Opinion: Thankfully, the White House mortgage is paid off

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Next time you run into President Bush, don’t be asking him for any phone numbers. He seems to have a problem at times with some digits.

Friday in New Jersey after one of his forums on housing, he was giving out the toll-free number for a mortgage relief hot line -- 1 (88) 995-HOPE. Anyone dialing that number, of course, gets one of those annoying whistling alarms and is informed that the call cannot be completed as dialed.

On a nearby wall the correct number was displayed -- 1 (888) 995-HOPE. And the president corrected himself.

But it wasn’t 3 a.m. and the president wasn’t in the White House at the time. So everything is OK.

-- Andrew Malcolm