Britain's Brown looks past Bush presidency

President George W. Bush was upstaged on Thursday as British Prime Minister Gordon Brown met U.S. presidential candidates before seeing him, a stark reminder that world leaders are now looking to his successor.

Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain came off the campaign trail to talk with Brown, who expressed confidence any of the three would maintain a "special relationship" between the United States and Britain.

Only then did he go to the White House and sit down with Bush, who shares the British prime minister's plight - low popularity and economic problems at home.

With Bush in the final year of his presidency, the two leaders steered clear of differences over the unpopular war in Iraq and focused instead on common ground, including efforts to keep pressure on Iran over its nuclear ambitions.

Joking and smiling, they tried to dispel perceptions of a chilly personal relationship, in contrast to the chumminess Bush displayed with Brown's predecessor, Tony Blair.

"If it wasn't a personal relationship, I wouldn't be inviting the man to a nice hamburger or something," Bush said at a joint news conference, referring to the private dinner the leaders and their wives will share on Thursday.

Tackling an issue that has hurt both leaders' public approval ratings, Brown said he and Bush agreed to do "everything in our power to ensure economic stability and growth" before a Group of Eight summit in Japan in July.

The global economy has been plagued by a credit crunch, record oil prices and market turmoil.

But Brown's talks with Bush took second billing in his second U.S. visit since taking office less than a year ago.

Determined to avoid being tagged as "Bush's poodle" like Blair, Brown seemed even more eager to lay the groundwork for a closer bond with the next president.

A rapid-fire series of 45-minute sessions at the British ambassador's residence may have yielded clues to how the winner of the November election might change policies that have at times rankled Britain and other European allies.

NO ENDORSEMENT

Brown declined to endorse one candidate over another but said, "What I was convinced of, after talking to each of them..is that the relationship between America and Britain will remain strong, remain steadfast."

Brown made clear earlier that he hopes for an improved partnership between Europe and Washington under the next administration when divisions over Iraq come to an end.

While Brown is closer on the political spectrum to the two Democrats than to McCain, Bush's fellow Republican, all three have taken stands that could win favor with the head of Britain's center-left Labour Party.

They have signaled, for example, they would all do more to fight global warming and revamp the Bush administration's internationally criticized treatment of terrorism suspects.

McCain's sharpest difference with his Democratic rivals is on Iraq. He backs Bush's strategy of maintaining a heavy U.S. troop presence. Clinton and Obama, battling for the right to face McCain in the election, want a withdrawal timetable.

For his part, Brown has stirred unease in Washington over Britain's phased troop drawdown in Iraq, where Blair had bucked British public opinion in joining the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

After their meeting, Obama, who would be the first black U.S. president, said he and Brown discussed issues in common such as Iraq and Afghanistan, the global economy and Africa.

Campaigning in Pennsylvania, Clinton, who would be America's first woman president, said she and Brown talked about the environment. She said Britain had done a lot more against climate change than the Bush administration.

Reporters overheard Brown telling McCain it seemed like the U.S. presidential campaign had been going on for a year. The Arizona senator said it had and quipped that it made one wish sometimes for the British electoral system.

Brown's unusual talks with the candidates perked up U.S. media interest in his three-day tour, which has been largely eclipsed by Pope Benedict's visit this week.

But signs of a warming trend with Bush may not help Brown's poll ratings at home, which have been dropping faster than any British leader since before World War Two. The 57-year-old Scot is mindful that Blair's closeness to Bush angered many Britons and contributed to his decision to step down early.

Brown, like Bush, has seen his economic stewardship come under heavy fire.

Bush, meanwhile, is struggling to stay relevant but is having a harder time swaying world leaders looking to whomever will succeed him in January 2009.