"Committed to a Palestinian State"

Stop the presses!! Didn't Chimpy just give a brilliant speech (written for him of course - kudos to the writer!) about appeasement on the floor of the Knesset? (yes don't faint, readers - his speech was brilliant and yes I mean President Bush)

And its less than 48 hours? and he turns around and APPEASES the very entities attempting to annihilate Israel? He is living on opposite planet isn't he?

US President George W. Bush on Saturday pledged to Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas that he was determined to help achieve the "dream" of establishing an independent Palestinian state.

"I commit to you once again that my government will help achieve a dream, a dream that you have, and the truth of matter is, a dream that the Israelis have, which is two states (Israel and Palestine) living side by side in peace," Bush told Abbas.

Earlier Bush told reporters he was confident about a Middle East peace deal being reached before his term ends in January.

Bush was speaking in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh where he held talks with Abbas on the sidelines of the Middle East World Economic Forum.

The US president said he was committed to working with Abbas and Israel "to get a state defined."

"And I do so for a couple of reasons. One, it breaks my heart to see the vast potential of the Palestinian people really wasted," he said.

The second reason "is because it's the only way for lasting peace," Bush added.

A Palestinian "homeland" will be "an opportunity to end the suffering that takes place in the Palestinian" territories, Bush said.

After the talks, Bush and Abbas left for dinner hand in hand.

Bush also voiced concern about the situation in Lebanon, where fighting last week between pro- and anti-government forces killed 65 people and pushed the country to the brink of new civil war.

He reiterated his support for Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora who has been locked in a protracted political crisis with the Hezbollah-led opposition backed by Syria and Iran.

"The president (Abbas) is deeply concerned about Lebanon (and) the fate of the Siniora government, as am I," Bush said.

"We are concerned about radical elements undermining the democracy," he added.

"It is clear that Hezbollah, which has been funded by Iran, can no longer justify its position as a defender against Israel when it turns on its own people.

"This is a defining moment, it's a moment that requires us to stand strongly with the Siniora government and to support the Siniora government," Bush added.

Feuding Lebanese political leaders opened Arab-brokered talks in Qatar earlier Saturday aimed at ending the crisis, which has prevented the election of a president since November.