Bush seems to. In many ways, they're two of a kind. Breaking (and spirit-breaking) news: good ol' Pervez is seen as likely to give up his position as head of Pakistan's army in a few days and stick with being just president.
The Supreme Court is expected to clear the last legal obstacles to Musharraf's continued rule on Thursday. The Election Commission can then confirm his victory in November's presidential election.
Attorney General Malik Mohammed Qayyum said Musharraf would quickly quit his army post and be sworn in for a new five-year term.
"It may happen on Saturday,'' Qayyum said.
It's depressing to see a politician fire his Supreme Court, hire friendly judges, and resume dictatorship -- we're seeing too much court-packing and authoritarianism here. For that reason, it's perhaps less of a surprise that Bush would reach out and give his friend a big, official American hug.
President Bush yesterday offered his strongest support of embattled Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, saying the general "hasn't crossed the line" and "truly is somebody who believes in democracy."
Bush spoke nearly three weeks after Musharraf declared emergency rule, sacked members of the Supreme Court and began a roundup of journalists, lawyers and human rights activists. Musharraf's government yesterday released about 3,000 political prisoners, although 2,000 remain in custody, according to the Interior Ministry.
Next question for Dana Perino: Just what form of democracy do Bush and Musharraf believe in? Or is it the democracy of failure? After all, Musharraf, like Bush, faces widespread opposition in his country. John Negroponte's quick diplomacy failed to persuade him to do more than reluctantly give up some symbols of military dictatorship. But the reality of emergency rule, the corralling and suppression of political opposition, the manipulation of the judiciary, the scorn for political freedoms -- these are democracy? Not even realpolitik justifies our official embrace of Musharraf. We not only don't need him, we need to rethink our relationship with Pakistan.
Musharraf "is not only not indispensable; he is a serious liability" to U.S. policy, a new report by the International Crisis Group said.
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