As is well-known, George W. Bush has a reputation for being a very stupid man. But stupidity does have its limits and so when I read what Bush had said about Russia's invasion of Georgia, alerted by the invading-a-sovereign-state bit, I read carefully. This is what he is reported as having said:
Russia has invaded a sovereign neighbouring state and threatens a democratic government elected by its people. Such an action is unacceptable in the 21st century.However stupid he may be, you see, Bush isn't quite stupid enough, after the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, to say simply that invading a sovereign state is unacceptable in the 21st century. What's unnaceptable, according to him, is the composite action of invading a sovereign state and threatening a democratic government 'elected by its people'.
Nothing daunted, old shrewdyboots Seamus quotes Bush's words and goes on to ask whether he could be one of the leaders of 'the same governments that in 2003 invaded and occupied... the sovereign state of Iraq on a false pretext... (etc)' - with the 'etcetera' not including the stuff about a democratic government. Milne thereby displays a greater stupidity than he thinks he has caught George Bush out in. Just another typical day in the columns of the Guardian newspaper.