Smoochy, smoochy

Well, one prediction has come true already. That didn't take very long:

World leaders rushed to congratulate US President George W. Bush on his re-election to a second four-year term and pledged cooperation with Washington to heal deep divisions over a host of international issues, notably Iraq and the Middle East. (emphasis mine)

Yep, those Euroweenies want to play nice, now. Americans have spoken and the Euros heard loud and clear.

Congratulatory messages also poured in from UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and leaders from Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Poland and South Africa among others.

Pucker up, mofos!

"On behalf of France, and on my personal behalf, I would like to express to you my most sincere congratulations for your re-election to the presidency of the United States of America," Chirac wrote in a letter to Bush. "I hope that your second term will provide an opportunity to reinforce the Franco-American friendship."

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who also clashed with Bush over Iraq, voiced hope that his country would continue its "good cooperation" with the United States.

Yes, yes - better get the chapstick, quick.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said from Bonn that he hoped the new US government "would help to bring peace to the Middle East".

EARTH TO MUBARAK: Afghanistan just held free elections and Iraq will be in January. Not bad in 3 friggin' years. I'm sure PM Allawi has something to say about the us helping to bring peach to the ME. Oh, he does, in the next paragraph:

"Whoever is the winner will be our friend. The United States has liberated us from a dictator and a very long period of war and agony," Allawi told the Italian daily La Repubblica ahead of a visit to Italy Thursday.

Yeah, not bad, eh, Allawi?

In Israel, a top foreign policy adviser said: "Israel and the free world has every reason to rejoice over this result."

Danged Zionists!

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, in hospital outside Paris, said he hoped Bush's re-election would help jumpstart the Middle East peace process, one of his aides told AFP.

Uh, check that. We KNOW the impending death of Arafat will jumpstart the "peace process" in one way or another.

Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin said Wednesday he would be telephoning Bush to congratulate him but would also raise some bilateral problems.

Well, the only "bilateral problem" I can think of is the long wait the Bush-haters are going to have to get into Canada.

Now, just time to work on some of those other predictions.

UPDATE: Jeff thinks he overheard something if Fallujah.

By the way, the entire office here is totally grim. Cheer up, Seattle - there's still a chance Gregoire can pull out the Governorship (Go Rossi!)

UPDATE: Maybe it was in southern Lebanon where Jeff overheard the conversation.