Laura Bush said Sunday that Americans must stay vigilant not only in preparing for possible terrorist attacks but also in comforting their children as fears of terrorism increase.
Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” the first lady discussed her National Book Festival, public service and education efforts across the country.
“We have to keep comforting our children, but we also have to be very vigilant as American citizens as we go about our work and our business,” Bush said.
She appeared with Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg, who helps raise money for public schools in New York.
Bush and Schlossberg spoke of finding common political ground to promote education and public service.
Bush said: “American people expect our leaders and all politicians who are here to do America’s business, you know, to work together, to do what’s right for our country. And it happens.”
She pointed to the Bush administration’s education law, which was passed in 2001, as an example of bipartisan legislation.
Bush also discussed her husband’s trip to Baghdad, saying initially she was “very anxious” but sorry that she could not go with him. The president, accompanied by Condoleezza Rice, the national security adviser, made a surprise visit to U.S. troops on Thanksgiving.
“By the time it really happened, that Wednesday night when he and Condi got in the van to drive off from the ranch house, I was not nervous,” Bush said.
She said she realized how well-kept a secret the visit had been when she called the head of her Secret Service detail to find out whether the president had landed in Baghdad.
“And he said, `Well, we show him at the residence,”‘ Bush recalled. “And I realized that even the head of my detail didn’t know that he was there.”
Bush said she hoped to travel to Afghanistan in the spring. She met recently with Afghan teachers at the White House to discuss education in Afghanistan.
While Bush’s television appearance provided little news, it did offer a glimpse into the personal life of a first lady who has been especially private. She briefly discussed her twin daughters, Barbara and Jenna, saying she regretted a comment suggesting that she wanted to be a grandmother. “I don’t want to put any pressure on them,” Bush said.
The first lady also said that a “Roses are red, violets are blue” poem she read at a National Book Festival gala in October was not actually written by her husband even though it has been attributed to him. She did not say who wrote the poem.
“But a lot of people really believed that he did,” Bush said. “Some woman from across the table said, `You just don’t know how great it is to have a husband who would write a poem for you.’ “
The first lady is known for poking gentle fun at her husband in public and bending his ear in private, and she said that the president does listen to her.
“Well, the fact is I think it’s hard for any wife, or husband for that matter, to give their spouse a lot of advice,” she said.
“You know, I don’t really want a lot of advice from him and I know he doesn’t really want a lot of advice from me. So I make an effort to only speak out when I really feel like I can’t help but speak out.”
