Oh. goody.
Madam Secretary Rice is on her way to the Middle East to lend a helping hand to the peace process:
In Israel, he said, Ms. Rice would meet with Palestinian leaders in the West Bank and would probably also meet with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his team.
"would probably also meet"? Is there a chance that she won't be bothering to consult the Israeli Prime Minister before trying to push the Israeli-Palestinian peace process? And then there's this gem:
"A successful Palestinian state will, more than anything else, dampen the appeal of Islamic extremists..." Deputy Assistant Secretary of Near Eastern Affairs David Satterfield told a conference hosted by the United States Institute of Peace.
Even the Palestinian Authority doesn't believe that global terrorism has anything to do with their whatever grievances they might have. Losing Doug Feith is a hit for those who hoped that a more pro-Israel and pro-Bush state department might emerge with Rice's arrival to Foggy Bottom. There are a lot of reasons why a Palestinian state might be a good idea (ok, maybe not "a lot", but there are probably a couple), but dampening international Islamist terrorism is certainly not one of them. Given the State Department's long history of equity and concern for Israel, I can't imagine how them pushing a newly-revitalized peace process could go poorly.
In Israel, he said, Ms. Rice would meet with Palestinian leaders in the West Bank and would probably also meet with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his team.
"would probably also meet"? Is there a chance that she won't be bothering to consult the Israeli Prime Minister before trying to push the Israeli-Palestinian peace process? And then there's this gem:
"A successful Palestinian state will, more than anything else, dampen the appeal of Islamic extremists..." Deputy Assistant Secretary of Near Eastern Affairs David Satterfield told a conference hosted by the United States Institute of Peace.
Even the Palestinian Authority doesn't believe that global terrorism has anything to do with their whatever grievances they might have. Losing Doug Feith is a hit for those who hoped that a more pro-Israel and pro-Bush state department might emerge with Rice's arrival to Foggy Bottom. There are a lot of reasons why a Palestinian state might be a good idea (ok, maybe not "a lot", but there are probably a couple), but dampening international Islamist terrorism is certainly not one of them. Given the State Department's long history of equity and concern for Israel, I can't imagine how them pushing a newly-revitalized peace process could go poorly.
