Blood Stained Carpet and the Pretzel of Death: A Post 9/11 Timeline, 2.0

Blood Stained Carpet and the Pretzel of Death:A Post 9/11 Timeline

The death of George W. Bush and the succession of President Cheney

The Death of President George W. Bush was sudden, unexpected, and inglorious. Unlike John F. Kennedy or Abraham Lincoln who were made martyrs by their assassination , and William H. Harrison and Theodore D. Roosevelt who died from deadly diseases, President George W. Bush was killed by a Pretzel.


The President was sitting on a couch in the private living quarters of the White House watching a football game. The President hadn’t been feeling well the past few days, and he was relaxing from the hardship that is the office of President. He was eating a large soft pretzel. Failing to chew his food properly, he began to choke. As he choked he passed out. He fell forward and his head hit the corner of a coffee table in front of him. He fell to the floor with his head bleeding. He was found in a puddle of his own blood which had stained the carpet. He was pronounced dead at 7:09 pm on January 13th, 2002.


The nation had lost their leader who comforted them after 9/11, and led the invasion of Afghanistan. Just 7 days short from completing his first year in office. The day after, Vice President Dick Cheney was sworn in as President of the United States.

One of the first things the White House did was plan for the late presidents funeral. His funeral was held on the January 20th at Asbury United Methodist Church. The Funeral escort was given all the pageantry that befit’s a President.

The nation mourned for the loss of its leader, but war and politics never sleep. One of the first decisions the new sworn President Cheney had to make was who to appoint as Vice President. He went through several choices in his mind. In the end he chose someone he has been working with for since the 1970s. Donald Rumsfeld. In February he was easily approved by the senate, 79-17, with 4 abstaining.
 
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