Some people use the term “the President's English” derisively, to refer to the peculiar manner of speaking exhibited by former American President George Walker Bush. Many examples of the President's English could be heard at speeches, news conferences, and various other events during his period of office. The term “Bushisms” is also used to describe these lingual slips, which range from the amusing to the horrifying. Some Americans are embarrassed by the President's English, feeling that it reflects poorly on the nation as a whole.
Public speaking is difficult, and presidents are not exempted from gaffes, even when they have speechwriters to assist them. Numerous presidents throughout American history have made some notable slips of the tongue while in public office, but Bush made quite a number of these slips, leading to widespread mockery around the world. Some people suggest that his use of the English language suggested a profound discomfort with English, especially the formal form used by elected officials in Washington, implying that Bush was not intelligent. Others have more charitably suggested that slips of the tongue can happen to anyone, even a president.
The President's English is marked by an inability to grasp basic grammatical concepts, such as subject/verb agreement. Many Bushisms take the form of spoonerisms, in which the letters in a word are transposed by accident, while others are simply malapropisms, words used where they do not belong. On occasion, the President's English has resulted in the coinage of an entirely new word, such as “misunderestimated,” a Bushism which flabbergasted observers in Arkansas in 2000. In other instances, the President has appeared to ramble or become confused while speaking.
Many Bushisms simply sound like scrambled off the cuff remarks which were made in a hurry. Others are simply perplexing, and totally unfathomable, while some examples of the President's English suggest that the President's brain may have been working faster than his mouth, as is the case when he mangles folk wisdom and popular sayings, like he did in 2002 when he said “fool me once, shame on—shame on you. Fool me—you can't get fooled again.”
Some instances of the President's English have become quite famous, and there are a number of collections of famous phrases uttered by the 43rd President of the United States. The explanation behind the famous battle between Bush and the English language may be rooted in his attempt to cover up a regional dialect, as part of a desire to appear more professional and educated. Whatever the reason for it, the President's English has become world famous, thanks to truly awe-inspiring statements like “Rarely is the questioned asked: Is our children learning?”
Some publications have taken mercy on President Bush, correcting his statements before reprinting them, while others choose to leave the President's English intact, both with and without comment. Most damning of all, perhaps, some papers merrily insert the Latin word sic, indicating that although the statement looks like a misprint, it is simply being reported as it was said.
Ever since she began contributing to the site several years ago, Mary has embraced the exciting challenge of being a LanguageHumanities researcher and writer. Mary has a liberal arts degree from Goddard College and spends her free time reading, cooking, and exploring the great outdoors.