Last Monday on Howard Stern’s radio show, singer Tony Bennett stirred up a hornet’s nest when he said then-President George W. Bush had confided to him that starting the Iraq war was a mistake. Of his conversation with the president at the 2005 Kennedy Center honors, Bennett said, “He told me personally that night, he says, ‘I think I made a mistake.'”
Of the 9/11 attacks on America, Bennett, a self-avowed pacifist, said, “But who are the terrorists? Are we the terrorists or are they the terrorists? Two wrongs don’t make a right. … They flew the plane in, but we caused it. Because we were bombing them and they told us to stop.”
Not surprisingly, a Bush spokesperson told NBC News that Bush had never said such a thing, leaving America to wonder who was a party to and who is “misremembering” a personal conversation from six years ago.
The next day, on his Facebook page, Bennett apologized for his remarks, sort of:
“I am so grateful to be an American and as a World War II veteran, I was proud to fight to protect our values, which have made America the greatest country on the planet.
There is simply no excuse for terrorism and the murder of the nearly 3,000 innocent victims of the 9/11 attacks on our country.
My life experiences — ranging from the Battle of the Bulge to marching with Martin Luther King — made me a life-long humanist and pacifist, and reinforced my belief that violence begets violence and that war is the lowest form of human behavior.
I am sorry if my statements suggested anything other than an expression of my love for my country, my hope for humanity and my desire for peace throughout the world.”
While he is probably just concerned about the effect of his remarks on the sales of his new album, suspicious minds might imagine that even here in America, Bennett was pressured by someone to walk back some very unpopular political views. After all, what would happen to Bush’s legacy if he admitted “Bush’s War” was a mistake? And could/should we allow a celebrity to say publicly that America’s foreign policy caused 9/11? And haven’t we always heard that spur-of-the-moment comments are likely closer to our true beliefs than carefully composed public statements?
Even amateur conspiracy theorists could have a ball with this story.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue8kPul1sC4&feature=player_embedded]
I don’t claim to know what’s in Tony Bennett’s heart, but I agree that his spur-of-the-moment comment was probably closer to his true beliefs than the cleaned-for-PC version he released later. And frankly, with the possible exception of his revealing something said in confidence by a friend, I can’t say that I disagree with what he said either. But most importantly, I believe he has an absolute right to speak his mind about his own personal beliefs. What kind of message does it send to the average citizen when those they look up to aren’t free to speak their minds? The people who’re all up-in-arms about his statements ought to take a look at themselves and recognize how similar their reactions are, at least philosophically, to the extremists who want to kill us.
Anyway… Did you see Alec Baldwin’s impression of Tony Bennett on SNL?:
http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/Weekend-Update:-Tony-Bennett/1358164
I think he probably said what he meant and meant what he said the first time. It’s sad and a little scary that one can’t express an honest opinion anymore without being vilified for it and having to go back and “correct” oneself.
No, I hadn’t seen the Baldwin skit. I’ve never been a fan, but even so I got some giggles out of it. If his material was half-way accurate though, Bennett’s memory (and thus his Bush story) may be more suspect than I thought.
Personally, I think Bush had a weak moment and Bennett remembered it perfectly.
Izaak – funny, funny SNL clip. Thanks.
I’d like to think you’re right, although I once wrote that Bush reminded me of The Fonz in the Happy Days episode where he tried but was unable to say he was “w… w…. wr…. wro … ” wrong.
😆 😆 😆
Oh that’s hilarious! 😆
I’m sure that if he ever uses that word it will be in an entirely new language. “I was incorectized by advisorators that had conclusionated missappropriately.”
You even got his accent down! Or was that just in my head? 🙄
Gawd, lemurs are so smart! ROFL!!