Innocents Abroad
Washington Prowler; By The Prowler; Published 2/2/2005 12:07:29 AM
UGLY AMERICAN OF THE WEEK
So
much for Sen. Joe Biden's audition as a future Secretary of State. At
least if you ask the Iranians.
Last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Biden agreed to
serve as a host and leading U.S. representative at a dinner with senior Iranian
government officials. WEF staff contacted Biden's staff and said later that
Biden or at least his aides took an active interest in coordinating the
planning for the event.
Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi was the highest-ranking Iranian official
present at the event. Which is more than can be said for his U.S. counterparts;
for the first hour and half of the dinner others had to lead the discussion,
because Joe Biden was a mysterious no-show.
Just as well, because the evening never got on the right footing. Wine was
served -- much to the outrage of the Iranian guests -- then all alcohol was
removed. Soup spoons were removed -- not for religious or any other reason,
apparently -- leaving guests to twiddle their thumbs while their soup got cold.
Then it was discovered by the Iranians that the main course featured non-hallal
meat.
And through all of this, there was no Joe Biden to calm nerves or build
bridges.
"It was pretty bad from what we heard after the fact," says a U.S.
attendee to the Davos conference. "Emotions were running extremely high.
The Iranians felt insult had been heaped on insult. They were particularly
offended that the hosts appeared to know so little about basic Islamic dietary
law."
Once the serving miscues were resolved, it was pile on the Iranians time again,
but this time dealing with the serious matter of Iran's nuclear weapons
program, which Kharrazi predictably denied was a weapons program at all.
Finally, as the tense discussion appeared ready to, well, explode, Biden showed
up with this wife Jill, who was dressed in what was described in press reports
as "figure-hugging leather pants" and a tank top. Again, the
Iranians, who no doubt ogled a bit, were insulted.
The dining disaster was the talk of Davos, though got comparatively little
coverage here in the United States. "This kind of thing could have
happened to anyone, but the fact that it happened to Biden is just too
rich," says a Republican congressional staffer who traveled with his boss
to Davos. "The Biden people were pushing this dinner as a very high
profile thing, then all of sudden they are trying to kill any story they
can."