Drill split

Maybe they do these drills on Saturdays because Bush, being more of a big-picture, go-away-for-the-weekend kind of guy, wouldn't bother showing up anyway. Either that or the drills don't lend themselves to photo-ops.

Cabinet officials gathered at the White House complex on Saturday for a drill simulating a smallpox attack against the United States.

The four-hour exercise to test the government's response plans was conducted by Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt, Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns and Centers of Disease Control Director Dr. Julie Gerberding and others.

President Bush, who was spending the weekend at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland, did not participate in the exercise at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building next to the White House.

Saturday's simulation was the second drill to check the nation's readiness for catastrophic attacks.

Federal officials said that a similar rehearsal in December for pandemic flu showed that saving lives and containing economic damage would require more planning in local communities and increased production of vaccines and medications.

And guess what? Bush didn't participate in that one either. He was too busy going on a bike ride.

Maybe skipping drills makes Bush feel like he's in the Air National Guard again.