Wednesday, December 20, 2006

bush vs. damon? [Kathryn Jean Lopez]
A reader thinks Sly Stallone wasn't the only 60-something with a Hollywood comeback today:

KLo—during the prepared-statement portion of his news conference this morning, W said the following:

"A recent report on retail sales shows a strong beginning to the holiday shopping season across the country — and I encourage you all to go shopping more."

He really emphasized the word "shopping", too. Delivered it with the Texas stare. Hmm. Then I saw this from the transcript of "Hardball" earlier this week, with guest(and noted military expert) Matt Damon:

"Damon: 'What bothers me the most about the state we're in right now is I don't feel that there's a shared consciousness and a shared sense of sacrifice, and we have these young men and women who are fighting a war in name and our president tells us to go shopping.'"

Do you think W heard about it and threw it back into Damon's face? I hope so. Even if it was accidental, it was a hell of a comeback.

Well, if so, that would officially be the high point of that press conference (which is not saying much).And while I can't imagine the president caring too much about Matt Damon, I could see Damon's remark bringing out a little dead-or-alive-like Texan in the prez — especially if Bush, like so many Americans, wasted an hour and a half watching Ocean's 12.