Condoleeza hangs out with the wrong crowd

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice has begun yet another Middle East visit. And once again she intends to visit with the wrong people. She will start off with a tete-a-tete with one of the Bush family's favourite dictators, King Abdullah of Arabia, then the obligatory stop in Israel, and finally on to the Palestinian territories to meet with the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas.

If Condi and George W. want peace and stability, they might try meeting with the most influential country in the region, Iran, and with the most respected parties in the region, Hezbollah and Hamas. The latter are, furthermore, two of the few entities in the Middle East that participate in the democratic process. The Bush administration's claim to want democracy in the region is not reinforced when they prefer discussions with sordid dictators like the Sauds over discussions with a democratically elected government like Hamas.