To Be Specific, Bush and Kaifu Just Speak a Different Language

WASHINGTON — The White House has a way with words. Take, for example, the word specific.

In a speech Wednesday to the American Electronics Assn., a trade group, President Bush told his audience some words they longed to hear about his recent meetings in Palm Springs with Japanese Prime Minister Toshiki Kaifu.

“I met with Prime Minister Kaifu and specifically discussed satellites, telecommunications, supercomputers . . . and, yes, semiconductors,” the President said. That was good news to the technology executives. They feel that current negotiations aimed at increasing U.S. sales of electronic goods to the Japanese have been moving too slowly and would like to see political leaders get directly involved and speed the negotiations along.

The Japanese, not surprisingly, want just the opposite. They would like to see politicians like Bush and Kaifu leave the specifics to the experts. When Bush’s remarks were picked up by the Japanese press, Kaifu came under heavy criticism at home for having gotten into specific discussions. His office issued a statement denying he had done so.

On Thursday, White House Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater was asked about the apparent contradiction. Why was Bush saying the discussions were specific and Kaifu saying they were only general.

“We’re both right,” Fitzwater replied. The President “just defines the word differently than you do. Specific to him meant the general policy.”