Little to Show From Putin

Michael A. McFaul - President Bush should be the first world leader to phone Russian President Vladimir Putin and congratulate him on his pending reelection victory today. Because Putin is one of Bush's closest colleagues among world leaders, it's appropriate that Bush be first in line to commend his Russian friend. Putin, after all, was one of the first world leaders to call Bush and send his condolences and support on Sept. 11, 2001. In fact, Sept. 11 helped forge this unlikely friendship. After that tragic day, Bush's "war on terror" became the new strategic focus in which others around the world were either with us or against us. In this black-and-white world, Bush saw Putin as a white hat.