Pelosi's Syria Trip

POSTED BY: Causal
UPDATED: Wednesday, June 4, 2025 17:33
VIEWED: 4246
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CAUSAL

Friday, March 30, 2007 11:20 PM

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/03/30/pelosi.trip/index.html

Now, most of you guys know that I'm no fan of the Bush administration. But I can't possibly think that this is a good thing. Regardless of who the president is, it seems best to me for a government to present a united front on foreign policy. Now, heavens knows that I don't mean that you have to walk lockstep with the Bush administration (so many bad policies, so little space to bitch about them). But it seems like Pelosi is crafting her own personal foriegn policy. To justify that, she's citing the findings of the Iraq Study Group, and while I think it's a good idea to take that seriously, she can't single-handedly implement its recommendations. Everyone knows that countries have internal political divides, but now we're exporting them to the foreign policy arena, and that just seems like a spectacularly bad idea to me.

What do some of the rest of you think?

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- Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets
- Captain, FFF.net Grammar Police

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YINYANG

Friday, March 30, 2007 11:26 PM

Isn't foreign relations the job of the Secretary of State? Regardless of what I think of Condoleeza Rice (although she has an awesome name, and is marginally less frightening for me than Pelosi), if anyone is going to talk to Syria, it should be her.

CAUSAL

Saturday, March 31, 2007 12:04 AM

Right, that was what I was thinking--isn't a legislator job to, well, legislate?

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- Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets
- Captain, FFF.net Grammar Police

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SIGNYM

Saturday, March 31, 2007 12:20 AM

But Reagan....

What if this is a "fact finding" trip? How do you know that they're going to negotiatee foreign policy?

---------------------------------
Always look upstream.

CAUSAL

Saturday, March 31, 2007 12:33 AM

Well, I hope you're not calling me Reagan. Let me say this: I don't think we should all get our jackboots on and march lockstep with the president.

There, now that I've said that, I do think that if your State Department says, "Please do not go, we want to limit our diplomatic contact with Syria" that it is a little irresponsible to defy the state department and do so. Especially by citing the ISG. Citing the ISG makes it look like a diplomatic overture in keeping with the recommendations of group, and not a "fact finding" mission.

________________________________________________________________________
- Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets
- Captain, FFF.net Grammar Police

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FREMDFIRMA

Saturday, March 31, 2007 2:43 AM

Not sure about this one either way, although checking up on THIS establishments deal-making isn't a bad idea at all, Pelosi is about the last person I would send to do it.

Not to mention her (and Obama, and Edwards, and most especially Lieberman) downright public kowtowing to a foreign govs lobbying arm is a damned national embarrassment - and given WHICH foreign gov, guaranteed to get her a pretty damned chilly reception in Syria.

Not sure that's a lot worse than Condi and Bolton got, we need to stop hiring snarky loudmouth zealots for diplomatic positions, really we do.

What we need is a shyster, a snake oil salesman, someone who's so slick they could sell ice to innut tribesmen on a high interest installment plan and leave them happy about it - not loudmouth aggressive morons who offend everyone they speak to and reduce our chances of negotiation every time they open their mouth.

Clinton may have been a lot of things, but damn he was pretty slick, when it came right down to it, and he'd have been a lot of use in that position if he hadn't sleazed his way into the white house.

What we need to do is get these incompetent MORONS *out* of there before they make an even worse mess, and replace them with folks who have enough cultural and psychological knowledge of the people they are dealing with to communicate effectively, and stick it to em for our benefit while leaving them happy about it.

I know that might sound crass, but let's be brutally honest, that's the purpose of foreign relations, to advance our interests without needing to engage military force to get the job done.

We need to pull these incompetents and bench them, replacing them with more competent people, it's just that simple.

-Frem

It cannot be said enough, those who do not learn from history, are doomed to endlessly repeat it

JONGSSTRAW

Saturday, March 31, 2007 12:51 PM

The Constitution grants the President the authority to conduct foreign relations. Too bad few have heeded Jefferson's prophetic advice to future Presidents to avoid foreign entanglements. Pelosi is just doing her thing....8 trips to Syria by Maddie Albright never did nuthin' neither, 'cept give the vile Syrians a cornucopia of great jokes, and maybe for some...some great rape fantasies ( yikes!...but ya know those whacky Baathists.)

Maybe if she's lucky, Polly Pelosi would be there at one of their "special" times...say..oh...a stoning of a recently-raped daughter...or how 'bout your glorious after-prayer hanging of a girl who read a "bad" book, or listened to the wrong radio, and then there's always the hopeful expectation that you could catch the sacred beheading of the guy caught with the Playboy (Summer 1984 copy.)...AND if SanFrancy Nancy is truly lucky and the rising moon is in the third crescent, she'll behold the ancient & holy act of the Muslim village elders gang raping one of the local virgins to punish her for letting her veil slip a tad. Give 'em hell Nancy!

GEEZER

Saturday, March 31, 2007 3:07 PM

Hmmm. If Sen. Pelosi were to be kidnapped by some radical Islamists, do you think that Pres. Bush would regretfully stick with the 'no negotiations with hostage-takers' rule?

"Keep the Shiny side up"

MALBADINLATIN

Saturday, March 31, 2007 4:21 PM

I spent about 3 weeks in Syria back in 2001. One of thier customs (between men only) is to talk politics and religion at length .

3 Weeks certainly don't make me no expert, but I did realize this one fact, the Syrians don't need Iraq to hate us, they already disliked us because of Isreal and Lebabnon.

The point I make from this is that Nancy Pelosi on her very best day as a diplomat couldn't dream of having any effect at all. She knows that. It's all a bunch of "Nancy to the rescue BS" for us voters here in the US.

On the other hand, she really can't do any harm. In fact, they probably have ear plugs for everyone all ready when she gets there. They will nod a bunch, serve her tea, then laugh about how George Bush can't control his women after she's gone. Nancy will come back and say they nodded with approval to every proposal she made. Nothing will be harmed, or accomplished.

Not to frett, everything's shiny!

"The world is still turning and you're on it....count yourself lucky" My Dad, 2007.

FREMDFIRMA

Saturday, March 31, 2007 7:42 PM

What a hilariously honest appraisal

I'll say this for Syrians, they brew a damned good beer - if you ever have the chance, get your hands on bottle of Al-Sharq, it's good stuff.

-Frem

It cannot be said enough, those who do not learn from history, are doomed to endlessly repeat it

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