George and Condi — kindred spirits

November 26, 2007

One of the more embarrassing setbacks for the Bush administration’s policy in the Middle East came after the Palestinian elections nearly two years ago. The White House was convinced, naively, that in all circumstances, democracy equals peace. If given a choice, no group of people would intentionally choose to support terrorists in a free election.

Except that didn’t work out at all. Bush later said those responsible for the violence in Gaza are “trying to stop the advance of democracy.” The president had no idea what he was talking about — Hamas was responsible for the violence, and Hamas won a majority in the Palestinian elections in January 2006.

But at least Bush administration officials knew what to expect in those elections, right? Well, apparently not.

[Condoleezza] Rice, who had heralded the election as a symbol of the new stirrings of democracy in the Middle East, was so blindsided by the [Hamas] victory [in the Palestinians’ parliamentary elections] that she was startled when she saw a crawl of words on her television screen while exercising on her elliptical trainer the morning after the election: “In wake of Hamas victory, Palestinian cabinet resigns.”

“I thought, ‘Well, that’s not right,'” Ms. Rice recalled. When the crawl continued, she got off the elliptical trainer and called the State Department.

“I said, ‘What happened in the Palestinian elections?'” Ms. Rice recalled. “And they said, ‘Oh, Hamas won.’ And I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, Hamas won?'”

As Jason Zengerle noted, “So Rice reveals herself to be both clueless and a fitness freak. Remind you of anyone else?”

I’ve always had the impression that the Secretary of State monitors key election results through official channels, particularly when it comes to the Middle East and Hamas is on the ballot.

Apparently not — Rice wasn’t getting the news from diplomats; she was watching the same TV stations as the rest of us. Even more importantly, the nation’s chief diplomat didn’t have a clue as to what might happen. Inspires confidence, doesn’t it?

November 26, 2007 at 11:29 am

Don’t forget that they actively promote the distribution of Fox “news”, Cheney even insists on it. And of course if you watch enough Fox “news” you actually get stupider than when you turned it on.

http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/714.html

Rice is a courtier, selected for loyalty and because the Idiot King wanted someone to talk sports with. She was the worst NSA in history, essentially getting rolled by Rumsfeld–who was as good at bureaucratic shivving as he was awful at formulating war policy. As SoS, she’s been better than in her previous job–and arguably more effective than the much more talented and esteemed Powell, just by virtue of her closer relationship with the Idiot King.

But she still lacks a clue, and will fade into a well-earned obscurity when the endless Bush adminstration finally ends.

Even more importantly, the nation’s chief diplomat didn’t have a clue as to what might happen.

Yeah, well, I knew that already. I kinda figured that out when the Bush adminstration was pushing the idea of having elections in Palestine in the first place. I knew then that these fools didn’t have a clue as to what the situation was like over there. Then, when Hamas INEVITABLY beat the corrupt, widely-reviled old-guard Fatah party, the cluelessness of this administration was totally confirmed – they didn’t even have a contingency plan for a Hamas victory. They’d never even considered that things might not work as planned.

That’s going to be the epitaph of this administration, BTW: “They never even considered that things might not work as planned.” Either that or “A bunch of thieves and murderous bastards” – who knows, maybe they’ll get both.

I used to think Condoleezza Rice was pretty smart – and maybe she would be if she hadn’t tied herself to some of the most incurious, incompetent and anti-intellectual people around; maybe there is something to the notion of “brain drain” after all.

But she did, and the world and the country have suffered for it. She has turned the position of Secretary of State into a glorified travel and shopping program – those in other countries who have been used to partnership and guidance and mentoring from a pre-eminent democratic country have instead had to flounder along with little help, bad – or no – advice, and only seem able to get her attention by invading other countries or declaring states of emergency – and even then, her shock and surprise are clues that she has no idea what to do next.

And it’s not like there is anyone else who does. Cheney, who seems to consistently and regularly prevail over Condi when occasionally she has an idea that doesn’t involve weapons, is the kiss of death. Bush hasn’t got a clue – he’s too busy looking into people’s souls and still hasn’t figured out that his soul and the ones he’s “reading” do not speak the same language. They won’t listen to anything from Democrats, and anything that even vaguely resembles a Clinton policy is immediately trashed.

It’s a mystery to me how things are not worse than they are. Oh, right – we still have another whole year to go – there’s still time.

Something tells me that the “Rice for President” push is pretty much DOA. Forever.

I suppose that’s what happens when you let the Dept of Defense run all the foreign policy measures. No wonder someone like RIce is so clueless.

It isn’t necessarily fatal for a chief executive to be not-too-bright IF they are personally secure enough to surround themselves with the best and the brightest people they can find, and then allow those people to do what they do best.

Contrast that with a dim chief executive who carries around feelings of insecurity, and who only hires people for their subservience and loyalty. It’s a recipe for disaster.

Condi Rice was hired by the latter kind of chief executive. She may be very smart, but her loyalty and subservience undermine whatever smarts she may have.

CB wrote:

Inspires confidence, doesn’t it?

