THE WEEKEND TO COME - AT 8:22 A.M. ET:  This could be a momentous weekend.  The mullahs of Iran have threatened "bloodshed" against demonstrators, but the demonstrators don't look as if they'll back down. 

Eyes are not only on Tehran.  They're on Washington, where a weak reaction thus far has dismayed even some allies of the president.  From The New York Times:

TEHRAN — Taking an unequivocal stand against days of mass protests, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, sternly warned opposition supporters on Friday to stay off the streets and raised the prospect of violence if their defiant, vast demonstrations continued.

He said bluntly that opposition leaders would be “responsible for bloodshed and chaos” if they did not stop further rallies in protest of last week’s disputed presidential election.

And...

The sermon also raised pressures on the Obama administration to abandon its carefully calibrated expressions of concern about violence and the repression of democratic processes while stressing that “meddling” was not productive.

In Washington, both the House and Senate overwhelmingly passed resolutions condemning the Iranian government’s crackdown on the opposition.

COMMENT:  Only one congressman, Ron Paul, voted against the House resolution, although a number of the heroes and heroines didn't vote.  We'll try to get their names for you, but we can probably list them already.

There is no late information available yet on the Senate vote.

And yet, what are the TV networks doing?  They're ramping up laudatory coverage of President Obama in several specials to be aired this week.  Let's not let world events stand in our way.

This could be a historic weekend, not only in Iran, but also in the Pacific, as American ships track a North Korean vessel suspected of carrying nuclear materials.  The question is being asked:  What will President Obama do?  So far, his administration has treated foreign policy as social work.  Can't we all get along?  Now, North Korea and Iran have essentially given him their answer.  No, we can't all get along.  Is there an alternative policy?  Or just an alternative speech to a friendly audience?

June 19, 2009