US press praise Blair

BRITISH Prime Minister Tony Blair's rapturous reception in Congress yesterday was reflected in glowing praise in many of the US newspapers today.

"Everyone should have a friend like Tony Blair, a steadfast ally who will stand in your corner no matter what," Michael Kramer wrote in the New York Daily News.

Sounding like "an Anglican bishop," Mr Blair had "passionately thundered" through "what could be called a State of the Atlantic Union address".

He said the prime minister had made such a strong case for US leadership around the world that "afterwards one wondered why he hadn't begun his speech by saying, 'My fellow Americans'."

Referring to Mr Blair's Congressional Gold Medal, Kramer wrote, "He should have got two: One for standing with America during the war and one for standing with Bush now that the reasons for the war are under attack."

The Washington Times said Mr Blair was in the best tradition of British leaders who had "an instinct to mount the barricades when liberty is threatened".

"Congress has given Mr Blair a gold medal for his courageous support in the war," it said in an editorial. Yesterday, "he gave us the benefit of his wisdom and his passion."

To the New York Post, Mr Blair spoke "with power and eloquence ... of the core values that bind Great Britain and the US".

In an editorial, the paper said his address "clearly reflected a nuanced appreciation of America's role in the world an understanding, frankly, missing among many Americans."

The British prime minister has "an acute sense of history ... Congress clearly knows a friend of America when it sees one."

And many appreciated his humour too. Richard W Stevenson wrote in the New York Times that Mr Blair had "brought down the house" with his "comic's timing".