The rest of the world may be going to the dogs, but at least U.S. relations with Belgium seem to be on the upswing. Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt met with GWB at the White House yesterday. He chid the President for our wicked, wicked treatment of prisoners at Gitmo, and the President promised to try harder. Thrilled with himself for his manly courage in speaking truth to power, the Belgian PM declared that “I think it’s a very important thing to say that to the American president, that that is certainly an important thing to do.” Certainly! Oh ja!

The relative moral standing of PM and Prez having been thus established, the two guys (I mean, Guy and George) seem to have got on like a house on fire.

As reporters were ushered in at the end of the meeting, the two men were laughing heartily and discussing the Tour de France and seven-time champ Lance Armstrong, a Texan whom Verhofstadt met at the 2004 race. Bush said he and Verhofstadt plan to go mountain biking together one day. Verhofstadt said they will be ‘in the search of who can be the successor of Lance Armstrong’.

Well thank goodness for that. The last thing we need right now is a crisis in our relations with Belgium.

All together now:

“Belgium put the kibosh on the Kaiser; Europe took the stick and made him sore…“