In Washington: Gutsy New House Speaker

Floundering with its own Middle East policy, the Bush administration targets criticism on Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the House of Representatives and third highest ranking public official in the US, for her visit to Syria. Critics suggest that she interfered with presidential authority by meeting with Syrian President Bashar Assad. In Syria, Pelosi reiterated US support for negotiations with Israel and pressed for stability and cooperation in Iraq – hardly straying from US policy, admitted some Republican lawmakers who accompanied her. Former foreign-policy officials of both parties have long urged diplomacy with Syria and Iran, neighbors to Iraq, but the Bush administration rejects such recommendations. Engagement brings more results than isolation of nations, argues policy analyst M.J. Rosenberg for “The Jerusalem Post,” adding that “peacemakers are rarely praised in their own time while the cheerleaders for unnecessary wars are never held accountable for them.” Petty squabbling and turf battles waste power and rank. Any genuine pursuit of peace, while maintaining one’s principles, can only expand power and influence. – YaleGlobal