MOUNT VERNON, Va. (AP) _ President Bush says he's had a ``frank
discussion'' with the president of Pakistan -- telling him that he
needs to hold parliamentary elections and give up his post as head
of his country's army.
Bush says he told Pervez Musharraf that ``you can't be the president and the head of the military at the same time.''
Bush relayed details of that phone call as he and visiting
French President Nicolas Sarkozy met with reporters in Mount Vernon, Virginia, at the home of George Washington.
Over the weekend, Musharraf declared emergency rule. And the
White House has faced questions since then about why Bush was
taking a relatively soft line against the crackdown, and why he
hadn't directly spoken to the Pakistani leader.
Bush has previously described Musharraf as a friend he trusts.
He says the message he delivered today was that ``we believe
strongly in elections,'' and that Musharraf ``ought to have
elections soon.'' He says he told the Pakistani, ``You need to take
off your uniform.''
