All of which raises various questions. With all the time the president has spent clearing brush, how is it possible that there is still any brush left on his ranch? And what is he doing about North Korea's nuclear shenanigans?
Bush's absence of public comment is no accident. In the two major stories of the last few weeks -- Lott's downfall and the North Korea controversy -- Bush aides calculated that opening the president to questions would only magnify stories the White House would rather keep quiet.
"Sometimes those factors come into play," a senior Bush aide said yesterday, explaining that sending Secretary of State Colin L. Powell out on Sunday to talk about Korea was less alarmist than a presidential appearance.
Bush "doesn't need to be out there every day on every development," the official said. When Congress returns and the standoff with Iraq heats up, expect Bush to return to more talkative ways.
Of course, Bush, even when hidden from view and clearing endless brush, continues to work the phones and do his day job. Still, his aides feel compelled to remind the public of this. "The president immediately engaged on this issue," Powell told Tim Russert on Sunday regarding North Korea. "President Bush has been engaged from the very beginning."
The administration has found it useful to provide such reminders, at regular intervals, that the president is paying attention to the issues of the day.
International environmental concerns? "The president has already been very engaged in these issues and plans to be engaged," Paula Dobriansky, undersecretary of state for global affairs, said in August. The India-Pakistan standoff? "The president is fully engaged," White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said in June. The review of military resources? "The president has been engaged," Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld attested last year. The China spy plane crisis? "He has been very engaged," said a senior Bush aide, briefing reporters.
This president, it would seem, has been engaged more often than Elizabeth Taylor.
