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Dec. 7: For Bush, It’s a Date of Infamy

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From a Times Staff Writer

Oh, that Dec. 7. It’s a very difficult day for George Bush.

In the 1988 presidential campaign, Bush, speaking to an American Legion convention, saluted Sept. 7 as Pearl Harbor Day. He missed by three months the anniversary of the 1941 Japanese attack that brought the United States into World War II. The gaffe became a running gag during the final two months of the campaign.

Friday, when campaigning for Rep. Jim Courter’s gubernatorial bid in New Jersey, Bush intended to call on the citizens of Bloomfield to turn out on Election Day, next Tuesday.

But, in reading his speech on a TelePrompTer screen, Bush ran afoul of the Dec. 7 date once again.

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“And on Dec. 7, we need you to vote,” Bush called out, skipping right over his mistake.

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