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Terrier Wins Prominent Post in Bush Administration--1st Pup

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From Associated Press

President-elect George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, have accepted from New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman an 11-week-old Scottish terrier who could become the next “first dog.”

The dog, black with a white spot on his neck, arrived Monday at the Washington hotel where Bush was staying as he held get-acquainted meetings and interviewed prospective members of his administration.

Susan Spencer, Whitman’s aide in Washington, carried the puppy through security and up to a 12th-floor room where Mrs. Bush waited.

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“She was on the phone when we got there, but we took the puppy out and he ran right to her,” Spencer said. “It was really cute.”

Mrs. Bush then brought the dog to an adjoining room to introduce him to the president-elect, Spencer said.

For now, the dog is known as “J,” a temporary name assigned by Whitman until the Bushes choose a permanent one. Spencer said Mrs. Bush indicated the short list is down to three or four names.

The Bushes already have a dog, Spot, an 11-year-old English springer spaniel who is the offspring of George and Barbara Bush’s famous Millie. They also have two cats, Ernie and India. A Bush spokesman said all four pets will live at the White House.

The puppy, born Sept. 30, is the offspring of Whitman’s Scottish terrier, Coors, named after the beer. Whitman is a candidate for a post in the new administration.

President Clinton’s chocolate Labrador, Buddy, is often seen frolicking across the White House grounds. But another Scottish terrier probably was the most famous White House dog.

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President Franklin D. Roosevelt was inseparable from his pet Scottie, Fala, and the dog is immortalized in bronze next to the statue of the president at the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial on the National Mall in Washington.

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