Bush, Powell Display Unity

President Bush and Secretary of State Colin L. Powell presented a united front Wednesday as they dismissed as “August speculation” a report that Powell would not serve a second term if Bush is reelected.

Standing boot to tasseled loafer, the nation’s commander-in-chief and its top diplomat struck a pose of down-home solidarity and stability.

“We spent yesterday evening and this morning talking about our country’s desire to promote peace and freedom, our obligations as a prosperous and strong nation to help the less fortunate,” Bush told reporters.

“We had a good strategy session,” he said, “and now we’re about to go out and brand some cows.”

Seeking to reassure the startled-looking Powell, Bush added, “Well, not exactly.”

White House officials had said for days that the visit by Powell and his deputy, Richard L. Armitage, to Bush’s ranch was a long-planned, routine trip to discuss foreign policy matters. But the meeting took on significance after the Washington Post reported Monday that neither Powell nor Armitage would serve in a second Bush term.

So, after White House spokesmen said they would have no report on Wednesday’s meeting, Bush used the occasion of Powell’s visit to leave the ranch for the first time since arriving Saturday for a monthlong working vacation.

“First things first,” Bush said of the Powell departure story, which he ascribed to boredom because of the lack of news out of Washington. “We’ve got a year-and-a-while during my first term to make the world a more peaceful place. The fact that [Powell] is here in Crawford, Texas, talking about issues of importance, should say loud and clear to the American people that he’s completely engaged in doing what he needs to do.”

“This is all August speculation with no basis in fact.... We’re doing our jobs together,” Powell added.

And with that, the two men, their wives and two top aides headed into the Coffee Station, this town’s combination restaurant-gas station, where a gallon of regular is $1.43 and the menu features all things fried.

Unlike Washington, this is an environment Bush knows and loves, from the canyons on his ranch to the patrons of the Coffee Station. And here, far away from the partisan capital, the warm feelings are mutual.

Storefronts, souvenirs and bumper stickers in Crawford, population 705, feature Bush’s words and image. And even on a day when the temperature reached 109 degrees, town residents came out of their houses to wave at Bush’s motorcade. Outside the restaurant, a small crowd waited in the sweltering heat to applaud every member of Bush’s entourage. And Bush rewarded their patience, spending a few minutes after lunch shaking hands, signing autographs and making small talk.

The event also gave the president an opportunity to tout his administration’s policies and to comment on key issues, such as Liberia and the Middle East.

When asked about the nation’s struggling economy, Bush repeated his philosophy that tax cuts are central to economic recovery.

“But there needs to be more,” he said, calling on Congress to pass an energy plan and lawsuit reform.

“I also know that we need to make sure we continue this notion of reminding the investors and consumers alike that we’re going to have fiscal discipline in Washington, D.C.,” he added.

Vice President Dick Cheney is scheduled to arrive at Bush’s ranch today and will meet Friday with the president and Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld. On Saturday, Bush and Cheney plan to attend a private event with top GOP fund-raisers.

National security advisor Condoleezza Rice, meanwhile, indicated Wednesday that she was in no hurry for another in-town meal.

“Well, that was high-calorie,” she said of her lunch, which included a cheeseburger, French fries, fried jalapenos and onion rings.