The UN Conference on racism is a thinly disguised conclave that will bash Israel and the US. That the Obama administration insisted on taking a part in planning this insult to both countries revealed either a naivete breathtaking in its scope or just plain idiocy.

Now, after being a partner to the likes of Libya, Syria, and Russia in mapping out the conference's goals and objectives, the Obama administration has decided that this racist gathering may not be the  benign gathering they were hoping for:

White House aides told Jewish leaders on a conference call today that the United States will boycott the United Nations' World Conference on Racism over hostility to Israel in draft documents prepared for the April conference.

The aides, including an advisor to U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, Jennifer Simon, and longtime Obama advisor Samantha Power, said the administration will not participate in further negotiations on the current text or participate in a conference based on the text, sources on the call said.

They left open the option of re-engaging on a "much shorter, much different text," a source said.

The draft outcome document, typically negotiated in advance and available here (.pdf), contains sharp and specific criticism of Israel for its treatment of the Palestinians, and Western European nations and Canada have also signaled that they may boycott the conference in Geneva.

Too late, Mr. President. Your imprimatur is all over that draft. What possessed these stumblebums to make a huge deal out of attending planning sessions and then dropping out when everyone on the planet knew what that draft was going to say two years ago is a mystery? Did they think no one would notice.

Keystone cops diplomacy.