What Would President Clinton Have Done?

On Saturday, President Bush met with American Olympians in Beijing. Typically, when a President or similarly prominent politician meets with athletes, it's for one reason -- the photo-op value of posing with popular, successful athletes is considered political gold (although I'm not convinced that it usually translates into increased public support for the politician).

But when President Bush yukked it up with the women's beach volleyball team yesterday, it was not your run of the mill photo-op:


Explanation here:

"Bush knuckled off a couple of lobs, but defending gold medalists Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh gave the chief executive some pointers. Then after a good play, in the tradition of female volleyballers, May-Treanor turned, bent over slightly and offered her bikinied rear-end for the 43rd president to slap. 'Mr. President,' she said, 'want to?' Want to has nothing to do with it in public life."

Also: President Bush going in for the classic "kiss close." President Bush may have attempted to execute a kiss close, but he has nothing on his predecessor, President Clinton. President Clinton was known for his frequent use of the uncommon "f**k me b**ch, I'm the damn President of the United States" close. Under normal circumstances, the "kiss close" would be considered an advanced pick up artist move. But compared to the "fu** me bi**h, I'm the damn President of the United States" close, the "kiss close" looks only slightly better than the commonly used (by average Joes) "Paris close" (i.e., "One of the best experiences of my life came when I was dining at this wonderful little, out of the way, outdoor bistro in Paris. I was drinking wine and watching the Parisian sun set over the Eiffel Tower ... it was, you know, an almost perfect moment. The only thing that would've made it better is if YOU had been there to share the moment).