Bush to Katrina evacuee: "Were you the only black man in Salt Lake City?"

Time Magazine has a great article on Pres. Bush's visit to New Orleans last week. In it, Bush is quoted as saying the following:

Touring New Orleans last week, he met a man who had survived for days on canned goods before being evacuated to Utah. "Were you the only black man in Salt Lake City?" Bush asked.

Apparently, the first thing Bush thought to ask this man was whether or not SLC had any black people. This guy probably saw his entire life uprooted by a hurricane, God knows if he lost any family members and Pres. Bush wants to know whether he was the only black guy in Salt Lake.

But that shouldn't be much of a surprise, as Bush pretty much said the same thing while in Brazil (he was surprised that Brazil had black people, too). How out of touch is this president? And what possesses someone to ask such an inane question?

For what it's worth, Mr. President, Salt Lake City does have a black population. Yes it may be small when compared to many other large populations, but it does exist. Maybe someone needs to forward the following links to the White House.

NAACP Salt Lake Branch.
Rep. Duane E. Bourdeaux (D - Salt Lake City)
Utah Jazz Roster
Calvary Baptist Church
Article on Somalian Refugees in Salt Lake City.