This is front page of tomorrow's Guardian. And frankly, I'm a bit stunned at how deep hostility to Bush is. Basically, the results are of the British pollster ICM and its survey of public opinion of world events, especially relating to the United States in only 4 countries deemed to have particularly friendly relations to the United States - Mexico, Canada, Israel, Briatin. Indeed, outside of Australia, that is probably right. And the results were perhaps closer to what one might imagine getting in countries like Turkey, Greece, or Argentina (if not, say, Egypt or Jordan) with a much longer and more noted history of hostility to the United States.
Anyway, this is the upshot. George W. Bush is rated - in these 4 allies - as the second greatest threat to world peace behind only Osama Bin Laden - amongst public opinion in Canada, Britain, Mexico, and Israel. He outpaces both Kim Il-Sung and Mahmoud Ahmnedjad (sp?). Also, perhaps a bit less surprisingly, the poll reveals overwhelming opposition to the broad strokes of American foreign policy under Bush, particualy as it relates to the Iraq War. Only in Israel could hostility to all the above not be considered overwhelmingly hostile.
The numbers are as follows:
In the four countries as a whole, 89% of respondants view Osama Bin Laden as a threat to world peace, 75% view George Bush a threat to world peace, 69% Kim Il Jung, 62% Mahmoud Ahmenjad. Think about that for a second.
Meanwhile, 71% of Brits, 73% of Canadians, and 89% of Mexicans think the Iraq War was unjustified. Not just poorly carried out: unjustified. Israel is somewhat of an outlier on this question, with 59% thinking it was justified (34% unjustified).
Meanwhile, 69% of respondants in Britain think American actions since 9/11 have decreased global security, while only 7% think that it has improved global security. Canada and Mexico are barely better in this regard, with 62% of Canadians and 57% of Mexicans thinking US actions have worsened world security. Even in Israel, more respondants think the US has worsened conditions, with 25% thinking the US has improved conditions and 34% thinking it has worsened them.
Now, as the world's preponderant power, the US is surely going to generate some hostility. It did in the Cold War. But numbers like these are frankly shocking. The US has virtually no credibility, even in countries one would assume to be more "pro-American." Another Bush success.