in hand” to the Saudis while his Interior Secretary is making it harder to drill in other parts of the world (and in our country). All in the same week!!
It completely defies logic and I was crossing my fingers that perhaps the liberal media were just misreporting that Bush couldn’t really be going again to ‘beg’ the Saudi’s to increase production, but no one in the administration has denied it.
We really do need to find better fuel sources… I estimate we could get 4 or 5 miles per kilo of sheik fat in the city… more on the highway.
jus sayin…
When Iran threatens free passage through the Strait of Hormuz or starts threatening members of the Royal family, the Saudi nomads may sing a different song.
But it’s time to start beating the democraps over the head with the domestic drilling mantra. Drill, Drill, Drill. At least it will be fun listening to them rationalize why $200 a barrel oil is good for the environment.
A lot of good all that Saudi hand-holding did, eh?
………. sigh …………..
It’s been a trying time for the last few weeks both here and at hotair. From allahpundit bashing a youtube ad against Obama to conservatives claiming that McCain is more liberal than Obama and everything else like the joining in of mocking Bill O’Reilly with a 15 year old video.
I come to these sites because they are not the huffington post and the daily kos. Yet over the weeks, I have seen comments and posts that are getting to be almost unrecognizable between the two. The left has always done this idiotic thing as well about Bush holding hands with the saudi king. It’s what they do in that country. In other countries, men do the whole kissing of the cheek motion. It’s what people do when in another country - follow the customs. (I swear I saw a photo of Clinton and some saudi king or prince at the whitehouse holding hands, and I’ve searched the internet for that photo, and never found it.)
You mean this?
For the love of God, stop this. We are better than this.
If Dubya and the Stupid Party were smart, they’d be pounding the Dems 24/7 with ads saying:
“In 2001, we wanted to tap into our domestic oil reserves in Alaska. It would’ve lowered our reliance on unstable foreign energy sources. But the Democrats opposed us.
They said it would take at least six years to bring the oil to market. It’s been seven years.
They said it would destroy the wilderness when they knew it was just an area the size of an airport and modern exploration methods protect the environment.
Thousands of good-paying jobs for Alaskan residents…GONE.
Oil and gas prices skyrocketing out of sight.
Dependence on hostile countries for our needed lifeblood of energy increasing.
Billions of American dollars going overseas.
We could have acted to prevent the pain we are all feeling now every time well fill our gas tanks and buy food, but the Democrats refused, placing caribou over you.
Vote Republican this November. America can’t afford to wait forever to take care of herself. America definitely can’t afford more Democratic obstruction.”
But they aren’t smart. Not at all.
Now we’ve got to witness Dubya groveling for succor from the very people who fund Wahabists madrassas and supplied 15 of the 19 9/11 hijackers. I’m sure that helps our weak horse appearance to the world. That these stupid feckless dolts claim that Obama would be worse is to laugh. Then cry.
I forgot to mention McCain’s Al Gore act, swearing to preserve ANWR because he’s freaking out about global warming. How can you claim to be for national security when you are placing fraudulent junk science ahead of national self-preservation.
As our economy crumbles and people starve around the world because we’ve boondoggled our food supply into the gas tank, how much will the smug satisfaction that you prevented the Earth’s mean temperature from increasing .1 degrees be worth?
To adopt Dennis Miller’s formulation, I will vote for the candidate that promises to go up there and suck it drier than Noel Coward’s wit.
The saudi government and nation is not responsible for the actions of 15 of it’s people. When one black person comitts a crime, all black people are not also criminals. When a white person commits a bigoted act, not all white people are bigots.
what the hell is wrong with you people
Saudia’s words of wisdom!.”you want oil? drill it yourself!” now…why didn’t we think of that?
Those who have followed Bush family history should know that Bush was in Saudi back-pockets well before he was “elected” (in his brother’s state) POTUS. Didn’t Americans know that Arbusto was funded by Saudis? That Bandar was Bush family? That Bush would do all he could to pay his master’s in Riyadh back? That when Bush says “Saudis are our friends”, he means Bush family-friends?
Americans are fools not to impeach this corrupt, timid and as Michelle rightly says “Sword dancing fool”, for selling out America and Americans to Saudi Arabia for his and his family gains.
Threats to the Saudis might be the reason why they are acting as if they don’t know us now.
When Saddam rolled through Kuwait, the Saudis were wetting their toga’s over whether he would continue south.
Now that he’s gone…what’s the big deal? Bush who?
…should have let him roll further south.
Yeah. Why don’t we impeach the bastard. And why did he lie about WMD’s? See? The democrats were correct about everything. Bush also stole the election. Yup. Don’t you agree Bhishma? Maybe Bush also called the night shift at abu Ghareib and ordered the E4 and E5’s to torture the innocent Iraqis. Sure. Why not? I bet that if Bush doesn’t declare himself king on November 1st, that he’ll escape to Saudi Arabia and live in exile for the rest of his days.
