President Of Promises

The surprise second-round victory of Traian Basescu in Romania's presidential election marks a clear break for a country that hopes to enter the E.U. in 2007. Fifteen years after a revolution brought Romania's communist era to a bloody close, Basescu is the first President to come to power promising to take on the country's entrenched communist-era bureaucracy. Coincidentally, his party colors were the same orange that stirred revolution next door in Ukraine. That may have boosted his chances against ex-Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, the left-wing candidate. Crowds greeted his election with cries of "Down with...