Laura Bush Joins Reality TV Show

September 28, 2005Laura Bush Joins Hit Makeover Show as It Focuses on Storm Victims
By ANNE E. KORNBLUT
BILOXI, Miss., Sept. 27 - A desperate housewife in the White House? That was so pre-hurricane.
Laura Bush has moved on to reality television.
Mrs. Bush flew here on Tuesday for a cameo on "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," the blockbuster ABC show that usually does impromptu remodeling for disadvantaged homeowners but is now taking supplies to hurricane victims for segments to be shown later this year.
She met with some of the victims, passed out clothing and listened intently to tales of destruction, with a film crew following her and a boom microphone hovering overhead.
"Obviously, there are so many homes to be remade over here," Mrs. Bush said afterward.
Earlier this year, Mrs. Bush jokingly compared herself to the lonely women of Wisteria Lane during a monologue at the White House correspondents' dinner in which she referred to "Desperate Housewives." With this trip, she continued a pattern of gently incorporating pop culture into her public appearances and using mainstream entertainment as a stage for conveying the softer side of the Bush administration.
She went on "Oprah" after the Sept. 11 attacks, appeared on "Dr. Phil" during the 2004 campaign and has been on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" repeatedly.
But with her husband still struggling to regain his political footing many weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, the decision to link her with reality TV had a whiff of the daring.
It also suggested that despite an increased effort by President Bush to address the hurricane crisis - his visit to Texas on Tuesday was his seventh to the area since Hurricane Katrina hit, hers was her fifth - the White House was casting about for more creative ways to convey its concern and manage public opinion.
The appearance had been in the works for months. The producers of the show extended an invitation to Mrs. Bush in April, but it was not until after Labor Day, and the storms, that White House officials found a time and location that worked.
Part of the appeal, an aide to Mrs. Bush said, is that the segments will not run until at least November, when public interest in the hurricane relief effort may have diminished but the need for donations and volunteers will remain high.
"The coverage will start to die off a little bit, as people are getting into the hardest time," said the aide, Susan Whitson, Mrs. Bush's press secretary. Her intent, she said, is "keeping this message out there as long as possible."
Keeping the excitement up on Tuesday was no great feat; if anything, producers had to plead for calm. Storm victims who had gathered at the Biloxi Community Center, where clothes donated by Sears, a show sponsor, were being distributed, waited eagerly with their cameras for Mrs. Bush to arrive.
"People walking in here, this is a surprise for you!" one director shouted at the crowd. "Don't stand here looking like you know what's coming."
Mrs. Bush later addressed the inherent challenge for the show: selecting just one home to rebuild.
"They haven't chosen one yet," she said. "I'm trying to encourage them to maybe choose a school or a library to do, which would help everybody in the community."
And Tom Forman, the show's creator and executive producer, said he had given no thought to any political reasons the White House might have had for wanting to participate.
"The thing about making this show is I packed up and put away my cynicism a long time ago," he said.
"I think given the scope of the disaster, you throw the rules out the window," he said. "And while we're certainly a nonpartisan show, I don't think she was there as a politician or a politician's wife or even as the first lady. I think she was there as someone who cares."

Worth Celebrating

I have to say that in all of my years, I have never known love & support the way that I did this weekend.
Thank you to everyone that prayed for my family this weekend in our time of need. God truly does answer prayers & proves Himself to be faithful!

For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about...Here's a recap:
I received a call from my mom who was in hysterics on Saturday afternoon, and then a call from my younger brother. It seems that his ex-girlfriend had gotten pregnant, while they were still together. The baby is his. He wants to keep it, she does not.

My family asked me to call her & counsel her. I did call her & she listened tearfully, as I explained the stages of life, from conception, thru 12 weeks (which is how far along she is now).

She didn't know that the baby's fingers & toes were fully formed & visible. She didn't know it had a heart beat, or its own dna & brain waves. Of course she didn't. Planned Parenthood doesn't tell you that. And why would they, if they are going to make money off of the murder of your unborn.

After hanging up with this young girl, I had faith that she would make the right decision. I spoke with my family again & we continued to pray, and asked others to pray as well.
On Sunday morning my mom called & said that she had made her decision & would go through with her appointment as scheduled for this morning, Monday, at 10:30 am.
I got on the computer & sent out a mass email to over 100 people, asking for prayer.
At 3:30 pm, I received another phone call. She was going to keep the baby & let my family raise him (or her)!!

I am so excited to see what God has in store for this child. I know it must be amazing.
Its good to remember that while Planned Parenthood wants to say, "Every child should be a wanted child," we need to remember that just because the mother may not want it, that doesn't mean that someone else doesn't.

I too was supposed to be aborted. Thankfully, there was a family, my family, that wanted me. Next time you hear someone talk casually about the woman's right choose, consider the fathers right, and that he doesn't have one. Consider the baby's right. If we are all guaranteed "Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness," -we need to remember that the latter two are only possible with the first one.

Who will speak for those that have no voice? Hopefully, You Will.

10 Most Famous Mensa Members

Funny how the only ACTOR/ACTRESS on the list is Gina Davis...
I guess we shouldnt hold our breath too much for Tim Robbins or George Clooney to make it on this list.
Everyone else listed is a writer, inventor, or has a REAL job, and is somewhat note worthy. What a thought. Finally, giving props to those that dont make millions of dollars for doing NOTHING...Genious!

http://encarta.msn.com/list_famousmensamembers/Famous_Mensa_Members.html