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Bush doll hits market talking up a storm

THE BALTIMORE SUN

DETROIT - He stands proud in a gray business suit and red tie and speaks strong words about fighting terrorism - if you press a button on his back.

Meet George W. Bush, the talking action figure.

Conservative-friendly media sources like the Drudge Report and the Washington Times are hailing the toy president as a hot stocking stuffer.

Even less partisan sources are wondering if he'll become the next Big Mouth Billy Bass, the singing fish that took the novelty market by storm a few years ago.

The Bush doll is 12 1/2 inches tall and says 17 phrases lifted from broadcasts of Bush's speeches and other public statements.

The selection ranges from soaring oratory ("Terrorism against our nation will not stand") to rhetoric from the 2000 campaign ("I don't have an adviser on my staff trying to convert me into some kind of alpha male").

Altogether, the twig-sized Bush spouts two minutes' worth of sound bites, including a few that bolster his reputation as the Norm Crosby of presidents.

Like one about "putting food on your family."

"It's got a couple of his bloopers on there, but it's done in a very positive way," says John Warnock, a California-based entrepreneur who's been selling the battery-operated doll online for $29.99 for about two weeks.

Warnock, who remodels garages for a living, says the concept seemed like a natural to him. "I like presidents, and I like toys," he explains. "I just think it's a neat idea."

So does Matt Drudge, who posted an item about the Bush doll on his Web site Thursday. The response "basically crashed our server," says Warnock, who's been swamped with orders since.

The doll is generating brisk advance orders for a gift-store chain in the Washington area called America!

"I've doubled my order twice, and I wouldn't be surprised if I double it again in a couple of days," says Jane Crawford, president of America!, which also sells Bush paper dolls and Bush bobble-head dolls.

Warnock's father-in-law, Jim Wessling, who's working with him on the venture, says the first large-scale shipment of dolls is expected to arrive in their warehouse this week. They've ordered 21,000 dolls from a factory in China.

Warnock assumes the real George W. Bush will like the plastic version. He sent an e-mail to the White House but hasn't gotten a reply yet.

He also plans to make talking action figures out of John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton and George Bush the elder.

But back to Dubya. The doll sounds just like him, but does it look like him?

The hair and nose are pretty close, yet there's something vaguely Jimmy Carter-ish about the smile.

Others see hints of another world figure who's around Bush's age.

"I think he's a dead ringer for Prince Charles," says Crawford.

For more information on the talking Bush action figure, go to www.talkingpresidents.com or www.americastore.com

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