Bush's visit is swan song of a fading leader

It is not unusual for end-of-term US presidents to make a summer trip to Europe where they hope to cement their legacy and get shown an appreciation that is not always forthcoming back home.

George W. Bush is no exception. A quick escape from the Washington heat, both political and and climatic, offers a welcome respite.

Likewise, European heads of state were more than willing to play host to an American leader to boost their own credentials and get a bit of extra publicity on prime time news.

That is not the case this time. It is difficult to imagine any European leader extending more than a stiff and polite hand of friendship to Bush. Hardly surprising. If Senator John McCain does not want to be seen with him then why should a European leader? Besides, the Bush presidency is all but over.

In the Middle East, France and Britain are making diplomatic moves without consulting Washington, a mindset that would have been unthinkable even a year or so ago.

No new president has been sworn in in Washington, but when European leaders talk about Bush it is always in the past tense.

Either McCain or Barack Obama will be the next resident on Pennsylvania Avenue. Even the protesters are now notably absent. There is only one thing worse than people talking about you, the Irish playwright Oscar Wilde once said, and that is them not talking about you.

Bush will go through the motions, calling for greater sanctions on Iran, global financial stability and greater co-operation between Europe and the US. Nobody will be listening.

A discredited presidency is drawing to a close. Change is coming and work can commence on both sides of the Atlantic and in the Middle East to clear up his legacy.