Bush may be the president a thin majority of Americans would most like to have a beer with, but he doesn’t want to have a beer with them. Time reports he and his closest cronies have never been especially fond of Tom DeLay’s, uh, earthiness: “He may have had an unmatched grip on the House and Washington lobbyists, but DeLay is not the kind of guy—in background and temperament—the President feels comfortable with. Of the former exterminator, a Republican close to the President's inner circle says, ‘They have always seen him as beneath them, more blue collar. He's seen as a useful servant, not someone you would want to vacation with.’”

And DeLay vacationed in style. I suspect slugging beers belly-up to a bar in Branson wouldn’t particularly appeal to the Pres, though that’s—inexplicably—his reputation.

Also: The same article notes that the administration is currently aflutter trying to erase Bush’s history with Abramoff: “Bracing for the worst, Administration officials obtained from the Secret Service a list of all the times Abramoff entered the White House complex, and they scrambled to determine the reason for each visit. Bush aides are also trying to identify all the photos that may exist of the two men together. Abramoff attended Hanukkah and holiday events at the White House, according to an aide who has seen the list.” Uh-oh. What gets out the stink of corruption from starched white collars?