Until now the 2008 election has meant one thing, and one thing only, to most Europeans: the departure of George W. Bush. But ahead of Feb. 5, when 24 states hold primaries or caucuses, Bush’s would-be successors are suddenly grabbing the attention of Europeans. In their diversity and eccentricities, the principal candidates still in the running are portrayed in the European media as wonderful characters straight out of Main Street, U.S.A. “There is no better piece of political theater than what’s going on in America at the moment,” says Jeremy O’Grady, editor in chief of The Week in London.
The European press has the cast list down pat. Bill Clinton was Europe’s favorite president since John F. Kennedy, and the European press is casting Hillary as an ultracompetent professional. It’s almost as kind to Obama, who is described as a charismatic son of the great American melting pot, and to John Edwards, slick Southern defender of the little people against the big corporations. The Republicans are getting very different treatment. Mitt Romney is painted as a pretty face and, ahem, a Mormon; Mike Huckabee as a creationist evangelical who taps into secular Europe’s fears about mixing religion and politics; Fred Thompson as an actor-senator only dimly reminiscent of Ronald Reagan. Rudy Giuliani’s narrowly focused campaign as wanna-be warrior in chief against terror grates on some European sensibilities—“le Justicier” (the Enforcer), Libération calls him. Of the Republican candidates, only John McCain, the former Vietnam War POW and four-term senator from Arizona, attracts wide respect in Europe—which is striking, given his hawkish views on Iraq.
If Europeans could have their way, judging from a rough and unscientific review of commentary and political thinking across the continent, the Democratic and Republican nominees would be Clinton and McCain. For European social democrats, Hillary is family. They enjoyed a cozy familiarity with Bill when he was president and the center-left enjoyed a pre-eminence across Europe. Having been FOBs—Friends of Bill—they would be comfortable as FOHs. Though they are warming to Obama as well, they note his lack of experience; at 46 he is, Le Figaro said, “an impressive outsider” but perhaps “a jump into the unknown.” As for McCain, though his age (71) is a slight concern, he’s long been seen as an FOE—a friend of Europe. He’s said things like “Americans should welcome the rise of a strong, confident European Union.” Much more than Bush, he shares Europe’s worry about climate change.
For the most part, Europeans—like many Americans, for that matter—are reaching their judgments on the basis of character and personality, not foreign policy. International affairs do not feature large at this point in the American political extravaganza. Even Iraq is slipping down the list of issues of concern. Europe certainly does not register in a big way. Yet all of Europe wants to know more. Czech politicians are keen to hear what the candidates have to say about Washington’s proposed missile-defense radar system in the Czech Republic and Poland. Macedonians, due to a longstanding dispute with Greece over the very name of their country, suspect what they see as Obama’s closeness to the Greek-American lobby. Until these sticking points are resolved, Europeans will have to be content with the certainty trumpeted by Le Parisien: “One thing is for sure—George Bush will leave the White House.” And whoever takes the place of this most reviled of recent American presidents is just fine with them, unless America takes on the world again.
