Ari Fleischer was leaving, effective January 1, with Will Brucis taking over his job. Once we were off camera, I told Ari that as a Christmas present NBC was losing their White House press privileges until further notice. He was alarmed and argued against it, but I didn’t much care. Williams had knowingly violated our pre-interview agreement. “An NBC reporter lied to the President of the United States! Actions have consequences, Ari, and not just for me. Maybe it’s time for a few reporters to learn that, too.”
I had won reelection (or election, depending on how you looked at it), but things were changing. Several top people had told me that if I won, they would be leaving sometime in 2005. In a way I was somewhat dismayed, but working at that level is incredibly wearing. Forget about having a family or a life outside of the White House. You are on call 24 hours a day, each and every day, and might be here today and around the other side of the world tomorrow. Ari was only the first to announce he was leaving.
Colin Powell told me he would stay until the summer, but he would be gone after the July 4th holiday. He thought Condi Rice would be a good choice, and I thought so, too. She wasn’t incredibly high profile, and despite being a big fan of George Bush, had been relatively smart and moderate. She agreed to move over, and said she would think about a new National Security Adviser.
Mike Gerson was planning on leaving as my chief speechwriter. Technically he had been George’s speechwriter, while Matt Scully was mine. Matt was staying put, and Mike was leaving. He had proposed a replacement named Marc Thiessen, who used to be an aide and writer for Senator Jesse Helms of North Carolina. That made me really wonder. Mike was much more conservative than I was, and he had only stayed with me out of loyalty to Bush. When he mentioned Helms, I immediately got nervous. Jesse Helms was about a billion years old and was so conservative that he thought Abe Lincoln had been more than a little premature in freeing the slaves, that AIDS was God’s punishment on the faggots and queers, and that being a Democrat was akin to being an atheist. I told Mike I would meet with Thiessen, but that I was going to look at a few other candidates as well. Then again, a link to the conservative wing of the party might not be a bad idea. I was going to have to give that one some thought.
One of the toughest jobs in the White House is that of Chief of Staff. He travels everywhere with the President, works ludicrously long hours, and has no personal life. Josh Bolten had stepped up to the plate when Andy Card had died on 9-11. He told me he was leaving right after the inauguration. He also recommended that Frank Stouffer move up from assistant. Frank had been with me since the 2000 campaign, and was only 30 years old, incredibly young for such a senior position, but he had managed to impress Josh. I was happy with that choice. For a guy who started out as my body man, this was an incredible rise in just five years. By the time he left the White House, Frank was going to have his pick of Republican Party, K Street, or private sector jobs.
I made a major change in the Inauguration this time. I told people that I didn’t care how many Inaugural Balls there were, Marilyn and I were attending just one! I told John that if he and Cindy wanted to make the rounds, they were free to do so, but eight Balls in one night, which is what happened the last time, was simply ludicrous. I would be happy to speak to each Ballroom via closed circuit television, but driving from one to another was insane. John, on the other hand, told me he was going to use this as another chance to shake hands and line up supporters for 2008. Fair enough. If we did the closed circuit thing, I would make sure I mentioned the help he had been and how he was making the rounds.
As always, we invited my family (what there was of it) and Marilyn’s family (as many as wanted to come), along with some of my friends from back home. Tusker and Tessa came down, as did Bucky, who escorted both the girls. Charlie brought a blonde model he had met at a bike race. Jake Eisenstein, Jr. came with his wife. Marilyn and I attended a combination Maryland and National Ball, and Cheryl Dedrick was there with her husband, proudly representing the Maryland Ninth. She had won reelection twice now, and remained a loyal supporter. Maryland may have voted for Kerry, but the Maryland Ninth had voted Buckman by a landslide!
It turned out that Marilyn was the belle of the ball in more ways than one. She selected a nice scarlet red Versace gown with a slit up one leg to about mid thigh, and up top it featured a matching bolero jacket. The really interesting part was when she took the jacket off after we got to the Ball — under the jacket the top was a red sequined bustier, backless and strapless! Marilyn must have been tanning topless, and she looked good! I gave a wolf whistle that a few other people noticed, and Marilyn blushed and preened, twisting around to show me, and everyone else. Later on I discovered that she hadn’t worn pantyhose, but stockings. She whispered to me during our first dance that she wanted my inauguration to be memorable. It was! She also made most of the tabloids and women’s fashion magazines, and her dress became the season’s must-have for evening gowns. Versace ended up making it in about a half dozen colors, as well as black, and the just-above-the-knee length black version became that year’s LBD!
It was a lot more relaxing to be able to just attend the single ball, even if I did have to break off every few minutes to a sound room to make a televised appearance at one of the balls. At least this time nobody was going to take a snapshot of Marilyn snoring with her mouth open and drooling on my shoulder. We were actually able to dance, and I could have an extra drink or two. Unfortunately the guy carrying the football wouldn’t let me nuke John Edwards’s home town. He still pissed me off with his shit during the end of the campaign about Michael Petrelli. He was another putz I wouldn’t mind nuking. (If he had managed to contact me after Jeana’s death, and introduce himself in a civilized fashion, we might well have had a very different relationship. Selling the story to The National Enquirer and then suing me for billions was not a civilized introduction!)
Shortly after the Inauguration, I managed to tweak Marilyn on national television. One of the perks of being the President is being able to host musical groups at the White House. Sometimes this means wearing a tux to the Kennedy Center for a night of classical music (good) or opera (dreadful). Occasionally it means you get to dress casually while Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band rock the East Room — that was awesome! Whenever this goes on, of course, it’s going out on PBS, and for the good stuff, one of the networks. I remember when I introduced Bruce Springsteen that I commented on the air, “It’s a bit tricky for the President to get out at times, but one of the perks of the job is being able to call up Bruce Springsteen and ask him to come over to the house and play a set or two.”
In mid-February we had a night of bluegrass and country music, with Alison Kraus followed by Brad Paisley. Marilyn and I were definitely looking forward to this; we never asked the opinions of our children, who were under orders to attend and smile. My job in all this is to act as the host, to introduce the performers, make a joke or two with them, and then sit down and listen. Pretty straightforward and simple. First up was Alison Kraus with her band Union Station, and that was pretty cool. I’m not madly crazy about bluegrass, but I won’t turn it off if it comes on the radio, either.
The fun started when Ms. Kraus was finished and it was Brad’s turn on the stage. His music was a more modern country style. I went up to the low stage, and did a quick intro, but then, before I sat down, I decided to have a little fun. “Brad, before I let you perform, I need you to do something for me. Could you help me for just a minute?”