Laura Bush receives $95K jewels from Saudi oil prince

[Bluebear]

"It will probably come as no surprise that the most valuable gift came from Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdallah, who gave First Lady Laura Bush a matching set of diamond and sapphire jewelry valued by U.S. officials at $95,500. The Saudi royal also gave the president an $8500 mantel clock and the "first family" (that would be first daughters Jenna and Barbara) received Bulgari necklaces valued at $8500 and $8000 apiece. Other recipients of Saudi largesse were Chief of Staff Andrew Card and national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, both of whom got small daggers priced at $1500. The foreign gifts are taken, the State Department report notes, since "non-acceptance would cause embarrassment to donor and U.S. Government."

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0804041gifts1.html
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Yes, those home-spun, down-to-earth, "regular people I would love to have a beer with" receive over $100K in gifts from Saudi oil princes. Doesn't everybody?

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. WOW the bush crime family is deep in bed huh?

[22181]

2. Because SIX figures would be "tacky"...

[Zorra]

3. For the Bu$h family's loyalty and service to their country -Saudi Arabia.

[genius]

4. No wonder she's been smiling and speaking for George lately.

[Bluebear]

6. This gem should be brought up to every down-home Walmart shopper

Trying to find the best deal on Kraft mac-n-"cheese" to feed their family.

[Malva Zebrina]

5. omg

You cannot make a silk purse out of a pig's ear. No matter how many thousands of dollars are spent on expensive and exotic jewels that would adorn the slutty,cheap looking cleavage exposing in favor of brain esposing, twins and the frumpy fat assed vacant, rictus smiling, Stepford wife, they all still look like pigs. They are all pigs and the faster they get their asses back to the pig farm in Crawford, the better. They can take their jewels with them. who cares?

[Keirsey]

9. aha!

This needs to be posted on all the forums where freeps called Michael Moore a liar regarding his comments in Fahrenheit 9/11 about the Bush's relationship with the Saudi royals.

[sui generis]

7. you know you're supposed to report gifts as income to the GAO

I wonder if those little gems will show up on their income tax statements?

[Bluebear]

8. They hide it by saying it goes to the "archives"

Plus only the little people pay tsxes.

[MO_Dem]

14. It goes into the archives, but

they can "borrow" them anytime they want. Wonder why the rest of us can't ever "borrow" them?? It is our country, too.

[Brotherjohn]

10. "Non-acceptance would cause embarrassment to donor and U.S. Government"?!

I repeat:
"Non-acceptance would cause embarrassment to donor and U.S. Government"?!?!?

Ladies and gentlemen, isn't this ILLEGAL???

[Cyrano]

11. We payed for those gifts at the gas pump.

[Bluebear]

13. Bingo.

[smirkymonkey]

12. Let's post this on FreepRepublic and watch their tiny little

brains explode! Bwahaaaahahaaaa......:nuke:

[smirkymonkey]

15. Pearls before Swine...

and Chimps.

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

16. I read about that today

the total in gifts was around $156,000. It was in the Dallas Morning News.

Then they said the jewels (all the gifts?) are kept in the national archives or something. Is that supposed to make it more legit?

[SoCalDem]

17. She must wear her "fancy" stuff at the "ranch"

The stuff we see her in looks like she found the sale rack at Walmart :)

[Cyrano]

18. Now there's an image

Pickles in diamonds and sapphires watching the chimp clear brush.

[Disturbed]

19. In the meantime...

many people in Arabia are struggeling to get by. The Saudi Regime are vile, corupt and on top of the list of Human Rights Violaters. The Bush Crime family licks their asses and vica versa. This is DISBUTING!!!