No, it's not unusual, but it's frustrating.
Why does the US have the best military and the worst diplomats?
If we'd tried, we couldn't've picked a more treasonous and incompetent pair - respectively - than Powell and Rice.
Until someone with real skill takes over at State, we're not going anywhere.
Saudi delendum est.
I guess we could bring back that successful North Korean Peace negotiator> Madeline Not2Bright?.....LOL...