BUT WHY WOULD WE WANT THEM BACK?:

They always come back (Neil Cavuto, June 12, 2004, Townhall)

One thing I've learned about the Europeans is they always come back. Oh, sure, they bash our arrogance. They even bash our ignorance. They say we're not cultured or refined. They call our presidents who shoot from the hip empty in the head. They said the same of Ronald Reagan. They say much the same of President Bush.

But in all these retrospectives on Reagan and his life this past week, one remarkable fact stands out -- even the Europeans come around. And Reagan is the perfect example. When he first came into office, the French press, in particular, called him a cowboy (the hat didn't help). The Germans bemoaned his lack of sophistication. Even some in the often-uppity British press called him clueless. His Strategic Defense Initiative was similarly blasted for being naive at best, and a global threat at worst. His huge tax cuts were labeled a huge mistake for which the world would pay a huge bill. Ronnie Reagan could do no right.

But things changed, namely because the economy changed; not only in the U.S. but abroad. And as things picked up in Paris and Stockholm and Lisbon and Bonn, suddenly the economy ring-leading this turnaround was getting credit, albeit grudging credit. Now the same vicious press that lambasted Reagan's tax cuts as reckless was praising them as prescient, even brilliant. Not only had those tax savings lifted American spending for American goods, they had lifted American spending for European goods. And a fellow named Ronald Reagan had made it all possible -- the guy with the simplistic economic solutions that had led to a simply marvelous global economic turnaround. [...]

It's too soon to say whether President Bush will enjoy the same swing in support. But we're already getting signs he just might.

What choice do they have?

Posted by Orrin Judd at June 12, 2004 8:08 AM