Coming Up Empty

But the new talk of compensation isn't quite a win for the Palestinians. Quite the contrary. As Myers writes in the Times: "By endorsing compensation for refugees, Mr. Bush sided, at least indirectly, with an Israeli view that the return of Palestinians to Israel was unacceptable since it would change the identity of Israel as a Jewish state."

Two words in particular that Bush used cried out for greater definition: "contiguous" and "occupation."

In calling for a "contiguous" Palestinian state, did he mean that Gaza and the West Bank would be connected? And when calling for "an end to the occupation that began in 1967," did he mean a return to pre-1967 borders, which would mean an Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem?

Not likely. But reporters who tried to get some clarity from national security adviser Steve Hadley yesterday were out of luck.

Q: "[W]hen President Bush, in his statement just now, says, for example, 'They must ensure that the state of Palestine is viable, contiguous, sovereign and independent' -- what exactly does the President mean when he uses the word 'contiguous'?"

Hadley: "[I]t's not going to be a Swiss cheese state. . . . [T]here is the issue of both what does the territory of the West Bank look like, is it going to be Swiss cheese; and secondly, what are going to be the linkages between West Bank and Gaza if they are going to be part of a Palestinian state? And that is an issue that the parties understand is before them. They have started to discuss it, and it is one of the issues that they are going to have to negotiate."

Q: "[W]hen he talks about ending the occupation, does he mean ending the occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem?"

Hadley: "What he says is, as we've said before, ending the occupation that began in 1967. The borders of the new state, the question of Jerusalem is all going to have to be negotiated between the parties."

He'll Be Back

Anne Gearan writes for the Associated Press: "President Bush said Friday that he would return to the Mideast in May to continue pressing the Israelis and Palestinians into reaching a peace agreement and celebrate Israel's 60th anniversary."

Not Funny

Ayman Moyheldin reports for Al Jazeera: "He came with a message of hope, but to many Palestinians, it may be for his side comments and his jokes that George Bush will be remembered for. . . .

"Palestinian officials say the fact that you had a U.S. president on Palestinian Authority territory, talking about a Palestinian state, well they say that in itself is an achievement. But you could just feel the moment melt when George Bush was asked about the hardships that Israeli checkpoints cause Palestinians and he responded by joking about how he didn't have to stop at any."

Here's what Bush said at his joint press conference in Ramallah yesterday: "You'll be happy to hear that my motorcade of a mere 45 cars was able to make it through without being stopped, but I'm not so exactly sure that's what happens to the average person."