Barney (dog)

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Barney on the Presidential podium

Barney (born September 30, 2000 in New Jersey, U.S.A.), often referred to as the "First Dog," is a Scottish Terrier owned by U.S. President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush.

The canine's mother, "Coors", is owned by former Environmental Protection Agency Director Christine Todd Whitman. The dog's father is known only as "Kelly".

Barney is said to enjoy playing with volley and golf balls, and has recently become a fan of playing horseshoes. There are various web sites across the Internet devoted to Barney. Most notably, he has been the main star of the White House's annual Christmas videos since the start of the Bush administration.

Barney was evoked in famous Bush quote coming from Bob Woodward about the Iraq War in State of Denial: Bush at War, Part III (ISBN 0743272234) and repeated during a 60 Minutes interview:

Late last year he had key Republicans up to the White House to talk about the war. And said, 'I will not withdraw even if Laura and Barney are the only ones supporting me.' Barney is his dog," Woodward says. "My work on this leads to lots of people who spend hours, days with the president." ^[1]

On November 27, 2006 Barney was featured in an article in satirical newspaper The Onion titled "Troop Morale Boosted By Surprise Visit From First Dog". The article described a fictitious visit by Barney to troops in Iraq.

Barney has been featured in several "films" that go by the name of Barneycam and are made by the White House Staff, and star both Barney himself and Miss Beazley, his sister. These movies can be found on the White House web site. The titles of the films to date are: Barney Cam I (2002), Barney and Spot's Winter Wonderland (2003), Barney Cam II (2003), Where in the White House is Miss Beazley? (Barney Cam III, 2004), Barney has found Miss Beazley (2005), Barney and Miss Beazley's Spring Garden Tour (2005), A Very Beazley Christmas (Barney Cam IV, 2005), and most recently, Barney's Holiday Extravaganza (Barney Cam V, 2006).