A sickening exchange

Anne Bayevsky of Eye on the UN has obtained the transcript of a conference call between a senior State Department official and various human rights and UN organizations regarding U.S. participation in the Durban II conference and in the work of the UN's Human Rights Council. The transcript comes at the end of this article from Pajamas Media (preceding portions describe the politics and issues involved). These NGOs want the United States to engage - to be a 'player' once more at the UN. If that means pandering to gross human rights violators, well, that's not a problem.

Essentially, the Obama administration is trying to maneuver around a rather large obstacle: to curry favor in the UN, the United States must abandon many of its principles. Among other things, it must agree to turn the concept of human rights on its head. That doesn't appear to bother the administration or these NGOs, but difficulties arise when the U.S. public catches on to the game, as it did with the Durban II negotiations.

The administration backed off Durban II but reaffirmed its desire to participate in the work of the Human Rights Council. Expect outrageous U.S. positions as the United States tries to curry favor with Iran, Cuba and Libya, leading lights in the Council.