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US President George W. Bush was wrong. Dead wrong.

During a joint press conference with PLO chief Mahmoud Abbas in May of last year, Bush insisted Hamas had no chance of winning Wednesday's Palestinian Legislative Council election.

“I don't think they're going to get elected, because I think Palestinian moms want their children to grow up in peace just like American moms want their children to grow up in peace,” he told reporters at the White House.

In October, the American reiterated his conviction that the “Palestinian” masses would vote for the “party of peace.”

Based on this firm belief, the Bush Administration pressed Israel to drop any planned action to hinder or thwart the PLC election, despite the participation of recognized terror groups.

But during the 12 hours of polling Wednesday, the Palestinian Arabs revealed that Bush's view of them as a people that first and foremost seek peaceful coexistence with the Jewish state is erroneous at best.

As the votes were counted Thursday morning, PA election officials indicated Hamas had managed to capture all major constituencies in Judea, Samaria and Gaza.

A short time later the Associated Press reported that senior Fatah officials had conceded defeat to the terror group.

Leading Hamas candidate Ismail Haniyah confirmed that according to data he received, “Hamas has won more than 70 seats in Gaza and the West Bank, which gives it more than 50 percent of the vote.”

The number of mandates the group won was later estimated to be closer 80.

There are 132 seats in the PLC.

As news of Hamas' victory spread, Abbas said he would honor the outcome, and, according to Agence France-Press, asked Hamas to form the next PA government even before the election results were officially released.

PA Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia and his cabinet had already resigned earlier in the day to make room for the government's new caretakers.

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(Ryan Jones, Jerusalem Newswire, January 26th, 2006)

http://www.jnewswire.com/library/article.php?articleid=969