Analyzing the Bhutto vs. Musharraf Showdown

She has plunged her country--and Washington--into uncertainty by breaking a power-sharing agreement with President Musharraf. Can she overcome skepticism about her motives and lead the movement to topple him?

Sarah Caron / Polaris for TIME

Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto and her personal assistant sit under house arrest in Lahore.

What on earth did she see in him? For the duration of her short-lived marriage of convenience to President Pervez Musharraf, Benazir Bhutto's friends and political rivals wondered how she, a populist democrat, could live with him, a military dictator. The mystery deepened when Musharraf declared a state of emergency and began a massive crackdown on democratic institutions--and Bhutto responded with only mild criticism, refusing to rule out a power-sharing arrangement with him. Some said her motivation was pure self-interest: she was that desperate to return to power. Others bought Bhutto's explanation that a deal with Musharraf would allow Pakistan a...

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