‘Twas a love feat, not a state visit: Dubya stole GMA’s heart away

WASHINGTON, DC – If you’ve seen those photographs and TV images of our President, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, looking pleased as punch, you can attribute it to the George "Dubya" Bush charm.

If GMA had any whiskers, one could say, watching from the sidelines, that this ole Texas cowboy (and oil man, don’t forget) charmed the whiskers off her.

GMA didn’t need a drumbeater on this sortie to Washington, DC. Bush did all the drumbeating for her – and for the Filipino people. Not only did he give our Philippine Chief Executive a fife and drum parade, on the bright green of the White House’s East Lawn (the one you’ve seen, dozens of times, depicted in the televised state visits of other potentates), as well as the trumpets and flourish, the massed flags, the circumstance and the pomp – plus a soapbox to prop her up at the podium, almost making the two of them appear of equal height, Mr. Bush laved GMA with praise.

Yet there was nothing phoney about what he projected: Sincerity, surprising affection not just for GMA but for the Filipino people (where did that come from?), the sense that Filipinos weren’t just friends and allies – but "family".

Bush spoke of the ties that bind Filipinos and Americans together, declaring that the "relationship between the Philippines and the United States is stronger today than at any recent history". He underscored how deeply he felt about the Philippines and the United States being "strong allies in the war on terror".

He reminded his large group of listeners on the White House lawn, many of them Fil-Americans and the rest delegations ranging from hometown Texas to California, that "the murder of citizens of both our countries last week in Saudi Arabia reminds us that this war is far from over."

Shoulder-to-shoulder again: That’s the message he projected – and it was beamed by CNN, BBC, FOX News and the cable and TV channels to all over the world.

The American President was even more forceful and at the same time warm, in the more intimate black-tie dinner tendered in GMA’s honor in the State Dining Room of the White House – with the huge and brooding portrait of Abraham Lincoln, "Honest Abe", peering over his shoulder. He spoke of values commonly cherished, of a long history of comradeship, of having been true to each other in the defense of freedom.

I must say that our President GMA not only responded in kind, but rose to her eloquent best. Speaking in turn as a roomful of glitterati – from Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Colin Powell, US Attorney General John Ashcroft, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, and other Bush Cabinet members, those familiar faces from the Power Pack you see daily on news television, or on the covers of the glossies and newsmagazines. Bush’s "friends" and political supporters, from as far away as Honolulu, and as near as just beyond the Beltway, were in the room, lit by chandeliers, and served by waiters and staff who could tell you tales, if so inclined, about Reagan, Clinton, and the elder Bush.

Resplendent in tuxedo, and looking every bit as "respectable" were famous journalists, like Tom Brokaw (of The Greatest Generation), Fred Hiatt, Editorial Page Editor of The Washington Post, and my old pal, Paul A. Gigot, who used to cover Manila during the dark days of Macoy’s dictatorship, and is now Editorial Page Editor of The Wall Street Journal.

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Special mention must be made of Lt. General Edward Soriano, Commanding General of "America’s Corps", the elite 1 Corps, as well as commander of Fort Lewis, in Fort Lewis, WV.

The US President had personally invited General Soriano, the highest-ranking "former" Pinoy in the US Army – a three-star man – so he could be presented to GMA as an example of how the two million Americans of Filipino extraction are contributing to the success and welfare of the USA. Soriano – who was born in the Philippines (he hails from Alcala, Pangasinan) but immigrated to America with his family as a small boy – is one of the most-decorated Army officers, and told me his Corps was combat-ready, and prepared to be shipped or airlifted to any destination in the world. He will be visiting the Philippines in a few months, he promised – having been invited by Armed Forces Chief of Staff, General Narciso Abaya (the latter, a West Pointer himself, class ’71).

In her graceful and eloquent speech, President Macapagal-Arroyo thanked President Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush (the First Lady was pretty in gold). "I thank you," GMA dimpled" in behalf of 80 million Filipinos for honoring our country with this state visit."

