Why is Islamic supremacist Ground Zero mosque imam traveling to Muslim countries on taxpayer money?

From Jihad Watch:

The New York Post asks pointed and necessary questions about this story. "An odd envoy," from the New York Post, August 10:

It's not sufficiently divisive, apparently, that a controversial imam wants to erect a mosque near Ground Zero; now the Obama folks have him conducting "outreach" to Arab countries on behalf of the United States -- and on the taxpayers' dime, no less. Can anything be more ill-considered?
As Claudia Rosett first reported at Forbes.com, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf is headed to the Arab world for a month-long "outreach" tour, courtesy of the State Department. His wife, Daisy Khan, is to make a similar trip.
Just what they'll be doing -- their scheduled stops include Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain and Qatar -- remains a bit of a mystery.
A State Department aide yesterday told The Post that Rauf's mission is "to foster a greater understanding about the region around the world among Muslim majority communities."
Whatever that means.
To be sure, Rauf and Khan have their backers. The State Department hails him as "a distinguished Muslim cleric." But are they truly America's best envoys to a region rife with Islamic extremism -- given, say, Rauf's refusal to label Hamas a terror group or his onetime claim that US policies contributed to 9/11?

The trip could also help Rauf drum up some dubious cash for the mosque. After all, he told an Arabic newspaper that he plans to raise funds from Saudi Arabia and other Mideast nations....