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Odd politics, but tradition: Bush at White House for portrait unveiling with Obama hosting
• WASHINGTON (AP) -- Keep your friends close, and your former presidents closer.
• President Barack Obama is welcoming his favorite foil, former President George W. Bush, back to the White House on Thursday for the official unveiling of Bush's portrait. Given the history, the scene ought to be quite a picture.
• Obama is still bad-mouthing Bush's time in office, and it's not just because of the debt and the unfinished wars Obama inherited. Obama sees Bush's economic ideas as the same as his current rival, Mitt Romney, so he lumps them together.
• Which makes it a little awkward that Obama is about to preside as Bush's image and legacy are enshrined forever.
• Never mind all that, say the Obama and Bush camps. This is a timeout for tradition.
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Irish, mulling a 2nd bailout, vote on European Union's deficit-fighting treaty; result Friday
• DUBLIN (AP) -- Irish voters were deciding Thursday whether their government can ratify the European Union's fiscal treaty, a deficit-fighting pact designed to bind Ireland and other debt-hit eurozone members to much tighter spending limits.
• The agreement, already signed by the leaders of Ireland and 24 other EU nations, is designed to promote greater confidence in the eurozone by creating new deficit limits for each ratifying nation. Automatic spending cuts would be imposed on those deemed guilty of violating them. Germany, the eurozone heavyweight facing most pressure to keep bailing out its weaker neighbors, is the treaty's key backer but almost all Irish political parties have campaigned for its passage too.
• All opinion polls in the past month's campaigning suggest that a majority will vote for the tougher budget discipline, but similar polls were proved wrong when Ireland voted to reject the EU's last two treaties in 2001 and 2008. Ireland is the only nation among the 25 requiring a national vote for ratification, although the treaty does not require Irish approval to proceed elsewhere. Results come Friday.
• A "yes" verdict would have no immediate impact on Irish austerity policies, because Ireland already is committed to a severe program of cuts, tax hikes and asset (Continued on page 36)
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