Nick Kessler on why the bush administration fucked up the negotiations with Turkey:
The irony here is that the Republican diplomats’ own arrogance obviously interfered with their job, which was to encourage Turkish legislators to support the administration’s plan. While the administration wants to show that it will not be reckless if it stages a military campaign through Turkey’s territory, its representatives didn’t bother to be reasonable. Further, the administration is specifically trying to lure Turkey’s cooperation with promises of massive economic aid, but the diplomats went out of their way to be insultingly stingy with their money. Diplomacy always requires negotiating skill, tact and attention to appearance. These diplomats faced a particularly delicate task–promoting a war that the vast majority of Turkish people oppose. It’s typical of this administration to hand the task to people who don’t care that it’s inappropriate to be selfish and rude, and who are incapable of recognizing situations where this behavior can get in the way of their duties.