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Schroeder Reaches Out to Bush
On a fence-mending mission, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder telephoned President Bush on Friday in hopes of renewing "good working relations" with the White House after angering Bush during Germany's recent elections."Schroeder? Schroeder? Mmmm... Can't say as I place him. Laura, do we know anybody named Schroeder?" "I don't know if politics came up," White House spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters. "Mr. President, some guy named Schroeder, says he's calling to say hello..." "Tell him I'm in the shower and that I'll get back to him." Relations between the two countries have been tense since Schroeder's governing coalition won national elections in September by opposing U.S. policy on disarming Iraq. At the same time, a top German official compared Bush's tactics to those of Adolf Hitler. "I'm sorry, Mr... uh... Schroeder. Presdident Bush isn't in. If you'll leave a number where he can reach you, I'm sure he'll call you back..." The 10-minute call was the first conversation the two have had since the voting in Germany. Schroeder placed the call shortly after the Security Council unanimously approved a U.S.-backed resolution to get tough on Saddam. "So... uh... How you been, George?" "Chancelor Schroeder expressed his hope for good working relations with President Bush and the two leaders also discussed the war on terrorism and Turkey," McCormack said. "I mean, that war on terrorism thing, we really should work more closely together on that, shouldn't we?... George?... George? You still there?" Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2002-11-08 |
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