Posted on 11/11/2004 7:55:34 PM PST by aculeus
The Spanish Socialist prime minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, yesterday faced a barrage of derision over his government's anti-Americanism following a snub by President George W Bush.
Mr Zapatero was one of the first premiers to send a congratulatory telegram to Mr Bush after his election victory last week.
But, in what was a stinging confirmation of the poor state of relations between Washington and Madrid, he has yet to receive a reply.
Mr Zapatero had also telephoned Mr Bush before the election result was made official but was not put through to the president.
Spain's newspaper columnists, the opposition People's Party and satirists have made much of the silence between Washington and Madrid.
Mr Zapatero wrote himself firmly into the White House's black books by accusing Mr Bush and Tony Blair of lying over the reasons for going to war with Iraq.
In the summer he immediately honoured an election pledge to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq.
He then backed John Kerry in the presidential election and cancelled a standing invitation for US forces to participate in Spain's annual military parade.
Anti-war policies may be popular with the public, but even supportive sections of the media have said that the prime minister's anti-American stance had gone too far.
Most sectors of the Spanish press concluded that the telephone spat was "infantile" but that Mr Zapatero needed to act fast to recover Spain's loss of face abroad.
A columnist for the conservative newspaper ABC, stated bluntly: "Zapatero has put his foot in all of our arses".
White House officials denied there had been a snub and said that Mr Bush had not yet had time to contact Mr Zapatero as he was working his way through a list of calls.
However Mr Bush has already spoken to the French president, Jacques Chirac, and German chancellor Gerhard Schröder, the main critics of the Iraq war.
And to rub Mr Zapatero's nose in the transatlantic mess further, Mr Bush has invited King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia to a supper during their visit later this month.
US diplomatic sources quoted in the newspaper La Vanguardia said the king will serve as a bridge toward restoring dialogue between the two governments.
Yet one more reason why Dubya deserved re-election.
Let's hope he removes his cranium from that particular orfice belonging to Chirac.
It's worth remembering that not all Europeans are socialist appeasers. Some are just like us, and must be totally ashamed of what their governments have become.
"Don't pee on my shoe and tell me it's raining."
Yes, I think Spain will come around again in due course. But Zapatero deserves no encouragement. He will now proceed to wreck their economy and be voted out when they tire of him.
Somebody ought to tell these foreign idiots that loyalty runs deep in Texas, we remember friends - and - foes.
Agreed. Just look at the Dutch backlash to the Islamofascist murder of Van Gogh. The politicians are backpedaling from appeasement in order to maintain power.
Zappy the Pinhead?
Heck, I'm of Spaniard descent (though born an American citizen, no dual loyalty, believe me) and I'm quite ashamed of what the Spaniards did in that election.
But thank you for your post. Remember, they made that decision in the trauma of a very recent terrorist attack, all polls indicate they WERE going to reelect Aznar (sp?), and it seems clear to me from this article that more than a few of them are beginning to regret that choice. I hope Freepers will have enough forgiveness and class in their hearts to welcome Spain as allies again without too much resentment, SHOULD Spain earn it by kicking Zapatero out in the next election.
Yeah, they screwed up, but they -did- hang with us for the first phase of it, their support was considered the 4th most important in the world at the time, and one bad election after a terrorist attack (and who knows that kind of voter fraud the commies over there are capable of, too) shouldn't render them the moral equivalents of the French. They don't deserve that. NO ONE deserves that.
Qwinn
Figures. For a guy's name which appears to mean "The Shoe Salesman".
BTTT
Uh, no. Zapatero has only done what the Spanish people had mandated him to do. Now Bush is only doing what we, the American people, have mandated him to do.
It's not that Bush has snubbed Zapatero. It's that the American people have snubbed the Spanish people.
bump to your post; I agree....Bush's actions transcends himSELF, as usual.
Hmm...how can the French not be the moral equivalent of the French?
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