As always, Mike Carleton in his weekly op-ed piece in the SMH hits the nail on the head:
"... nothing of any moment has emerged from the Prime Minister's triumphant progress along the Potomac.
The bands played, the flags flew, the guns went off and the mutual schmooze flowed like molten lava, but unless there was something interesting we haven't been told - a secret Oval Office pact to eventually bomb Iran, say - it was froth and tinsel.
There was a surreal air to the carryings-on, as if Howard and Bush were travelling in some parallel universe. Here was this nincompoop President, his domestic popularity at a record low and his global credibility in shreds, pathetically, embarrassingly eager to wallow in the fulsome praise showered upon him by his dear friend.
The word "courage" was tossed around like confetti. "Firm leadership … the liberty agenda … sense of optimism" - you'd have thought the Iraq war had brought some tremendous Churchillian victory rather than the endless quagmire it has become.
Perhaps the best appraisal of this circus came from the mainstream US media who, apart from a few gossip paragraphs, barely noticed a thing."
Nothing more need be said!
Mark Baker, diplomatic editor of The Age says:
"The PM's declarations of affection for George Bush look bad for Howard and demean us in the eyes of the world".
And this:
"It also seems to have escaped those thrilled by the warmth of Howard's reception that it might in part be related to the fact that fewer and fewer Western leaders appear willing to come calling as Bush stumbles deeper into the domestic and international mire and his certain obituary as one of the worst presidents in US history. The American alliance remains very important to Australia, but at what price?"
Read Barker's insightful article "All the way with GWB" here.
"... nothing of any moment has emerged from the Prime Minister's triumphant progress along the Potomac.
The bands played, the flags flew, the guns went off and the mutual schmooze flowed like molten lava, but unless there was something interesting we haven't been told - a secret Oval Office pact to eventually bomb Iran, say - it was froth and tinsel.
There was a surreal air to the carryings-on, as if Howard and Bush were travelling in some parallel universe. Here was this nincompoop President, his domestic popularity at a record low and his global credibility in shreds, pathetically, embarrassingly eager to wallow in the fulsome praise showered upon him by his dear friend.
The word "courage" was tossed around like confetti. "Firm leadership … the liberty agenda … sense of optimism" - you'd have thought the Iraq war had brought some tremendous Churchillian victory rather than the endless quagmire it has become.
Perhaps the best appraisal of this circus came from the mainstream US media who, apart from a few gossip paragraphs, barely noticed a thing."
Nothing more need be said!
Mark Baker, diplomatic editor of The Age says:
"The PM's declarations of affection for George Bush look bad for Howard and demean us in the eyes of the world".
And this:
"It also seems to have escaped those thrilled by the warmth of Howard's reception that it might in part be related to the fact that fewer and fewer Western leaders appear willing to come calling as Bush stumbles deeper into the domestic and international mire and his certain obituary as one of the worst presidents in US history. The American alliance remains very important to Australia, but at what price?"
Read Barker's insightful article "All the way with GWB" here.
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