Kicking around France is costless. It's a freebie.That's the funniest damn thing I've read all week. (And so true, also!)
Posted on 05/07/2003 6:03:33 PM PDT by Utah Girl
It's payback time at the White House, and countries around the world are reaping the benefits or paying the price for their stand on the war with Iraq.
The door to the Oval Office is wide open for foreign leaders who backed President Bush, but war critics would be lucky to find a spot with Barney, the presidential dog. Foreign leaders who crossed Bush can forget about presidential visits or quick action on free trade agreements.
The retribution fits Bush's longstanding pattern of rewarding friends and punishing enemies, but critics say it is adding to the already substantial anti-American sentiment abroad.
"It's petty, and it puts personal animus ahead of the national interest. You lose the high ground when you make it personal," said Lee Feinstein, a State Department official under President Clinton who is now at the Council on Foreign Relations.
"I have no problem with making the French, in particular, sweat. But what is wrong here is to make U.S. snubs the issue."
In the latest example of tit-for-tat foreign policy, Bush signed a free trade deal with war ally Singapore Tuesday, while a similar agreement with war opponent Chile has stalled.
This week's White House guest list is a roll call of war allies. On Wednesday, Bush will welcome Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar to the Oval Office. On Thursday, he meets with the foreign ministers from Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia - allies all. He also will make time for Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani of Qatar, which hosted the U.S. military command during the war, and Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who also endorsed the war.
War opponents shouldn't expect invitations anytime soon.
Bush scrubbed a planned state visit with Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien on Monday, citing a busy schedule; Chretien opposed the war. Instead, Bush spent the weekend at his Texas ranch with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, a war backer, and devoted Monday to touting his tax cuts in Little Rock, Ark.
"Personally I'm glad he has canceled his visit. All he has done since he has taken office is snub our government and our country," one angry Canadian fumed in a letter to the Edmonton Journal. "I was glad that Chretien had the courage to stay out of the war ... I was taught as a child to stand up to the bully next door, not to cave in to demands for lunch money."
South of the border, Mexican President Vicente Fox is also on the outs. Bush's annual Cinco de Mayo message on Monday - the holiday celebrates a Mexican victory over French invaders in 1862 - failed to mention U.S. ties to Mexico, but praised "the many Mexican Americans serving in our Armed Forces who are working to bring freedom and justice to oppressed people."
In contrast, last year's statement hailed the "strong, vibrant relationship" between the two countries. Two years ago, Bush marked the Mexican holiday by praising Fox as "a fine man, a man of powerful ideas and a great vision for his country."
The strained ties have derailed plans to liberalize U.S. immigration laws, a Fox priority that was already in doubt because of security concerns raised by the Sept. 11 attacks.
No one ranks lower on the outsider list than French President Jacques Chirac, whose government led opposition to the war at the United Nations and at NATO.
"I doubt he'll be coming to the ranch any time soon," Bush told NBC news anchor Tom Brokaw in a recent interview. "There are some strains in the relationship, obviously, because it appeared to some in our administration and our country that the French position was anti-American."
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is another persona non grata at the White House. He ran afoul of U.S. officials by tapping into anti-American sentiment in Germany during his re-election campaign. He compounded that offense by siding with Chirac against the war.
Reward and retaliation are a staple of Bush's public life. When his father was president, he served as an informal loyalty enforcer at the White House. He played a key role in forcing White House chief of staff John Sununu's resignation after Sununu made comments that the Bush family considered disloyal.
In Texas, Republicans who criticized Bush as governor could count on a blistering phone call from Karl Rove, Bush's chief political adviser, warning them to stay in line.
"In Texas, politics is not just a contact sport. It's a blood sport," said Robert Dunn, a professor of economics and international affairs at George Washington University. "This is a group in the White House that has long memories. They reward their friends and punish their enemies."
Still, there are signs that the freeze out will not last forever. Bush says he will attend next month's G-8 summit in Evian, France, with Chirac, Schroeder and leaders from five other industrial democracies.
And one prominent war critic - Russian President Vladimir Putin - seems to have escaped White House retaliation. The decision to go easy on Putin reflects Bush's desire to have Russia's cooperation in the war on terrorism, the standoff with North Korea, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and efforts to stop the spread of nuclear weapons.
"Kicking around France is costless. It's a freebie. I don't think kicking around Russia is a freebie," Dunn said. "We've got bigger fish to fry there."
...............they worship politics.
Kicking around France is costless. It's a freebie.Then let's kick them harder. Until they're airborne.
Kicking around France is costless. It's a freebie.That's the funniest damn thing I've read all week. (And so true, also!)
In other words, why doesn't President Bush act like comrade herr clinton?
The U.K., Aussies, Spanish, and Polish have been some of our best allies of this great country during very trying times and have EARNED the right to be called friend.
The same can not be said for France, Germany or Russia.
This "Nickelodian diplomacy" argument that we should have an "equal" foreign policy ignores the reality that some nations will sacrifice blood and treasure to help us and some will not. It's no big whup, really.
For the rest of my days, I will never forget how the United Kingdon (G_d save the Queen) has stood by us through thick and thin and saw a goal through to reality, in the form a defeated "Chiraqs Iraq".
When has it been our policy to reward our enemies? Oh yeah, never mind.
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