The former Soviet state Georgia has a street named after George W. Bush. It’s an honor Bush shares with Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt, both of whom have avenues named after them in Paris. The two American presidents were recognized for rescuing France from authoritarianism and totalitarianism.
Bush petitioned NATO hard to admit Georgia, as well as the Ukraine and Macedonia in April 2008. An ambivalent Europe rejected the bids, fearing the Russian reaction to NATO nations on its border.
Their fears were prescient. The Russia-Georgia border ignited last Friday, just as the Olympics were starting. The death toll has not been independently verified, but human rights groups estimate more than 100,000 have been displaced. There is war by sea, air and land.
Georgia faces military suicide against Russia. Leaders hoped their American patron saint would send military back-up. Instead, President Bush had other ideas: he rode the Olympic mountain bike trail in Beijing and rhapsodized the beauty of religious freedom to Chinese leaders.