President Bush has an accident
In the beginning of 1992, the world was celebrating the downfall of the Soviet Union, which fell on December 26th, 1991. This caused international discussions on how the new US-Japan relationship would function post-USSR. To discuss this, then-President George H. W. Bush landed in Japan on January 8th, 1992, for a 12-day long diplomatic visit.
On January 8th, 1992, a doubles tennis match between the US and Japanese leaders would play out, with Bush and U.S. ambassador Michael Armacost against Emperor of Japan Akihito and his son, Crown Prince Naruhito. The Japanese team ended up winning. However, things went south when, on that evening, a dinner for 135 diplomats was held at the Japanese Prime Minister’s residence. During this dinner, President George H. W. Bush was scheduled to give remarks, but these were canceled when suddenly President George H. W. Bush vomited in Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa’s lap and collapsed.
Immediately, secret service took over, and President Bush told his personal physician, Burton Lee, "Roll me under the table until the dinner's over" while assuring dinner guests he had the flu. President Bush would leave afterwards, with First Lady Barbara Bush giving the speech in his place. On January 9th, it was revealed President Bush had contracted an intestinal flu, and that he had recovered enough to have a news conference with Japanese Emperor Akihito later that day.
The incident instantly amassed widespread media attention due to the footage being broadcast on television. Many news networks, comedy shows, and local media commented on it, with Japanese media heavily reporting it. It was even referenced in The Simpsons, where
Bush tells Homer Simpson, "I'll ruin you like a Japanese banquet."
Things took a dark turn when an Idaho man, James Edward Smith, called CNN posing as President Bush's physician on the day of the incident. He claimed Bush had died on January 8th, 1992. CNN originally aired the news without any verification, but quickly took the story down. Smith was questioned by the Secret Service. He would later be hospitalized at a mental health facility for tests.
In the end, both sides understood that it was an accident, and were thankfully able to look at the situation with humor. The incident even became a part of Japanese slang, with the word “bushuru” becoming a popular replacement for “vomiting.”
George Bush Pretzel incident
In true American fashion, On January 14th, 2002, President Bush was watching a football game between the Baltimore Ravens and the Miami Dolphins during the playoffs of the NFL while eating a pretzel in his bedroom. Suddenly, President Bush started choking on the pretzel and fainted for a brief moment.
Instantly, several concerns had been posted, and President Bush was subjected to a series of cognitive tests. When the President had choked (the term the White House officially put out was "neurally mediated vasovagal syncope” or if you ask President Bush, “it just didn't go down right”), he had fallen, and President Bush had suffered a handful of scratches.
After the accident, President Bush ate soup and salad with his wife. He was declared to be in good health a few hours afterward.
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