Should the World Be More Welcoming to Bush?

I am a Texan born Hispanic living in Fort Hood, Texas. I can tell you that Bush Jr. does not care about German protesters. Obviously he does not care about Texan protesters, military veteran protesters, Medicare and social security protesters, animal and enviromental protesters, nor peace protesters in the same unempathic and unsympathetic fashion. I did not vote for President Bush Jr. He does not represent all of America's views, but then neither do I. -- Tara Lopez Wright, USA

I wish Bush would stay home. If all Germans are going to do is protest then there is no reason for him to show up. Personally I couldn't care less what you people think about our president and his policies. You really ought to worry about your high unemployment rate, poor economy and low birth rate. -- Anon, USA

The Divided States of America

America has a history of being divided in public opinion. America was as divided on whether to enter WWII as the war in Iraq. JFK won the presidential election with less of a majority than Bush just did in a supposedly "bitterly" divided nation. Republicans and Democrats have alternated the presidency for the past 40 years. American population percentages are more diverse than virtually any other nation in the world. There is no reason why America won't elect a democrat as president in the next election. It is important for the nations of the world, expecially across the Atlantic ocean, to work together for what we all want, individual freedoms and safety. – Matt, US ex-pat in Germany

At home in the United States, Bush is as polarizing a figure as he is abroad. There is no middle ground, he is either loved or hated. It is as wrong to judge the American people by their president, as it was wrong to judge the German people by Hitler. Most Americans were against the war in Iraq.There were huge protests but apparently the rest of the world was not watching. Will Bush work more closely with the rest of the world? I doubt it. I don't think he cares what the rest of the world thinks but most American people do. -- Inge Perreault, USA

President Bush and wife Laura walk during the inauguration parade in front of the White House.

I feel ashamed to say that I am an American these days. I live in Massachusetts, and I voted for John Kerry. Four years before that I voted for Al Gore. I despise my president and his whole administration. I cried as I watched coverage of his inauguration on the nightly news. I can't understand why the American media is so biased in their glowing coverage of Bush and all he does, with only a brief mention of a few protestors in the US. I do hope that other countries keep in mind that half the population of the US did not support Bush, and that many many people in the US continue to protest and rally and pray for peace and understanding during these very disheartening times. I hope that the next four years move swiftly past us and onto better things. -- Jes, USA

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What the future holds

The Republican Party look forward to more years in power while Democrats hope for a break.

I am an American who supported John Kerry and the Democrats in the last election. I don't think there will be a new Republican era in America. If you look into our past, whenever we have found ourselves in trouble, we have elected Democrats to office. Talk about "family values" all you want, but Bush won because of his perceived leadership and because of the fear many Americans have over terrorist attacks. Add this fear of terrorism to pandering to the Christian right, and you have a winning equation. The Republicans could very well continue to win elections. However, if the Democrats are to win, they only have to get back to their roots and expose the Republicans for what they are. If things in America get worse within the next two years, the Democrats will have a very successful election in 2006, and probably 2008. David Smo, USA

The Republican Party will fail in the long term for the same reason that it failed in the 1920s. The overspending and overreaching will lead to an economic collapse. The budget defecit and the trade defecit cannot be sustained. I think that a lot of pain is in store for the "true believers". --Roger McCorkle, USA

I am an Brasilian living in the United States and as such I have gotten the chance to see Bush's policies at home and how they affect the world. He has proven from his first moment in office he believes the US can do things without consideration to the rest of the world. He won't make any real strides towards global unity, he will travel, shake hands-make a good show for the camera and walk away. I fear that his actions will further polarize the East and West and strain relations with allies. He seems to want things his way without considering the other nations that are affected by his actions as president of one of the most powerful nations on earth. I don't believe this term will be any better than his last, I think it may actually get worse. -- Luciana, USA

Bush is a modern despot leading a far right wing that has taken over the Republican Party. He will fail but before that he will continue to ruin the US. Eventually, the "normal" Republicans will take back their party. The world must reject and fight him every step of the way. -- Erni Stetz, USA

"Get your facts right!" and "What do you know?"

The president is not a popular man in some quarters of Europe.

What can Germany or other liberal countries help the United States with? The German army is so small and has no modern equipment, just what could it do? I wish President Bush would not visit Germany. I believe it was Gerhard Schröder and other German politicians that said bad things about him in the press. Maybe if Germany and the world would try to be a little like America it wouldn't always have a ten percent unemployment rate and a economy that is going no where. Our president can only serve eight years, while yours can serve for life. Wouldn't it be nice to give some younger leaders a chance, they couldn't do any worse then Schroder. -- Marc Johnson Sr, USA

Your reporting and editorials are out of touch with reality. You are not listening to Bush and you certainly don't understand him or the people that elected him. A little bit of help from our allies would go a long way. In the meantime, while we wait for the A380 and the next German election, as the dollar is so low, jump on an old fashion 747 and renew your contact with real Americans. It would do us both some good.-- Jack Matheny II, USA

This bent against conservative American leadership by the European media never ceases to amaze me. Perhaps the question should be "will the world work more closely with Bush on global issues?" - or will you continue to be on the wrong side of history? Your leftist media continues to ignore facts that might get in the way of Bush-bashing. Are you not aware that the US senate during Bill Clinton's presidency unaminously voted against ratification of Kyoto, or do you choose to ignore this, and other facts? -- Courtney Kuch, USA