Right Bhishma?
The big question now is -
Who will the President save his last (sword) dance for?
Another question:
Wasn’t he listening to his speech about appeasing those who don’t wish America well?
WiM - you’re confusing ethnic groups with nations. Nations are responsible for their citizens.
Just by way of addendum to my last comment - from CBS, 2002:
Sept. 11 Families Sue Saudis, Sudan
This may disturb your bleeding politically-correct heart, but the Saudis have been taking our petro-dollars and spreading them around the world, building madrases in which the Wahabi flavor of Islam - you know, the one that says KILL EVERYONE TO RESTORE THE CALIPHATE!!! - is taught to brainwash Muslims to slaughter infidels.
THESE ARE FACTS!!! If you are so dense as to mistake mentioning the fact that 15 of the 9/11 hijackers came from one country as a racist stereotype, then you are liable to believe that saying supermodels are typically more attractive than regular women is a misogynistic hate speech crime. Take it over to DailyKos, mmmkay? kthxbai!
Where did the love go? Huh?
Why can’t we put the Saudis in their place, bomb the crap out of them and move on already? It’s astounding that we trust these permanent, monarchical dictators to do what’s right when raking in mojo mullah is their real motivation.
Please, let’s stop kissing the hands of these soiled people. What have the Saudis done but intentionally spiked the oil market, support terrorism while making sure their people never have a say over their own lives?
The Saudis and their precious royal family are two-faced, double-dealing turds whose only purpose is to bilk the world of its cash for the oil that they so obligingly provide (on their terms). When are Dems gonna wake up and stop being held hostage to environuts who think that getting oil somewhere else is safer than trying to get it at home.
It really boggles the mind.
Why are you doing this? What is your point? Are you in the territory of liberal, avantegarde theater now?
Don’t you ever get sick of playing into the hands of liberals and conspiracy nuts or are you one of them? Really, I’ve got my problems with Pres. Bush, but spare me the mumbo jumbo about Bush/Saudi ties because it really does get old.
It really is an old news cycle when all contributors can come up with are conspiracy theories.
Michelle, what say you?
Oh for goodness sakes. Where are the good presidential advisors when Bush needs them. Any fool can see that instead of going to visit the royal poobahs with hat in hand, you need to do something like corner the market on palacial building materials, luxury automobiles, and fine white linen. Then they would be like putty in our hands. Or, better yet, why didn’t the prez lure the Saudi oil minister over to Bahrain, get him drunk on honey wine and then get him to sign a bunch of oil future contracts for, oh, maybe $2 a barrel.
Think of how bad it is for me this year. First time voting, evah, and look who we’ve got to pick from. Pardon me while I puke.
Bloomberg.com seems to be reporting it differently . They say Saudi Arabia agreed to increase output in June . Still will probably be just another token though .
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=as3Qc9uGN5To&refer=home
Don’t we know, it’s the congressional Democrat Socialist who are causing all this. Why not focus on what the real problem is?
Drill more, tax less.
If only Bush would have folded his middle finger inside of the Sheiks hand and wiggled it a little.. That might have changed things..
But I thought we went into Iraq for the OOIIIIYYAAAAALLLLL!
Why aren’t the Dims asking where all that oil went since we should be importing it by now?
What a bunch of ‘tards!
There’s some under table wrangling going on here and its the numbers and kinds of players I’m concerned about.
If China has broken the lock we have held on Saudi interests and hegemony is threatened the ugly could come in big spurts.
Our administration seems to be perfectly horrible at hedging bets.
Yup - and at knowing how to play “X” against “Y” to our benefit.
I heard this on the news last night. How embarrassing, MY President, the most powerful man in the world, bending down and KISSING THE ASS of people who want to see the destruction of MY COUNTRY!!! I don’t think I have ever, and I mean ever been so HUMILIATED in my life… And here we sit, with the most oil in my lifetime sitting untapped because of a BUNCH of TREE HUGGERS… I am GLAD that I am considered a senior citizen. Just maybe I won’t live long enough to see these WARM AND FUZZY people bring on the downfall of this NATION…
I guess holding hands with someone who wants to kill you and destroy your country, really doesn’t make a difference. All that embarassment for nothing.
I noticed in the lib Yahoo headline yesterday the claim that BUSH FAILED to convince them to increase output…at the same time I saw other headlines mentioning the increase of 300,000 bpd.
Yahoo now has a headline proclaiming the Saudi output boost won’t make any difference…doing what they can to snivel about it.
So what is it? Bush failed to convince them? or what Bush failed to do won’t have any effect?
As for the Saudi’s withholding output…Tarpon mentioned they have about 12 capacity, but are only putting out about 9…so they can put out more.
I thought I read yesterday that Venezuela and MEXICO are also withholding output.
If this is the case, then Mexico should pay for their own damn fence in the south, along with taking back their “citizens” and dealing with them rather than exporting them here.
Why didn’t Pres. Bush call their bluff and say “I am a customer and I’m demanding it!”?
