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American Morning
President Bush Now Has Associated Food: The Pretzel
Aired January 15, 2002 - 09:53 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: President Reagan was associated, as you remember, with jelly beans. President Bush, Sr. was known for hating broccoli, and now, of course, George W. Bush will forever have this pretzel connection. CNN's Jeanne Moos has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's the kind of publicity that could leave a pretzel manufacturer feeling faint.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: After choking on a pretzel at the White House ...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gagged on a pretzel he was eating ...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We hear he choked on a pretzel.
MOOS: Actually, the president doesn't recall choking, but he did pass out, and the press couldn't pass up on the proof.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There it is, there's the bruise on his cheek.
MOOS: Try to repeating the official diagnosis ten times quickly.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: ... called a vasovagal syndrome.
ROBERT BAZELL, MSNBC NEW YORK: The medical term is vasovagal syncope.
MOOS (on camera): He had vasovagal syncope.
UNIDENTIFIED PRETZEL VENDOR: Come with (ph) a pretzel?
MOOS (voice-over): New York pretzel vendors say it never happens with their pretzels.
UNIDENTIFIED PRETZEL VENDOR: You can check from there. It feels soft. Check it?
MOOS (on camera): All right, these are much -- yeah.
(voice-over): It was a leopard, rather than a pretzel, that caused Carey Grant to faint in "Bringing Up Baby." People are always fainting in movies, but presidential fainting is relatively rare.
Who could forget George Bush, Sr. keeling over at a state dinner given by Japan's prime minister? Jimmy Carter once collapsed on 10 kilometer run, and Franklin Pierce was known as the "fainting general" before he became president. Critics say he had a habit of fainting in battle.
One of the oddest collapses came 14 years ago while a former president of Afghanistan was being interviewed live on CNN. His interpreter had an epileptic fit, and collapsed on President Najibullah's lap. Najibullah barely blinked. The interpreter recovered.
Of course, lots of politicians fall on camera, from Bob Dole to then Republican presidential candidate Gary Bower. Instead of Bower flipping the pancake, the pancake flipped him. President Clinton has wiped out while jogging, and President Ford while deplaning. Saturday Night Live never let Jerry Ford live it down.
Lest you think we're bruising President Bush's feelings, he himself made jokes all day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Listen to your mother.
Mother, I should have listened to you.
When you're eating pretzels ...
... always chew your pretzels before you swallow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MOOS: President even sent the press a bag of pretzels labeled "chew slowly." At least the president took our mind off that other collapse.
UNIDENTIFIED PRETZEL VENDOR: But now he's okay?
MOOS (on camera): He's okay.
UNIDENTIFIED PRETZEL VENDOR: Thanks, God (ph).
MOOS (voice-over): President Bush says when he woke up, his dogs Barney and Spot were there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: ... showing a lot of concern.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MOOS: Maybe they were concerned about finishing the president's pretzels. A survey of New York dogs showed unequivocally -- UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah, they like pretzels.
MOOS: ... and couldn't care less ...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good boy!
MOOS: ... about faint praise.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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