Diners to Bush: "WEV"

We get this funny little tidbit from Hughes For America. Seems Shrub made a surprise visit to a small diner in Peoria and got an unexpected reaction: silence.

Jan. 31, 2007 - On Tuesday, President Bush popped in for a surprise visit to the Sterling Family Restaurant, a homey diner in Peoria, Ill. It’s a scene that has been played out many times before by this White House and others: a president mingling among regular Americans, who, no matter what they might think of his policies, are usually humbled and shocked to see the leader of the free world standing 10 feet in front of them.

But on Tuesday, the surprise was on Bush. In town to deliver remarks on the economy, the president walked into the diner, where he was greeted with what can only be described as a sedate reception. No one rushed to shake his hand. There were no audible gasps or yelps of excitement that usually accompany visits like this. Last summer, a woman nearly fainted when Bush made an unscheduled visit for some donut holes at the legendary Lou Mitchell’s Restaurant in Chicago. In Peoria this week, many patrons found their pancakes more interesting. Except for the click of news cameras and the clang of a dish from the kitchen, the quiet was deafening.

He tried, though. He just plopped his ass down next to some people in a booth (can we say rude?) and approached others. This is par for the course:



Actual caption: President Bush greets patrons at the Sterling Family Restaurant in Peoria, Ill. Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2007. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Should say: Patron at Sterling Family Restaurant in Peroria, Ill. tells President Bush to get his grubby, lying hands off of him. Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2007. (AP Photo/Gerarld Herbert)