DURING THE LAST SEVEN MONTHS the Iraqi Embassy in Washington, D.C., could have blended in more easily on the streets of Baghdad than in the nation’s capital. Beneath its front door stacks of old newspapers piled on top of each other in deteriorating layers that ended in a pile of gray mush. The sign outside advertising “Iraq Interests Section” had begun to rust over. Weeds ran rampant over its grounds and the building was without power. The phrase, “The name of this chamber is Peace” once inscribed upon the second floor fireplace had faded beyond recognition. As U.S. forces began the liberation of Iraq, the embassy was abandoned and all but one of its employees deported.