Department of Toadying

The State Department spokesman has "congratulated" the civic spirit of the Venezualans who voted to remove term limits on America's adversary, Hugo Chavez -- thereby effectively making him president for life.

And over at NRO's Corner, Anne Bayefsky reports on the disgraceful obsequiousness of the Obama administration at the UN planning commission for the Durban II conference. There, US representatives apologized for being the "cause of unhappiness in the room" -- all because the US objected to a proposal from a human-rights negotiating committee with an executive consisting of a Libyan chair, an Iranian vice-chair, and a Cuban rapporteur. Yes, how awful to make the Libyan, Iranian and Cuban diplomats -- all representing governments with such delicate concerns for human rights -- "unhappy."