Bush, Carter, Trade Barbs

A cold war of words is escalating between the White House and former occupant Jimmy Carter. On Saturday, Carter called the Bush administration "the worst in history" on the international front; yesterday Bush spokesman Tony Fratto shot back against the "reckless personal attack," sneering at Carter as "increasingly irrelevant."

While sitting and former presidents usually steer clear of criticizing each other publicly, Carter took off the gloves in interviews over the last few days with the BBC and Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Besides his superlative for Bush, Carter called outgoing British PM Tony Blair's support for the president "abominable, loyal, blind and apparently subservient." (More Jimmy Carter stories.)