Same Script, Different Cast

By Kathleen Adams, Melissa August, Randy Hartwell, Ellin Martens, Joseph Pierro and Sora Song

Uttering niceties after meeting with foreign dignitaries is a routine part of being President, but some stick to the routine more than others. While his predecessor was prone to off-the-cuff remarks during the White House photo op, W. rarely deviates from the script. The names may change (last week Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak), but the song remains the same.

APRIL 2, 2001. EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT MUBARAK

INTRODUCTION "It is my honor to welcome the President of Egypt... We're friends. We will remain friends."

DISCUSSION "My opinion hasn't changed after our good, frank discussion today."

MARCH 30, 2001. BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT CARDOSO

INTRODUCTION "It's my honor to welcome our friend from Brazil."

DISCUSSION "We've had a good, frank discussion about a lot of subjects. We've discussed a lot of topics."

MARCH 20, 2001. ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER SHARON

INTRODUCTION "It's my honor to welcome the Prime Minister of our close friend and ally to the Oval Office."

DISCUSSION "We've just had a very frank and good discussion." MARCH 7, 2001. SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT KIM

INTRODUCTION "It's been my honor to welcome President Kim here to the Oval Office."

DISCUSSION "We had a very good discussion. We talked about a lot of subjects."

FEBRUARY 27, 2001. COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT PASTRANA

INTRODUCTION "It's my honor to welcome a friend of our country to the Oval Office."

DISCUSSION "We've had a very good discussion."

FEBRUARY 5, 2001. CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER CHRETIEN

INTRODUCTION "It's my honor to welcome the Prime Minister of our closest friend to the White House." DISCUSSION "We talked about a lot of subjects."