Bloodthirsty Liberal

Another in a series of check-ups on the status of Smart Power (ower-ower-ower), the amazing ability to turn foe into friend, enemy into amigo, by saying pretty please and thanks ever so much.

It may be true that you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar—but you can catch most of all with s**t:

Russia pushed back Tuesday at U.S. efforts to threaten tough new sanctions if Iran fails to prove its nuclear program is peaceful, a setback to the Obama administration’s desire to present a united front with Moscow.

After meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow believed that such threats would not persuade Iran to comply and that negotiations should continue to be pursued.

“At the current stage, all forces should be thrown at supporting the negotiating process,” he told reporters at a joint news conference with Clinton. “Threats, sanctions and threats of pressure in the current situation, we are convinced, would be counterproductive.”

Clinton, on her first visit to Moscow as secretary of state, had been looking to gauge Russia’s willingness to join the United States in applying additional pressure on Iran to come clean about its nuclear intentions.

Back in the day, we killed commies on sight. Now we just give looks that could kill.

Hardly the same thing.

So not only has Iran spat at Obama’s extended hand of friendship—and in the face of the international community—but Russia won’t even offer us their handkerchief to wipe away the spittle.

This is how Secretary Clinton defined Smart Power in her confirmation hearings (and we won’t let her forget it):

We must use what has been called “smart power”: the full range of tools at our disposal — diplomatic, economic, military, political, legal, and cultural — picking the right tool, or combination of tools, for each situation.

With smart power, diplomacy will be the vanguard of foreign policy. This is not a radical idea. The ancient Roman poet Terence, who was born a slave and rose to become one of the great voices of his time, declared that “in every endeavor, the seemly course for wise men is to try persuasion first.” The same truth binds wise women as well.

Oh, please. Yes, you are very wise Madame Secretary, very wise indeed.

But a wise guy (in the organized crime sense of the word) would recognize that the tool called for in this instance is a tire iron or a crow bar. The feather duster you brought isn’t up to the job.