As regular TMV readers know, I have been unrelentingly critical of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and for good reason. (Click here and here for Exhibits A and B.)

But as the WaPo‘s David Ignatius notes, Condi is bucking the tide and is willing to piss off the Jerusalem government in trying to broker the creation of a viable Palestinian state, which is a requisite if the conflict between Israel and Palestine is ever going to be settled. Way to go Condi!

Ignatius sums up her mission thusly:

Israel’s worry is that Rice is giving ground in ways that will only embolden Hamas. . . . That’s the deadly standoff into which Rice is venturing as a mediator. She has started down a road that even [Henry] Kissinger couldn’t navigate. But she understands the diplomat’s obligation that, having started a peace process, she cannot now stop.

More here.