Condoleeza Rice's Bad Date

The Bush Administration’s campus queen has run afoul of Muslim prudery in her search for peace in the Middle East.

The Secretary of State’s encounter with the Iranian foreign minister was cut short when he stalked out of a diplomatic dinner in Egypt the other night. When reporters asked about pursuing him, Ms. Rice seemed embarrassed.

"Uh, well, you could ask him why he didn't make an effort," she said, then laughed. "Look, I'm not given to chasing anyone."

Sounds like the usual awkward first date, with the Iranian leaving in a huff because the female violinist at the dinner was a wearing revealing red dress.

Ms. Rice’s face time with the Syrian Prime Minister went better. “I didn’t lecture him,” she said, “and he didn’t lecture me.”

Nothing to get excited about, but the fact that the White House is permitting some diplomatic intercourse with Iraq’s unrespectable neighbors is encouraging.

Ms. Rice is suited for the role. As Newsweek revealed, she has always had a thing for bad men and knows just how to handle them