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Bush Pledges Support Irish Peace In National Interest

Washington, D.C., St .Patrick's Day, March 17 2001------ Concern  about President Bush's attitude towards  the  Irish issue was  finally put to rest at the White House on March 16 2001. The President gave his  assurance that the US would continue to be involved in promoting peace in Ireland :" It is in our national interest  that there be  peace, a real lasting peace, in Northern Ireland", President Bush told a gathering of Irish, British and Irish-American leaders .  Fr. Sean Mc Manus, President of the Capitol Hill-based Irish National Caucus, who was one of the invited guests at the White House , said he was delighted by the President's statement: "All of us were delighted by  what the President said. It did the job perfectly . When a Republican President says that peace in Ireland is  in " our national interest " he can not put it any stronger. In the American Republican tradition , nothing is higher than the "national interest", he explained.  Father Mc Manus - - while emphasizing that the Caucus  is neither Democrat nor Republican --went on to explain the importance of the Irish-American vote to the Republican Party: " For the first time in over 100 years , the Republican Party has the perfect opportunity to capture the high-ground on the Irish issue and lock in the Irish vote", he said. " The fact  is that since 1995  the Republican-controlled Congress has  had  an excellent record on Ireland. It was after all the Republicans who passed the Mac Bride Principles into US law--to their undying credit. But because  Bill Clinton  had the bully pulpit -- and because he had done unprecedented good work for Ireland -- the Republicans did not receive sufficient credit for their good work. But now all  that can  change. George W. Bush has the bully-pulpit and if  he does the right thing, Republicans can really  shore up the Irish-American vote", he concluded.