Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2011

Presidential Puke, 1992

Traveling abroad can be stressful. What are the local customs? What if you accidentally insult somebody? And what do you do if you're the guest of honor at a state dinner thrown by the leader of a very important country and you accidentally throw up and pass out into your host's lap? Unfortunately for President George H.W. Bush, that's exactly what happened when he visited the home of Japan's Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa in January 1992. Bush, then 67, appeared to have been suffering from the stomach flu at the time. He recovered the next day, embarrassed but otherwise fine. When asked about the incident, White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater explained it succinctly: "The President is human," he said. "He gets sick."