How long before that shot of President Bush and King Abdullah holding hands ends up in a Michael Moore documentary as “proof” the Bush family is in bed with the Saudis?
Why get pissy about Saudi Arabia when the democrats AND republicans in this country refuse to allow us to drill our own oil?
Let’s direct that anger where it’s really deserved and that would be Washington.
LOL.. am amused by americans who “stand by” their “sitting president” who gives us headlines like the one we are discussing if you see the irony…..
Square your comments against the topic, if you see the point you are missing…
I really wish we’d drill in Alaska and off of the FL coast and tell these people where to go.
As for you dims and liberal commentators, the dimocraptic party does no better. They’re in bed with the Saudis as well. Sorry to disappoint you but we’re all screwed.
This country has been asleep at the wheel on oil for 20 years. We have places we could drill ourselves and be off the oil spiggot of the scumbags in the middle east. There is a car that uses WATER for energy and gets about 1000 (one thousand) miles to the gallon. Big oil will make sure that enterprise goes nowhere. While the oil companies make record profits, and their globalist CEO’s BS congress every year about the “market”, this country goes into recession and small businesses relying on reasonably priced gas go out of business. Politicians who dont know what it is to pay for a tank of gas, pay lip service to the complaints.
Bush is pathetic. How sad it is that he’s afraid to fight our real enemies in the energy world: Democrats. He is so afraid of fighting Democrats that he would rather BEG Saudi Arabia to boost production.
Bush must have felt so sissy going over there knowing that *they* know that the USA is awash with so much oil that it could be energy independent for millenniums, but is to cowardly to fight our enemies at home.
So I say “Kudos” to Saudi Arabia… but I resent having to help pay for their nuclear program.
Frankly, I don’t blame the Saudis. Who are we to demand(blackmail?)that anyone increase their production when we refuse to increase our own?
We are so screwed.
And yes, See-dubya, I ordered four “We’re Screwed 2008″ t-shirts - one for me, one for my wife, one for my brother and one for my sister-in-law.
So, our president goes with hat in hand to the Saudis for a hand out, and they give him the bird. I say good. Maybe he and the other RINOs will wake up and start going after our own resources.
wise_man, you look like an awful lot like a troll…i remember seeing your name but not your posts on other subjects, have a feeling they are rather liberal. covered enough by words not be lambasted by conservatives that post on this site. Your wrong and your offensive to even start to compare MM sites to that of kos, what trash and lies you get at those liberal Sorass sponsored sites. You get lots opinions here and most naturally are negative about the liberal movement on our country, so stop with the high n’ mighty, holier than thou crap. If you don’t like the site don’t come here, personally i’m not sure the left wing input is all that needed here and at hotair as you and other lefties here seem to think. Generally speaking all you do is condemn every posting no matter the subject, gets old, just gives you an opportunity to invade a conservative web site. So, as MM says “suck it up” or move on. to Moveon.org where i’m sure you have lots of cohorts.
Sorry folks, hope i didn’t mess up the thread, but i get so tired of left wing whining. Looks like it’s about closed now anyway.
If the Saudis know they can butcher three thousand Americans on Sep 11 without repercussion to them, why should they take seriously a request to pump more oil to lighten gas prices in America?
Remember, most of the $500K that funded the Sep 11 attack came from Saudi Arabia, which did not cooperate with us to track the source of that cash. Most of the skyjackers were Saudi, because they have been indoctrinated to hate America in the Saudi environment. The Saudi schools, media, and mosques all preach hatred and violence against the USA. Destruction of the USA is the official foreign policy of Saudi Arabia.
America built Saudi Arabia. We found the oil, drilled it, transported it, and gave the Saudis the lion’s share of the profits. In return, the Saudis repaid us with hatred and murder, because the murderous bigotry of Islam trumps everything.
Virtually every act of terror done for Islam has a connection to Saudi Arabia, the nexus of evil. Instead of asking them to give us a break on oil, we should be returning their jihad to them with interest. The Saudis are our enemy. We should start reciprocating their warfare against us.
more Stuff Muslims don’t like
OMG what nonsense!
I suppose flying planes into buildings is “what people do when in another country” They were just following the customs right??
Like the hate-preaching mosques our own country is full of?
Kind of like the 20 million extra people who have invaded our country from the south are doing?? Just following the customs??
It’s not the individual…its their culture we must defeat. You know….like the asinine gang-banging culture (tumor) we have growing in this country. “follow the customs”…..Puhleeze….I gotta go puke now. President Bush is a loser. McCain is no better…probably worse.
I didn’t check all the comments before I posted this….so if someone else commented on that comment then just pile this comment on top of those comments.
I heard a comic say he’d drill on the White House lawn if he thought there was oil down there.
That’s the kind of thinking and acting we need in D.C. Instead we get a Hill O’Bama on the left and McWarming IM’ing Arianna Huffington on the right. Yikes.
Empty Vessel