Don't Be So Happy to See Bush Go, Europe

President Bush might be touring Europe to yawns and boos, but its citizens and pundits alike will miss their favorite political punching bag when he’s gone, Gerard Baker writes in the Times of London. “They'll miss, first, having a villain in the White House,” Baker explains. “It's a really convenient excuse to avoid doing anything yourself on pressing global concerns.”

Meanwhile, while President Obama (or, to a somewhat lesser extent, McCain) will ride to a magic carpet of global goodwill, Baker doubts he’ll act much differently than second-term Bush. In Iraq, “conditions will either allow a quick US drawdown or they won't." On global warming, the new Prez "will say more congenial things,” but that will put the onus on European leaders to act. (More Bush administration stories.)