From AP via Yahoo! News: "Abbas Endorses Olmert, Raising Eyebrows."
Suggested caption: "I'm in my happy place... I'm in my happy place..."
Anyway, isn't there an unwritten rule of etiquette among heads of governments not to openly root for a candidate in another country's ongoing political season?
It's definitely in Abbas' interest (a.k.a. Abu Mazen) both to prefer Olmert over, say, Netanyahu, as well as to distance himself from Hamas by publicizing his willingness to cooperate with an "infidel" government, but he might have taken a page from Brer Rabbit's "Briar Patch" tale instead, or perhaps have erred on the side of saying nothing at all, for I'm sure his comments just helped a fair number of Israeli "swing voters" get, well, unswung.