THE US EMBASSY IN IRAQ IS AS BIG AS VATICAN CITY-- BUT IT DOESN'T FUNCTION ANY BETTER THAN THE REST OF THE STATE DEPARTMENT

This morning's Washington Post has a story on the front page about how Ryan Crocker, Bush's new ambassador to Iraq, says the monument to Bush Imperialism, the gargantuan American Embassy in Baghdad, which will probably be demolished in the not too distant future, doesn't function adequately. Is Mr. Crocker off his rocker? Is there anything touched by the hand of Bush that does function adequately? Start with Bush's most enduring achievement: Iraq-- and then give up.

Today I heard Condoleeza Rice, the one Bush has playing the role of Secretary of State (of the United States of America), on the radio making a pompous and self-satisfied speech about democracy and the Palestinians. Unless you had some kind of a memory that goes beyond the last 3 episodes of American Idol you probably would have never guessed that Hamas won the elections. Presumably she knows and she was purposely attempting some misdirection for the purposes of internal propaganda. The new U.S. policy for the area is to try to bolster Fatah, a policy that is sure to backfire since it will make Abbas appear to be a puppet of Israeli-American machinations. Hard to imagine a worse crew to tackle one of the world's thorniest diplomatic conundrums.

Some analysts have questioned the legality under Palestinian law of Abbas's dismissal of the Hamas-dominated government after Hamas seized the Gaza Strip from security forces loyal to Abbas. But Rice and other U.S. officials brushed aside such concerns, insisting he had every right to create a new government-- one that now appears willing and able to negotiate with Israel.

...Hamas won the 2006 elections largely on its reputation for efficiency in providing social services and a reputation for incorruptibility, in contrast to that of Abbas's Fatah party, which has long dominated Palestinian politics.

...Under U.S. pressure, the Palestinian Basic Law was amended several years ago to limit the powers of the president to dismiss the government, largely because the late Yasser Arafat was the Palestinian leader at the time.

Nathan Brown, an expert on Arab politics at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said in an analysis that both Hamas's actions in Gaza and Abbas's actions in response failed the constitutional tests. "The result is likely to be two lawless governments," he said. "Neither will be accountable to Palestinian society or institutions in any way."

Rice, asked about the legality of Abbas's actions, said: "Our view, very strongly, is that what President Abbas has done is legitimate and it is responsible and we're going to support that action." Other U.S. officials, speaking privately, said they had little concern that legal niceties were being ignored, given Hamas's power grab.

"How do I put this diplomatically? Who cares?" said Ghaith al-Omari, a former Abbas aide now at the New America Foundation. "It is the politics of survival now."