LONDON -- While the United States adjusts to the idea of having George W. Bush as its new president, his predecessor has been treading the international stage for the last time -- at least in a presidential capacity. Bill Clinton's "final" visit to Britain received immense coverage, some of it almost adulatory.
What are the departing messages from this eloquent man? The first is that America must remain fully involved in global issues as the world's one remaining superpower, as he maintains it has been on his eight-year watch.
Some commentators have sought to contrast this basic stance with the alleged insularity of Bush, who is said never to have traveled in Europe and to be ignorant of the finer subtleties of cosmopolitan affairs.