Via left-leaning Harry's Place, Bush chooses human rights over keeping the a US military base in Uzbekistan:

The eviction notice came four days before a senior State Department official was to arrive in Tashkent for talks with the government of President Islam Karimov. The relationship has been increasingly tense since bloody protests in the province of Andijan in May....

Uzbekistan has been widely viewed as an important test for the Bush administration -- and whether the anti-terrorism efforts or promotion of democracy takes priority. "We all knew basically that if we really wanted to keep access to the base, the way to do it was to shut up about democracy and turn a blind eye to the refugees," said the senior official, on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive diplomacy. "We could have saved the base if we had wanted."

Gene comments:

The Bush administration has been far from consistent when it comes to backing up its rhetorical support for democracy with hard-nosed action-- especially toward regimes that have served US interests. This time it seems human rights have trumped immediate strategic/military considerations.

Credit where credit is due?

Bush has certainly overlooked some problems in Pakistan, undoubtedly due to strategic considerations, but has also appears to have pushed State to stop coddling Saudi Arabia. In this case, they seem to have done the right thing, much -- I will admit -- to my pleasant surprise.