Who Knew? President Bush Can Sing. Sort of.

Sun, March 09, 2008 - 9:39 AM

Sunday morning.
The president surprised everyone at Gridiron Club's Spring Dinner last night by leaving the head table and coming onstage to do a spirited, if tune-challenged, rendition of “Green, Green Grass of Home.” Lyrics were rewritten to “Brown, Brown Grass of Home” to reflect his coming return to his ranch in Crawford, Tex.

The president traditionally makes a speech at the end of the white-tie evening, but at his final Gridiron dinner, he donned a cowboy hat and sang with two professional singers from the Marine Band as his backup. He dubbed them the Busharoos.

“As I step down from the plane and there to meet me is my mama and my papa, down the lane I look and here comes Barney, heart of gold and breath like honey…” the president sang.

News of Bush’s singing debut was kept very hush-hush. The 600 guests at the Renaissance Washington Hotel were surprised, as were most of the club members. Club president Carl Leubsdorf, bureau chief of the Dallas Morning News, said later that the backup singers, Gunnery Sgt. Kevin Bennear and Staff Sgt. Sara Dell’Omo, rehearsed three times at the White House.

You won’t be able to catch the Bush song on TV or the Internet (unless someone was secretly recording it.) The Gridiron Club, founded in 1885, is the oldest organization for Washington journalists. Its 65 active members are slaves to tradition, one of which is that the dinner and show are officially off the record. No TV cameras are allowed.

After his song and brief remarks, Bush joined in the tradition of singing “Auld Lang Syne,” linking arms with the redoubtable Helen Thomas, who has covered every president since JFK and is no fan of GWB. The president even gave her a peck on the cheek. Unfortunately, I was standing behind them onstage and couldn’t see Helen’s face.

-- Marsha Mercer