...is a grown up President.
I live in Egypt and GW visited here today (not in Cairo---he's not terribly welcome here and the chaos that would have ensued had he come here, may even have led to me closing my school. (I'm not just talking traffic deadlock or a city ringed by troops--I'm talking massive anti-Bush protest). GW is supposed to be an ally of Egypt but unfortunately due to the Iraq war and Condi cutting aid because of poor border control into Gaza, there is a slight falling out.
Anyway, he flew into Sharm El Sheik on the Red sea and stayed for 3 hours. He was met with coolness by the Egyptian President who did not exactly roll out the red carpet (figuratively speaking). Then, as he has done throughout his tour , GW asked for co-operation in the Israel problem and condemned Iran once again.
Now, I don't give two hoots for Ahmedinajan and his slimy ways but I'm sure the leaders of the Middle East (many of whom support Iran as it is a Muslim state), are a little tired of this rhetoric coming from a man who doesn't know an Arab from a KFC drumstick---and I think they grew tired of the arrogance and the self-assured posturing. How they felt (in Saudi Arabia), about GW's plea to OPEC to bring sanity to oil prices, I don't know. Was he pleading? Do American Presidents plead?
I'm digressing. GW is starting to look like Tricky Dicky and going into second-hand car salesman mode. How can any sane grown-up politician, let alone the President of the USA, make three ghastly mistakes such as he has done on his Middle East Tour?
He promises a peace treaty and solution to the Israel -Palestine situation within a year, but he has nothing to back it up. (Unless Ms Rice knows something we don't).
He begs for relief on OPEC oil prices.
He slags off Iran as a perpetrator of evil deeds but he does it to a mainly Muslim audience some of whom are neighbours to that Muslim country.
What America really needs now is a grown-up President with large shots of wisdom and a wider vision (and some tact would help too). Another FDR would do or another Ike---but not a man who thinks he has a vision when he has not, tact when he has none and wisdom when he has none.
To sum up, GW's visit to the Middle East will do nothing for his legacy at all. All they'll remember is the cocky swagger down the steps from Air Force One.