That FEMA Thing? It Was a Setup. Any More Questions?

But, as with the draft schedule for Greece, the itinerary tilts wildly toward meetings, one after another -- though the Turkish Cypriots oddly are shut out. Every major and minor minister in the region is on the list.

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Yet there's not even a trip to lovely Kyrenia on Cyprus's north coast. Fortunately, we have been told that the schedule is changing constantly, and it's assumed that Sires, a rookie still feeling his way in the world of congressional travel, will be guided by veterans and restore the appropriate balance.

It should also be noted that temperatures this time of year in Greece are at best in the low 60s, and it's only marginally warmer in Cyprus.

All this may explain why only five members have signed on to join Sires, including freshman Rep. Zack Space (D-Ohio), who's of Greek heritage, a couple of other Democrats and two Republicans. We're told people are signing up and others are dropping off every day.

But with the appropriate fixes in the schedule, this one would be worth taking.

If not, stay tuned for a staff Christmas trip to Switzerland.

Won't You Help a Hero?

Loop Fan Alert! Former New York City police commissioner Bernard Kerik, once briefly nominated to be head of the Department of Homeland Security, needs money to pay his legal expenses as he tries to fend off federal conspiracy and corruption charges.

His friends have set up a Web site, http://www.keriklegaltrust.com, looking for donations to help him beat the rap. They note that any donation will be "treated as a gift to Mr. Kerik to be used at his discretion."

There are tributes to him from prominent leaders here and around the world. Former New York mayor and business partner Rudolph Giuliani calls him "an excellent Police Commissioner and Courageous Leader on 9/11" and "a hero to New York City and our country." President Bush calls him "one of the most accomplished and effective leaders of law enforcement in America," and former British prime minister Tony Blair says Kerik was "an inspiration to all of us." And Jordan's King Abdullah II says "America is lucky to have a patriot such as yourself."

Out-of-Fashion Show

Long past time to update the gallery. It's been more than a year since a colleague strolled through the Bush Diplomatic Hall of Glory at the State Department -- a series of large photographs the administration had installed to hail our leader's foreign policy triumphs. Our source noticed one with former Iraqi prime minister Ibrahim al-Jafari, whom Bush had praised as a "great Iraqi patriot" and "a strong partner for peace and freedom."

The hapless Jafari was kicked out in 2006. Yet there's no picture of Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, who has been in power since then.

There's a picture of Bush greeting his not-poodle Blair, but no photos of Bush with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, even though Brown's been in office since the summer and has been to the White House.

There's a White House hug with Georgia's president, that great democracy lover Mikhail "Misha" Saakashvili, who's just declared martial law. There's also a shot of Bush addressing a happy crowd in Tbilisi's "Freedom Square." (That's how you know they have freedom there.) At least there's no picture of Bush and Pakistan's Pervez Musharraf.