[sanchmo]

Even though Bush's call to Sharon is a pretty newsworthy part is his message (though it may be a politically calculated one), these headlines miss the central point of the message - that Arafat & the Palestinian terrorist groups, as well as their supporters in Iran & Syria, have been called to task for their duplicity.

Being president often requires diplomatic language. But this seems like a strong message nonetheless.

[Wphile]

...have been called to task for their duplicity...

I agree wholeheartedly. This is the real meat of the speech. Yes, the Israeli part is newsworthy for the moment but once the dust settles and the real analysis comes forth, this will be the key, IMHO.

As I said in my above post, the real gist of this speech was a reprimand and a warning to the Arab states.

[CasearianDaoist]

Bush was shrewd - the IDF have already removed the worst of the lot. Bush gets to have his cake and eat it too. He has done more in a quarter that Cliton did in 8 years. Again he has proved his character and worth