In a meeting with Israeli left-wing political activists and Palestinian Authority cabinet ministers last week, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs William Burns made disparaging statements regarding US President George W. Bush's political supporters in the US, intimating that conservatives, Christians, as well as representatives of AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby in Washington, lack common sense.

And why does this guy still have a job? The whole problem with the State Department in microcosm, they're simply unable to accept the fact that the president has more power then they do. Without a very strong Secretary of State, they tend to try to generate policy on their own. And Colin Powell is, quite clearly, not a very strong Secretary of State.