A new book from Dana Perino, a White House press secretary under George W. Bush, says Secretary of State Colin Powell offered one caveat for dealing with despots,
the Washington Free Beacon reports.
"Beware of dictators," Powell urged, "who speak very good English," Perino, a Fox News host, recounted in her new book,
"And the Good News Is… Lessons and Advice From the Bright Side."
She shared the story of visiting Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai with Bush and noted he could be very charming.
Karzai took note of bruises on Perino's face after she got walloped by a microphone stand in the aftermath of a well-publicized shoe-throwing incident while traveling with Bush in Iraq, the Free Beacon noted.
Karzai asked if he could get her anything, but Perino tossed out her own charm: "Don’t worry, Mr. President — you should see the other guy," she wrote.
"Karzai threw back his head and laughed, and President Bush rolled his eyes and patted me on the shoulder."
Powell's admonition comes full circle as the U.S. continues negotiations on a nuclear deal with Iran in which some have noted the excellent English skills of Iran's foreign minister, Javad Zarif.
Writing for Bloomberg News, Eli Lake dubbed Zarif the "charmer in chief" and noted his significant diplomatic skills as well.
"Zarif's ability to negotiate concessions despite Iran's shaky past would be impressive enough for any foreign minister,"
Lake wrote. "But consider that he was able to do so even as his bosses in Tehran waged a successful proxy war against Western allies throughout the Middle East."
Perino, who serves as co-host of Fox's "The Five," continues a book tour in support of her Washington memoir,
described by the Denver Post as pitching "optimism and conservatism," and a side dose of good manners.
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