Bush, Clinton Plan Public Chat in Toronto

(NEWSER) - The audience probably expected a throw-down. What they got was a sewing circle. Bill Clinton and George W. Bush sat down for a friendly chat yesterday in Toronto, emphasis on the friendly. The ex-presidents went out of their way to be agreeable, at times almost seeming like a support group, the New York Times reports. Bush even said that his mother thinks of Clinton “like a son,” then turned and said, "So, brother, good to be with you." More»

In new book, ex-prez discusses Lewinsky, Yeltsin's drunken caper

(NEWSER) - Between 1993 and 2001, historian Taylor Branch met regularly with then-President Clinton for a series of taped interviews. The transcripts form the basis of a new book, The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the President, to be released next week. USA Today got a look and singles out some highlights:

• Secret Service agents had to corral a drunk Boris Yeltsin trying to hail a cab on Pennsylvania Avenue—wearing only his underwear. The Russian leader, who was bunking at Blair House, told them he wanted a pizza.

Leaders traditionally release limited number of pictures

(NEWSER) - When the five current, former, and future occupants of the Oval Office mugged together at the White House last week, one could almost hear the cash registers cha-chinging, reports Politico. All five will sign a limited 250 copies of the photo—with each keeping 50—instantly jacking the value to an estimated $6000 per photo. Works out to a cool $300000 for any chief exec looking for a little pocket money. More»

Book deal could be worth millions; lame-duck President must shelve ambitions

(NEWSER) - Laura Bush is likely to net millions from publishers bidding on her memoirs, the New York Post reports—not exactly the case for her lame-duck husband. “The wives of presidents generally write books that have a greater public interest,” one insider says. “Husbands usually try to rewrite history.” Adds another: “Dubya is going to have to wait about 5 years.” More»

Eh? Seriously.

(NEWSER) - Today's "we swear we're not the Onion" story: Dick Cheney has canceled a planned appearance in Toronto ... because he fears it could be too dangerous a trip to take. "He felt that in Canada the risk of violent protest was simply too high," explained the head of the promotions company that had scheduled the April 24 event at the apparently risky Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The National Post reminds us that Cheney reportedly got stuck inside a Vancouver building for seven hours during a September speech after a protest outside indeed turned violent and a security guard was choked. More»