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DALLAS (AP) -- Former President George W. Bush decided not to join President Barack Obama at a Thursday ceremony at ground zero because he feels that acting presidents alone should preside over such official ceremonies, the former first lady said. Laura Bush told The Associated Press on Thursday that she and her husband were out to dinner Sunday night when they received word that Obama wanted to speak with him.

JERUSALEM (AP) - Protesters besieged Laura Bush during her visit Sunday to two of Jerusalem's most sacred sites, with Israeli police locking arms to restrain the crowd and Secret Service agents packed tightly around America's first lady. Stepping into the long-running Mideast conflict, she appealed for Israelis and Palestinians to commit to working for peace and said Americans "will do what they can in this process." The demonstrations at the Western Wall and the Dome of the Rock showed "what an emotional place this is as we go from each one of these very, very holy sites to the next,"...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - First Lady Laura Bush grabbed the stage from President Bush at the White House correspondents annual dinner on Saturday and confessed to all his early bedtimes had turned her into a "desperate housewife." Laura Bush, who is often seen smiling sweetly at her husband's side, stood up just in time to rescue the audience of political heavyweights and Hollywood celebrities from Bush's retelling of a joke about steel rail "cattle guards" that bombed before a Montana town meeting in March. "Not that old joke -- not again," Laura Bush said, as her husband willingly relinquished the stage....

Thank you for your warm welcome. It is, indeed, an extraordinary privilege to be with you today to celebrate the incredible progress that has been made by the people of Afghanistan over these past four years. I have especially watched with great pride as courageous women across your country have taken on leadership roles as teachers, students, doctors, judges, business and community leaders, and politicians. And no where is that more evident than on this University campus. The United States Government is wholeheartedly committed to the full participation of women in all aspects of Afghan society, not just in Kabul,...

Each election year, Family Circle magazine holds an Election Cookie Cook-off to find Americans' favorite cookies of the election season. This year, Mrs. Bush shares a recipe for her delicious Oatmeal-Chocolate Chunk cookies. Here's the recipe: 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, at room temperature 1 cup sugar 1 1/2 cups light-brown sugar 3 eggs 1 tablespoon vanilla 3 cups flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon 3 cups quick oats (not old-fashioned) 2 cups chopped walnuts 1 1/2 packages (8 ounces each) chocolate chunks (3 cups) 2 cups coarsely chopped dried sour cherries Heat oven...

Mrs. Bush Gives Away Secrets in Web Chat WASHINGTON - First lady Laura Bush used a live Internet chat session Tuesday to preach the gospel of reading to children — and to let a couple of secrets out of the bag. A British questioner told Mrs. Bush he was looking forward to her visit with the president to the United Kingdom in October — a trip that neither the White House nor British Prime Minister Tony Blair (news - web sites)'s office have announced. The first lady took care of that. "President Bush (news - web sites) and I are...