Bush: "Heck of a job, Mushy" ("All we can do is continue to work with the president")

[Amerigo Vespucci]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20071105/us-pakistan/?

WASHINGTON — President Bush on Monday exhorted Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf to hold elections and relinquish his army post "as soon as possible." Bush made his comments in the Oval Office of the White House after a meeting with Turkey's visiting Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It was Bush's first public comment on the political crisis in Pakistan since Musharraf imposed a state of emergency over the weekend.

"Our hope is that he will restore democracy as quickly as possible," Bush said, adding that he asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to pass that message directly to Musharraf in a phone call. Bush would not discuss what action he might take _ for example, how much U.S. aid to Pakistan would be cut _ if Musharraf ignores his request. "It's a hypothetical," he said. "I certainly hope he does take my advice."

But Bush made a point of praising Pakistan's cooperation in the war on terror, and seemed resigned that, as a result, there is little concrete action he can take to influence Musharraf's behavior.

"President Musharraf has been a strong fighter against extremists and radicals," Bush said. "All we can do is continue to work with the president ... to make abundantly clear the position of the United States."



President Bush, right, meets with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, second from right, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Monday, Nov. 5, 2007. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)