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<BLOCKQUOTE><FONT FACE="Arial">Bush's Erratic Behavior Worries White House Aides<BR>
By DOUG THOMPSON<BR>
Publisher, Capitol Hill Blue<BR>
Jun 4, 2004, 06:15<BR>
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President George W. Bush's increasingly erratic behavior and wide mood<BR>
swings has the halls of the West Wing buzzing lately as aides privately<BR>
express growing concern over their leader's state of mind. <BR>
In meetings with top aides and administration officials, the President goes<BR>
from quoting the Bible in one breath to obscene tantrums against the media,<BR>
Democrats and others that he classifies as "enemies of the state."<BR>
<BR>
Worried White House aides paint a portrait of a man on the edge,<BR>
increasingly wary of those who disagree with him and paranoid of a public<BR>
that no longer trusts his policies in Iraq or at home.<BR>
<BR>
"It reminds me of the Nixon days," says a longtime GOP political consultant<BR>
with contacts in the White House. "Everybody is an enemy; everybody is out<BR>
to get him. That's the mood over there."<BR>
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In interviews with a number of White House staffers who were willing to talk<BR>
off the record, a picture of an administration under siege has emerged, led<BR>
by a man who declares his decisions to be "God's will" and then tells aides<BR>
to "fuck over" anyone they consider to be an opponent of the administration.<BR>
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"We're at war, there's no doubt about it. What I don't know anymore is just<BR>
who the enemy might be," says one troubled White House aide. "We seem to<BR>
spend more time trying to destroy John Kerry than al Qaeda and our enemies<BR>
list just keeps growing and growing."<BR>
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Aides say the President gets "hung up on minor details," micromanaging to<BR>
the extreme while ignoring the bigger picture. He will spend hours<BR>
personally reviewing and approving every attack ad against his Democratic<BR>
opponent and then kiss off a meeting on economic issues.<BR>
<BR>
"This is what is killing us on Iraq," one aide says. "We lost focus. The<BR>
President got hung up on the weapons of mass destruction and an unproven<BR>
link to al Qaeda. We could have found other justifiable reasons for the war<BR>
but the President insisted the focus stay on those two, tenuous items."<BR>
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Aides who raise questions quickly find themselves shut out of access to the<BR>
President or other top advisors. Among top officials, Bush's inner circle is<BR>
shrinking. Secretary of State Colin Powell has fallen out of favor because<BR>
of his growing doubts about the administration's war against Iraq.<BR>
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The President's abrupt dismissal of CIA Directory George Tenet Wednesday<BR>
night is, aides say, an example of how he works.<BR>
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"Tenet wanted to quit last year but the President got his back up and<BR>
wouldn't hear of it," says an aide. "That would have been the opportune time<BR>
to make a change, not in the middle of an election campaign but when the<BR>
director challenged the President during the meeting Wednesday, the<BR>
President cut him off by saying 'that's it George. I cannot abide<BR>
disloyalty. I want your resignation and I want it now."<BR>
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Tenet was allowed to resign "voluntarily" and Bush informed his shocked<BR>
staff of the decision Thursday morning. One aide says the President actually<BR>
described the decision as "God's will."<BR>
<BR>
God may also be the reason Attorney General John Ashcroft, the<BR>
administration's lightning rod because of his questionable actions that<BR>
critics argue threatens freedoms granted by the Constitution, remains part<BR>
of the power elite. West Wing staffers call Bush and Ashcroft "the Blues<BR>
Brothers" because "they're on a mission from God."<BR>
<BR>
"The Attorney General is tight with the President because of religion," says<BR>
one aide. "They both believe any action is justifiable in the name of God."<BR>
<BR>
But the President who says he rules at the behest of God can also<BR>
tongue-lash those he perceives as disloyal, calling them "fucking assholes"<BR>
in front of other staff, berating one cabinet official in front of others<BR>
and labeling anyone who disagrees with him "unpatriotic" or "anti-American."<BR>
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"The mood here is that we're under siege, there's no doubt about it," says<BR>
one troubled aide who admits he is looking for work elsewhere. "In this<BR>
administration, you don't have to wear a turban or speak Farsi to be an<BR>
enemy of the United States. All you have to do is disagree with the<BR>
President."<BR>
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