Bush tops Clinton in presidential affair

(Toronto Star) - Unprecedented! Epic! Extraordinary! Unique! Historic!

Those were just some of the adjectives tossed around by mooks in suits – thoroughly important in their own right, no doubt – who shared the emcee gig yesterday for a mano-a-mano gabfest summit featuring the last two presidents of the United States of America.

On stage together, for the first time, right here in Toronto: George Bush and Bill Clinton. Nos. 43 and 42, starring in A Conversation With Presidents.

A little bit of Laurel & Hardy, as it turns out; a dash of Simon & Garfunkel as political minstrels. Better still, The Righteous Brothers – two statesmen let off the leash.

As moderator, Frank McKenna observed, by way of warning that the guests might wander off-topic:

"They're hard dogs to keep on the porch."

Here's the shocking thing: As an contest between two men who once stood astride the most powerful nation on Earth, it was Bush – beleaguered, besieged, be-damned Bush – who scored higher on sheer entertainment performance.