Today’s the big day! Air Force One is getting fueled up, and our president will soon be on Latin soil. Seems like an appropriate time to remember how things played out the last time Bush was allowed to open his mouth in front of Brazilian officials. From the May 19, 2002 issue of the German daily Der Spiegel:
Now the president of the world's most powerful nation has put his foot in his mouth yet again. It was Condoleezza Rice, his national security advisor who had to rescue the situation. When talking with Brazilian president Fernando Henrique Cardoso, 71, Bush surprisingly asked: "Do you have Blacks too?" Ms. Rice noticed how stunned and surprised Cardoso looked and quickly told Bush that Brazil likely has more blacks than the US and that outside of Africa it was the place with the highest number of blacks. The Brazilian president remarked later that Bush was "still in a learning-phase" when it came to South America."
