Posted by
Bert Chapman on Thursday, April 05, 2007 9:41:21 AM
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has convinced herself she is a diplomatic virtuoso by jetting off to Syria to "dialogue" with Syria's tinhorn dictator Bashir Assad. What she hopes to gain from this besides boosting her Pacific Ocean size ego and showing the Syrians how stupid some Americans can be is beyond me.
Pelosi's pilgrimmage reminds me of how many gullible Westerners sojourned to the Soviet Union during the 1920s and 1930s to praise Joseph Stalin's sadistic regime as ably documented in Paul Hollander's 1981 book Political Pilgrims.
In 1789-1790, Congress passed the Logan Act which prohibited private American citizens from conducting U.S. foreign policy. Perhaps a clever Justice Dept. attorney can find a penumbra in that statute which could be used to prosecute Pelosi. Her idiotic actions are bringing comfort to a bloodthirstry dictatorial terrorist supporting regime which has the blood of thousands of individuals of all nationalities on its hands including American soldiers.
If Pelosi really desires a career in diplomacy she has two options. She could take the Foreign Service exam like thousands have and see if she can gain admittance to the Foreign Service Institute and work her way up the diplomatic career track. She could also hope that a future Democratic President appoints her Secretary of State and makes her diplomatic dreams come true. Pelosi would be best advised to stay in her catbird seat in the House and try managing her 434 other Representatives and their staffs.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice should bluntly tell Pelosi to butt out of her turf and leave the conduct of U.S. foreign policy to the President, Secretary of State. and individuals explicitly authorized by these two officials.