LONDON– Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair might be reviled by many in the England due in part to his championing of the (very unpopular here) Iraq war.  But he’s still well-liked in the US.  And after the publishing tomorrow in the States of his memoirs “A Journey,” he will be even more loved, especially in certain circles.

Sure, he expectantly praises his colleague former President Clinton (“soul mate,” “quick witted,” “the most formidable politician I’ve ever encountered”).

Ditto the current office holder, President Obama , (“…supreme master of communicating a brilliant vision.”).

But some will be surprised at the robust defense the one-time center-left PM presents for former Republican President George (W.) Bush.

“One of the most ludicrous caricatures of George is that he was a dumb idiot who stumbled into the Presidency,” Blair writes, “…he was very smart.”

And: “He was basically considered a right-wing Republican bastard for getting rid of hostile brutal dictatorships and insisting they be replaced not with friendly brutal dictatorships but an attempt at liberal democracy.”

He concludes: “George had immense simplicity in how he saw the world.  Right or wrong it led to decisive leadership.”

That’s not all, he also offers (careful) praise for Bush’s number 2, former Vice President Dick Cheney.  “He had at least one central insight which was at least worth taking seriously, “ Blair notes, ‘He believed that the US was genuinely at war…I do not think it was as fantastic as conventional wisdom opined…’”

Blair critics actually might not be too surprised.   They branded Blair America’s “poodle.”

The ex-PM hits out at them too:

“Our alliance with the US gave Britain a huge position.  Those who thought our closeness to America was a problem in the reset of the world could not have been further from the mark.”

Blair biographer, John Rentoul, also wasn’t taken aback.  “You might’ve expected Tony Blair to pull some of his punches because George Bush is not a popular politician over here,” he told us, “ but that’s not what he thinks and that’s not what he said.”

Some analysts might expect President Bush to return the favor when HIS memoirs come out in November.