Ha.

As Jason Zengerle noted, “So Rice reveals herself to be both clueless and a fitness freak. Remind you of anyone else?”

Well, I don’t really think she’s a fitness freak just because she works out sometimes. A lot of people work out, so W’s going jogging and going mountain biking once in a while don’t make him more into fitness than a whole lot of people, either. Working out a little is nothing more than something that should be encouraged.

If given a choice, no group of people would intentionally choose to support terrorists in a free election.

And yet we have Republican voters.

BTW, Hamas is a “terrorist” organization because Bush and more importantly The Lobby say so. We called the very same people who staffed the Mujahadeen “freedom fighters” before we decided that they were terrorists. And when you look at the reality of what the Israelis did during the various ethnic cleansing operations in Palestine, you can begin to understand the root of the issue.

People who have been terrorized will vote for terrorists.

A good Secretary of State can provide an otherwise geopolitically naive President with sound advice and a plan. On the other hand, someone like Ms. Rice can provide empty sycophancy and applause.

Condi has capped an undistinguished career with an undistinguished, empty-headed term as SOS. She has earned the obscurity that she will enjoy for the rest of her life post-Bush.

“Well, I don’t really think she’s a fitness freak just because she works out sometimes. A lot of people work out, so W’s going jogging and going mountain biking once in a while don’t make him more into fitness than a whole lot of people, either. Working out a little is nothing more than something that should be encouraged.”

Swan, while I agree with you about working out should be encouraged (note to self – start looking at new treadmills THIS week!), George Bush evidentally takes his “fitness” and “workout” to a whole different level. He exercises for a couple of hours a day and is obsessed with showing up his SS agents and others with his “fitness”.

Of course, if this DOES keep him from office….?

Whaddya mean she “lacks a clue”? Isn’t she widely regarded as an expert on a nation which no longer exists?

That aside, I really worry for this country when its leaders apparently get their info from soundbites and crawls on the TeeVee. No wonder we’re all headed for the historical dumpster.

I wonder what the Praetorian Guard (Secret Service contingent) would do if you sent the Palace (White House) a book?

so when on occasion a bit of reality seeps into the bubble, the fairy princess and frog prince leap from their ergonomic fitness stimulators and exclaim, “oh no, that’s not right, this will not do!”

one just has to wonder how many times a day does this happen at the white house?

Pingback: Think Progress » Bush bristles at diplomacy.

How could Condi have been surprised at the Hamas elections? Doesn’t the State Department have anyone on the ground in the Middle East that could hear the rumblings of discontent coming from the Palestinian public? What a heartbreak for the poor girl to not have her fantasies of a pro-American Middle East come true because she and George wished it.

Gee, do you think she might be surprised that her “Hail Mary” Mid-East peace conference not a damn thing other than buying lunch for a bunch of diplomats at our expense?

As Condoleezza Rice prepares to host the Middle East summit in Annapolis this week, her State Department has issued an updated historical timeline of American efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The timeline is a fascinating document both for what it reveals and what it leaves out. The rise of Hamas and its election victories are mentioned nowhere. That might just be because President Bush’s hands-off policy of malign neglect is in part responsible for it.

For the details, see:
“On Eve of Summit, State Dept Rewrites Middle East History.”

12. On November 26th, 2007 at 12:40 pm, Ed Stephan said:
Whaddya mean she “lacks a clue”? Isn’t she widely regarded as an expert on a nation which no longer exists?

This would explain why BushCo is letting Putin turn back the clock. They are trying to restore relevance to Condi’s knowledge. Its the least Dubya can do for his sweetheart.

The exercising reminds me of a story about Bush – how as a kid he had to win and would make competitors keep playing – 2 out of 3 became 4 out of 7 became 9 out of 11 – until he won. And then I realized this is his foreign policy – keep invading until he wins.

Of the Three Bs — Brain, Beauty and Brawn — Condi has none, despite her elliptical trainer (elliptical trainer??? Is that something that teaches her how to deliver circuitous answers to the Congress instead of straightforward ones?).

At that time, I was still getting all my news from NYT (not having yet discovered TCBR and TP) and, even so, I knew that Hamas’ win was very likely, since they provided charitable relief at the local level as well as hope for a better future (as well as terrorists), which Fatah did not do, having grown fat on corruption. It doesn’t need a rocket scientist to know that bread is even more important than circuses…

From a C-SPAN interview with the Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler. Kessler discussing U.S. – Soviet relations and his latest book,

http://www.btcnews.com/btcnews/1752

[A]t his very first meeting with Putin, Putin told [Bush] a story about a cross that he had blessed in Israel that used to belong to his grandmother. People that are aware of this conversation at the State Department feel that the President got played by Putin. There is no cross. There was just some KGB story that he made up. But it had a real impact on President Bush. That’s when he walked out and said, ‘I looked into his soul and decided this is the guy I can work with.’ And for the longest time in the first term, if you talked to then National Security Adviser Rice, she always painted the relationship with Russia in very rosy terms. …”

nuff said

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