Nobody Was Mad at Barney

Everybody was always mad at George Bush. I would I hear about it on the news every night.

Some were mad about the War in Iraq, and others were angry about the National Debt. Many were skeptical of Bush’s plan to work together for a bipartisan agenda. The Red states were mad at the Blue states, and the G.O.P. was mad about losing control of Congress. Illegal Immigration had the American worker up in arms, and everyone was outraged about the breaches and bureaucratic blunders in Homeland Security.

We were a nation of acrimonious constituents.

At this time, though, I’d like to set our contentions aside and interject a little levity into the picture. I would like to offer up someone at the White House that no one was mad at. Call it a unifying element to help congeal the oil-and-water mix of American politics.

It was not Red; nor was it Blue.

It was Black. 

I’m referring to the Bush family dog, “Barney.”

Barney was an exceptionally personable Scottish terrier, who chased Christmas balls around the Oval Office, frolicked with his soccer ball on the White House lawn, and skidded across the polished parquet floors of the First Family residence. Barney-boy charmed America’s children with his playful antics and abundance of comical expressions. When all else in American politics yielded animosity and enmity, we could count on old Barney to tickle our funny bone.

I discovered Barney when I logged on to the White House Web Site. And there he was — starring in his very own videos, Barney Cam One, Two and Three and Barney’s Christmas Production, In Search of Miss Beazley.

And who is “Miss Beazley?” She is the Scottish terrier that the President gave to Laura Bush for her birthday – a “mini-Barney,” so to speak. And hence, “Vice-Puppy,” Miss Beazley, arrived on the White House scene.

In his latest Barney Production, Barney Has Found Miss Beazley, Barney received his first introduction to Miss Beazley, his little sister. Well technically, Miss Beazley is Barney’s niece, but who’s worrying about technicalities?

Yes, world affairs are stormy, and the state of the Union is conflicted and tortuously complex. We Americans are never short on domestic controversy.

But there is one thing that we can all agree upon: Barney and Miss Beazley are cute.

At their first meeting, Barney didn’t know what to make of Miss Beazley. He probably didn’t realize that she was staying for good. And when Miss Beazley met Barney, she was so confused that she took off running.

Without revealing my party affiliation, I’d like to say that the White House pets have always held my fascination. And my interest in them is wholly bipartisan.