Bush greets Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi
By: Elvis Australia - June 30, 2006
Source: Elvis World Japan


President Bush welcomed Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to the White House this morning in an elaborate South Lawn ceremony.
Bush talked of the close ties between the two countries that were at war just over 60 years ago, and thanked Koizumi for his willingness to back him on Iraq and other issues.

But quickly getting to the real purpose of the Japanese leader's state visit, Bush added: 'Officially, he’s here to see the President ? but I know the highlight of his visit will be paying his respects to the King', referring to their trip to Graceland on Friday.

Koizumi spoke of his deep friendship with and trust of the President in his remarks.

Two hours later, in a joint press conference in the East Room, the president and Bush both referred repeatedly to the Graceland visit. In his opening remarks, Bush noted that he had given Koizumi an Elvis-themed gift.

The exchange went like this:

Bush: 'And, plus, as you all know, it's become quite well-known that we're going to visit Graceland tomorrow. He's an Elvis fan. Laura and I gave him a jukebox as a gift, and I can't -- what was the first song you put on? It wasn't Hound Dog,' it was --

Koizumi: 'I Want You, I Need You, I Love You'.

Bush: 'See, he loves Elvis, and I couldn't think of a better way to honor my friend (than) by going to Graceland. But it also sends a signal about how close our relationship is'.

Taking his first question from the Associated Press's Terry Hunt, Bush told the reporter he was reminded of 'one of Elvis' greatest songs, Don't Be Cruel.' So keep that in mind, Hunt, when you ask your question."

After taking some questions, including two from Japanese reporters traveling with him, Koizumi ended the press conference with another Elvisism.

'Thank you very much, American people, for Love Me Tender.'

The only president on record as having visited prior to, during or after a presidency is Jimmy Carter.

'Elvis theme' for Air Force One today

In theory, the Elvis pilgrimage is something of a parting gift for Junichiro Koizumi, who steps down in the fall. Koizumi is such a big Presley fan that he selected his own favorite tracks for a Japanese CD. For his part, President Bush cares so little about music that he entrusts his iPod selections to his old friend, music junkie Mark McKinnon.

But even more important than the journey to Memphis is what the trip says about Bush’s exceptionally personal form of diplomacy. Bush’s foreign policy aides insist that the idea for a Graceland visit came from the president himself, not from Koizumi. “About a year ago, the president started saying to us as staff, ‘I would like to take him to Graceland,’ and we all thought he might be joking,” said one senior administration official, who insisted on anonymity in talking about Bush’s foreign-policy discussions. “But as he repeated it several times to us, we realized he indeed thought it was a great thing to do.”

The result is an Elvis-themed day on Friday, complete with Elvis movies on Air Force One and a strategic opportunity for Koizumi to go karaoke. “I imagine that Koizumi may pick up a mike somewhere along the way,” the senior Bush aide said. “He does sing Elvis songs.”


Of course the White House would like you to know that it’s not all play. There will be extensive talks about North Korea, Iran and Iraq. And even the fun stuff can have a greater meaning: in Memphis, the two leaders will eat some of the city’s finest barbecue. Given the Japanese ban on U.S. beef because of concerns about mad-cow disease, the mere sight of Koizumi eating American meat is a symbolic stamp of approval.

As trivial as it sounds, there are certain strengths to this kind of one-on-one diplomacy. There’s little doubt among Japan analysts that the close relationship between Bush and Koizumi has been critical in improving relations between the United States and Japan. After the economic rivalries of the 1980s and the Japanese stagnation of the 1990s, the Koizumi-Bush era looks like a golden one. Both the pres and the PM mentioned Elvis in their joint press conference yesterday.

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Bush Takes Koizumi for Tour of Graceland
AP -Fri, 30 Jun 2006 14:59:09 -0400 (EDT)
By JENNIFER LOVEN

President Bush's going-away present to Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was some kind of "Good Luck Charm." Amid the ceramic monkeys, floor-and-ceiling green shag carpet and animal-head armrests of Graceland's Jungle Room, the delighted prime minister just couldn't hold back the Elvis lines.

All it took was a simple invitation from Bush.

"You're a pretty good Elvis singer," the president said, in an obvious prompt to his guest. Bush knew what was coming, having previously experienced Koizumi's tendency to burst into song when it comes to the late rock 'n' roll legend who is the Japanese leader's undisputed musical hero.

Koizumi quickly complied. "Love me tender," he sang. "Wise men say, `Only fools rush in.' "

Enter the special tour guides for the two leaders' private tour of Graceland: Presley's only child and heir, Lisa Marie, and her mother, Priscilla. "I want you, I love you," remarked Koizumi, spouting more Elvis tunes. Draping his arm around Lisa Marie, he crooned some more: "Hold me close, hold me tight."

It was the kind of Friday Graceland has never seen.

The Bush-Koizumi tour through the Memphis manse wrapped up two days of consultations between the staunch allies. Koizumi's visit saw military pomp, the tinkling of crystal at a black-tie dinner and two hours of discussions on Iraq, North Korea, U.S. beef exports and other weighty matters in the Oval Office.

But their outing to Graceland, with its oddity quotient and celebrity patina, was the most-anticipated portion. It drew an enormous traveling press corps to accompany the men. Even Bush termed it "an unusual experience."

Swiveling hips, spangled jumpsuits and gaudy interiors aren't Bush's usual style. And this is a president who routinely skips even the most awe-inspiring destinations on his speed-travels -- such as India's Taj Mahal.

So it's a sign of his affinity for the Japanese leader that Bush took Koizumi to a tourist hotspot, and by plane, no less, five years to the day after they first met. Aides said the president decided a Graceland tour was the perfect way, along with a gift of a jukebox loaded with Elvis hits, to bid adieu to a leader who is departing office in September after being one of his most ardent defenders on the world stage.

"This visit here shows that not only am I personally fond of the prime minister, but that the ties between our peoples are very strong as well," Bush said after the tour, in front of the white-columned, two-story colonial and a pink Cadillac on its drive.

"My dream came true," said Koizumi, donning gold-rimmed sunglasses as the pair walked to the motorcade waiting to take them to a lunch of Memphis barbeque.

On the way there, they made an unscheduled stop at the National Civil Rights Museum at the hotel where the Rev. Martin Luther King. Jr. was assassinated in 1968. Bush and Koizumi greeted excited children and then went aside.

The mood for the day was set when the public address system on Air Force One played "Love Me Tender" and "Don't Be Cruel" and other Elvis songs. DVDs of Elvis movies were available for viewing. And stewards brought out that Elvis culinary favorite -- grilled peanut butter and banana sandwiches, each with 36 grams of fat. The two leaders passed on the sandwiches. Bush drank coffee and Koizumi drank green tea.

"I'm feeling a little heavy," groaned White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten, one of the few presidential aides who braved the breakfast treat. "I so rarely fry my peanut butter sandwiches."

White House press secretary Tony Snow -- wearing gold-rimmed plastic sunglasses -- did his best, meanwhile, to fuel lingering conspiracy theories that the singer never died, saying that Bush and Koizumi were likely to go to Elvis' "alleged grave site." In fact, Graceland spokesman David Beckwith said the "meditation garden" near the swimming pool where Elvis is buried was the chosen place for the two allies to have some "private time."

The pair saw what most visitors see: the Jungle Room, famously furnished with a 30-minute shopping spree, and the glossy black baby-grand piano near the living room's white, 15-foot sofa, and hundreds of gold records, outfits and guitars in the home's museums.

Thanks!

The PM of Japan cracked me up he was so excited!