Anywho- I’m assuming Prager’s never been abroad. I can assure you that Republican policy when it comes to international relations are less than popular, even for right of center voters (although most Austrians still adore the Governator- but that’s a different story altogether). Of course, Sarkozy was elected almost entirely due to domestic economic issues, thanks to the sorry state of the French economy. He sure as hell wasn’t voted in because the French suddenly wanted to support the Iraq war. He also, by the way, had the support of Jacque Chirac.

Americans on the left and right tend to reduce foreign politics to whether or not a candidate is pro-US or anti-US, as if relations with the US are the only factor in any election. Fact is, they are usually only one factor out of many. That, by the way, is why Howard won in 2004 in Australia; believe me the Aussies were not exactly pro-Bush; they just liked how things were going in their everyday lives. In the case of Aznar, the likelihood is that he was defeated more because of his involvement in Iraq than because of the subway bombings. Or, I should say, the Spanish people largely blamed his involvement in Iraq for the subway bombings.