Does he think Abbas doesn’t really believe in the jihad imperative? That he really doesn’t believe Abbas attributes the Gaza withdrawal to suicide terrorism? Or does he just not care? From AP, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:
WASHINGTON – President Bush heaped praise Thursday on Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and said he was more confident than ever before there would be peace with Israel and establishment of a Palestinian state.
Bush qualified his optimism a bit by saying “it’s hard” and “old feuds aren’t settled immediately. And it takes a while.”
He was unqualified, however, in his praise of Abbas, although he tried to nudge the Palestinian leader toward taking a more assertive approach to extremist groups.
“President Abbas is a man devoted to peace and to his people’s aspiration for a state of their own,” Bush said after a one-hour meeting with Abbas in the Oval Office. “And today, the Palestinian people are closer to realizing their aspirations.”