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August 26, 2003
Bush Cabinet Upset over Presidential Yoga Order In a move that has dismayed some of his closest associates, President Bush ordered cabinet members and their senior staff to hold group yoga and meditation sessions at the start of each day. Several members of the Cabinet have apparently protested the order, saying it interferes with morning "unity meetings" they already hold. Sources at the Justice Department said that Attorney General John Ashcroft, who holds morning sessions of prayer and hymn singing with his senior staff, protested the yoga requirement. He apparently told the White House that singing hymns was sufficient and that several of his staff members thought they would look silly wearing leotards. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld protested, too, saying that the morning sessions he held with his deputies and the members of the Joints Chiefs of Staff were sufficient. At those sessions, Rumsfeld leads them in chanting "Gung Ho" and "Over the Top, Boys", followed by several minutes of close order drill in the Pentagon hallways outside the secretary's office suite. That's followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and singing along to a recording of Lee Greenwood's rendition of "Proud to Be an American." Asked by reporters at a Pentagon briefing, Rumsfeld refused to discuss the subject, except to say, "Last time I checked leotards were not standard military issue." A spokesman for the Joint Chiefs was terse: "Don't ask, don't tell went out with President Clinton." The presidential yoga order was first published by the Internet news site bushhecrazyman.org and later picked up by wire services and newspapers. It said the sessions should be 30 minutes in length and include at least 10 minutes of "meditation or some other form of somber reflection." It said each department should retain a certified yoga instructor and that yoga should become a part of the daily routine of all deputy secretaries, assistant deputy secretaries, deputy assistant secretaries, assistant secretaries and assistant assistant secretaries. The order also includes all inspectors general, deputy inspectors general, assistant inspectors general and inspectors general sergents-at-arms. The staff at bushhecrazyman.org estimates that as many as 500 Federal employees might be affected at larger agencies and that as many as 10,000 government employees in all might be subject to what some have taken to calling "the leotard rule." How the President came about his dalliance with yoga is unclear. Bush has said famously in the past that he doesn't read newspapers or magazines, relying instead entirely on memos and reports written by staff members, and that he isn't curious about new ideas. Nevertheless, someone apparently shoved a recent issue of Time magazine under his nose. The cover featured a beautiful young woman in leotards in the lotus position. A senior official at the Defense Department, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Laura Bush, the President's wife, was responsible. "She handed him Time and said, 'Here. Anyone with a high pressure job who can't sleep at night should consider this.'" For his part, President Bush has publicly acknowledged his yoga fascination only once, during an impromptu news conference on the White House south lawn after emerging from his helicopter with the presidential lap dog under his arm. "Let me say this about that," he said in response to a reporter's shouted question. "My joints may be a little creaky at times because I'm getting older. But the meditation thing is great. The more I do the meditation and really, just, you know, let go... The more I do that the more it reminds me of prayer... It's amazing how much meditation is like prayer." As Bush turned to go, another reporter shouted, "What about Osama?" The president returned to the microphones. "I can say this on that. If all the terrorists in their caves and cubby-holes around the world would spend some time each day meditating, the world would be a safer place." Copyright William Stockton & Smithtown Creek Productions |
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