Pelosi Made a Fool Out of Herself on Her Mideast Trip: Her Lack of Understanding of Israeli/Syrian Relations Really Showed

I am of the opinion that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's recent trip to the Middle East was a unmitigated fiasco.

House Speaker Pelosi not only carried our nasty internal politics onto the world stage for all to see, but her short-lived foray into international relations proved that she needs to practice her listening skills, her sensitivity to the needs of our allies, and the way she expresses her views to foreign leaders.

Not only did she misunderstand Israel's point of view, but she didn't listen to them, then misrepresented their views (publicly) to the Syrian government. She did make a clarification later on, but it was too little, too late.

Israeli Prime Minister Olmert issued a statement and corrected our wayward goodwill ambassador.

Nice going, Speaker Pelosi. Next time, stay home and run the House--as you were elected to do. And that goes for Congressional Republicans, too, who have met with Syria's leadership on less-publicized trips recently.

Arab Leaders Have Good Reason to Be Uncomfortable With Saddam's Death Sentence

This is not an endorsement of the death penalty on my part by any means.

Arab governments are beginning to register their discomfort with Saddam Hussein's death sentence.

Egypt's President Mubarak has made it clear that he is against the Iraqi government hanging Saddam Hussein for crimes against humanity for fear of an escalation of violence in Iraq between Saddam's supporters and everyone else. Other Arab leaders are also squirming.

I notice that not one has publicly come to Saddam's defense or to protest the immorality of the death penalty the way many Western governments have.

Here's what Mubarak and other Arab leaders meant: "Oh crap. If Saddam can be tried, found guilty and sentenced to death for crimes against humanity, what happens if our own people get the same notion against us?"

Some Middle Eastern governments should be squirming for what they've done to their own people.