So with all this talk about democracy, Bush was asked whether he will abandon the corrupt royals of the Middle East: "When you say you want this strategy, forward strategy of freedom, are you saying you're going to be abandoning the monarchies and, you know, those guys? THE PRESIDENT: No, of course not. I know them well. First of all, many of the countries in the Middle East are modernizing. And that's what I look for. I fully understand it takes time for free societies, truly free societies to evolve. I don't expect instant success. After all, in my own country it took a while for our current system to evolve. Take Saudi Arabia, for example -- first of all, I respect Crown Prince Abdallah, and like Crown Prince Abdallah. He's a man of great faith, and great integrity, who gave a speech the other day about the need to modernize and to reform Saudi society. I take him for his word. To me that was a positive development. "