A spokeswoman for President Bush says he's "very busy" working on peace in the Middle East and won't rise to respond to a biting denunciation of America by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams.
"London's Sunday Times and other media have reported that the Archbishop of Canterbury has denounced the United States for what he alleged is our 'wielding power in a way that is worse than Britain in its imperial heyday.' And my question: What was the president's reaction to this denunciation by the head of the world's Anglican…" asked Les Kinsolving, WND's correspondent at the White House.
"The president has been busy, very busy, working to bring these two leaders [Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority and Ehud Olmert of Israel] together to talk about peace in the Middle East. And so I think that was a good use of his time. And I won't comment…" said Dana Perino, the White House spokeswoman.
The reports note that Williams told a British Muslim magazine the U.S. "has lost the moral high ground" in the war on terror and accused America of wanting to conduct a short war in Iraq and leave the responsibility of restoring the nation to others.
Williams alleged the U.S. and Britain both turned to "violence" to get rid of "frustration," and that America has become a "globel hegemonic power … trying to accumulate influence and control."
It's worse, he concluded, than 19th century British imperialism.
In a second question, Kinsolving asked:
"On CNN, Gov. [Mike] Huckabee said that U.S. consumers are financing both sides in the war on terror, because every time we put our credit card in the gas pump we're paying so that the Saudis get obscenely rich, with the money funding madrassas that train the terrorists. And my question: Does the president believe that Gov. Huckabee is wrong to say this and that we're enslaved to Saudi oil?"
"That's a clever way to try to get me to comment on what is now a matter that is a part of a presidential candidacy. The president is looking forward to working with Congress when they get back. We hope that we can get an agreement on an energy bill that will help reduce our dependence on foreign sources of energy," Perino said.
Huckabee's comments came after what he characterized as a low-key response by the U.S. to a Saudi court's decision to give a woman who was gang raped 200 lashes.
"The United States has been far too involved in sort of looking the other way, not only at the atrocities of human rights and violation of women," he said.
"Every time we put our credit card in the gas pump, we're paying so that
the Saudis get rich – filthy, obscenely rich, and that money then ends up
going to funding madrassas … that train the terrorists," he said.
He promised he would make the U.S. energy independent within 10 years.
Do you have a tough question you'd like to ask the White House? WND's MR. PRESIDENT! forum is your big chance.
Related special offers:
"From Time Immemorial: Origins of Arab-Jewish Conflict"
"Judgment Day! Islam, Israel and the Nations"
Previous stories:
Arabs at conference called 'step forward'
'Peace accord will depend on many'