The Failure of Anti-Americanism

The pusillanimous French may have to look elsewhere for an ally against American empire. Gerhard Schroeder's "massive provincial election defeat" today will deal a serious blow to the Franco-German alliance against U.S. policy on Iraq. Many news items are claiming that the economy represents Schroeder's undoing, but the recent letter of eight smaller European nations, many of them recently liberated from communist tyranny, supporting the U.S. seems to have played a role as well. Anti-Americanism may not be the ticket to victory it once was just a few months ago. George Bush won a stunning mid-term victory in November, and now with considerable help from New Europe has all but vanquished Schroeder. That recent trip to Europe by the supposedly unworldly Bush seems to have paid off. Does anyone remember Elisabeth Bumiller of the New York Times poking fun at Bush for working out, eating nice meals, and pressing the flesh in his spare time on vacation instead of absorbing "culture"?

What will the French do now?