EMBARRASSMENT – AT 5:16 P.M. ET:  THERE IS BLOODSHED IN THE STREETS OF TEHRAN TODAY, AND THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION IS REACTING IN ITS USUAL CEREBRAL, NON-CONFRONTATIONAL MANNER.  HOW INSPIRING.  FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES:

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Iranian police opened fire into crowds of protesters in Tehran on Sunday, killing at least 10 people and setting off a day of chaotic street battles that seemed poised to deepen the country’s civil unrest, as demonstrators in cities across Iran flooded the streets and fiercely fought back against security forces, witnesses and opposition Web sites said.

The protests, on the holiday commemorating the death of Hussein, Shiite Islam’s holiest martyr, were the bloodiest and among the largest since the uprisings that followed Iran’s disputed presidential election last June, witnesses said. Hundreds of wounded people were reported wounded, and the Tehran police said they had made 300 arrests.

The Iranian authorities’ decision to fire into crowds on the sacred Ashura holiday stunned many Iranians, and some said the violence appeared to be galvanizing more traditional religious people who have not been part of the protests so far. The Shah’s forces never fired on protesters during Ashura, wary of violating the day’s sanctity.

And our reaction?  Was it delivered by the president?  No.  By the vice president?  No.  By the secretary of state?  No.  By the White House press secretary?  No.

Our reaction to the Iranian drama was delivered by the spokesman for the National Security Council:

The White House condemned what it called the “unjust suppression” of civilians by the Iranian government on Sunday. “Hope and history are on the side of those who peacefully seek their universal rights, and so is the United States,” said the National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer.

TAKE THAT, MULLAHS!

I have no doubt that they're shaking in their boots in the mullah regime, now that they've been accused of "unjust suppression" (as opposed to "just" suppression) by the spokesman for a subdivision of the White House.  That's sort of like having a heart attack and being examined by the receptionist. 

The president should have spoken himself.  This is a critical moment in Iran.  Iran is at the center of our foreign policy.  The president is resting in Hawaii.  His new motto apparently is, "Vacations I can believe in."

December 27,  2009