And let’s at least accept, also, that it’s a battle about the type of values that govern the world in the early 21st century. You don’t win those battles by being a fair-weather friend to your ally, you don’t win those battles by being hesitant or withdrawing support for each other when the going gets tough. You don’t win those battles by losing the will to fight if your enemy’s will to fight is very strong, and very powerful.

And actually, the values that we represent, us two countries, are shown by what we — what we’ve been through today. I mean, the President gets tough questions from the American press corps; I get, I like to say, even tougher questions — (laughter) — or at least as tough questions in the British press corps. And —

PRESIDENT BUSH: One at a time is tough. (Laughter.)

PRIME MINISTER BLAIR: And we can — here as we speak at this press conference, I mean, I can’t make out the words that they’re shouting over there, but I bet they’re not totally complimentary to either of us. (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT BUSH: Wait a minute, I don’t know about that. (Laughter.)

PRIME MINISTER BLAIR: I mean, it could be the supporters we brought in, but I’ve got a feeling the likelihood is, no. (Laughter.) And that’s what it’s about. It’s about democracy, and it’s about people being free to express their views, and it’s about politicians having to face the pressure to justify their decisions, to be punished if the people don’t like those decisions. And it’s a commonality of values that we have that is so important for the world today.

And so — you know, yes, of course, it’s like — anybody who’s sitting there inviting a politician in any part of Europe today, if you want to get the easiest round of applause, get up and attack America, you can get a round of applause if you attack the President, you get a —

PRESIDENT BUSH: Standing ovation. (Laughter.)

PRIME MINISTER BLAIR: Yes. And that’s — that’s fine if everyone wants to do that, but when all of that is cleared away, you’re left with something very, very simple, fundamental, and clear: that that battle for values is still going on.

And you can debate about the mistakes and the issues and you can debate about Iraq, whether we should have done this or we should have done that. But, actually, what is happening in Iraq today is that our enemy is fighting us, and, therefore, if what happens when our enemy fights us is that we drift away from our friends, that we kind of make the little accommodations so that we don’t escape some of the difficulty and the responsibility and occasionally a proprium of decision-making — if we do that, our enemy takes heart from that, they watch that. They watch what we’re doing the whole time. They ask, are these guys standing up for what they believe, or if we carry on, is their will going to diminish and they’re going to give up, because it’s just too difficult, because the public opinion is too difficult, because the opinion polls tell them it’s too difficult?”

Now, that is the decision of leadership. And it’s not just a decision for me and him; it’s a decision for everybody who’s engaged in politics. And people run down politics and say it’s all just a series of positions and attitudes and sound bites and occasionally even lies and all the rest of it. Actually, what politics is in the end, when it’s done in the right way, when people stand up for what they believe, is it’s about public service. And there’s nothing to be ashamed of in that. And the fact is, the decisions are difficult; of course they’re difficult.

And we took a decision that we thought was very difficult. I thought then, and I think now, it was the right decision. History will make a judgment at a particular time. But one thing I know is that what we represent coming here today, speaking in the Rose Garden to you people and getting your questions and being under your pressure, that is a finer and better way of life than either a brutal, secular dictatorship or religious extremism. It’s a better way of life and it’s the way of life, actually, people, anytime they are given the choice, choose to have. And what we should be about, our two nations, is giving as many people in the world as possible that choice and being proud of it.