"The bonds between our two countries run deep. We have stood side-by-side at every crucial point in modern history: World War II, the Cold War, Korea, Vietnam, and now the war against terrorism."

". . . In two things there must be no change," GMA asserted, "… in the way governments treat people, and in the manner by which friends stand by each other. In the first case, with care and justice, and in the second case, with courage and steadfastness. In a time of crisis, friends do not ask why, but how."

It was one of La Gloria’s best speeches, obviously inspired by the sincerely – delivered accolades and pledges uttered by Dubya Bush at the morning Arrival Ceremonies, and in the press conference which followed.

"It was once thought difficult to take a firm stand against tyranny," GMA stated, "and nearly impossible to cope with terrorism. Now the world knows better. Clearly it can be done: With fearless resolve, combined with a bold strategic vision and an unfailing sense of justice, as shown by President Bush. Only a strong and steadfast partnership such as that between our two countries can respond to the manifold threats and challenges that a world working towards freedom and prosperity must face. I hope ever more countries will join this partnership. Two are better than one. Three are harder to break. Nothing can prevail against four or more."

If I hadn’t been there to witness it, I might have doubted the often-touted magnetism between Dubya Bush and our diminutive Commander-in-Chief – a tall Texan towering over his tiny guest. At the risk of sounding stuffy and pompous, I’ll have to remind you, Dear Reader, that this writer paid for his own ticket (I did get a free lunch and dinner, however), and tomorrow I’ll be out of here by ACELA train to New York. But it was more than worth the trip, the proverbial journey of more than a thousand miles, to be able to see those stirring Arrival Ceremonies on the White House lawn, attend that gala state dinner, and feel the vibrations that flowed, not just between President Arroyo, Mr. Bush, and Mrs. Laura Bush, but all around the room.

Vice President Dick Cheney, while still smarting from the Cory snub of yesteryears, was brimming with friendship and concern for Filipinos.

We spent ten minutes, one on one, trading anecdotes about his visit to Corregidor, with Bush the Elder (and his days as Defense Secretary), and the hairy experience former President Bush and he had the following day, December 8, 1975 in Honolulu when some nut, who had converted a propeller aircraft into a "Zero" fighter, swooped down on them unexpectedly in the same manner in which a Japanese bomber had made for the USS Arizona, in December 1941.

President Bush Sr. was in the act of laying a wreath in the half-submerged mast of the sunken battleship when this Japanese warplane came zooming down, from out of the blue, with the Japanese "red sun" gleaming on its side and wings. It was a startling sight!

"Did you guys shoot it down?" I asked.

Cheney grinned: "The Secret Servicemen with us went bonkers." (Guess they downed the "attacking" Jap plane with their .45 automatics or Birettas.)

Colin Powell and State Secretary Jim Kelly (the fellow who’s doing the Pyongyang-Seoul-Beijing-Tokyo shuttle diplomacy – a frequent Manila visitor) were upbeat about Fil-American relations.

Bush promised to "come visit" in October, just after the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok. He declared he was accepting GMA’s invitation for a state visit.

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I could go on and on. However, the visit was well-covered by our Palace reporter, the reliable Marichu Villanueva, and our Washington Bureau Chief Lito Katigbak, who had previously covered the Washington scene for years as Reuter’s Deputy Bureau chief in D.C. Let me not try to steal their thunder.

All I can say is that GMA’s trip was successful, beyond her own expectations. Dubya "elevated" the Philippines to a status equal to that of a NATO partner (meaning the North Atlantic Treaty Organization). In his televised press conference, he pledged America would help keep our helicopters flying, etc.

Bush was warm, eloquent – and funny. The empathy was terrific.

Lest I begin sounding like an Amboy, I’ll cut today’s report short here. Hopefully, there’ll be more tomorrow, when my ACELA train pulls into Penn Station in New York.