Few generations of American diplomats are given the privilege and opportunity to reshape the direction of our great republic’s foreign policy. Fewer still are asked to undertake such a task during a period of domestic political ferment and change. Today’s diplomats, both U.S. Foreign and Civil Service, find themselves in the extraordinary position to play such a historic role—with, however, an added twist. This generation is also being asked to find a way to make government work, and protect America’s fundamental national security interests, during a period of intense political strife, polarization, partisanship, and institutional decay. The professional career officers who make up our national security agencies face an additional and ironic challenge. Their work, which has been denigrated by political leaders and elected officials over time, is now viewed as part of the problem and something that needs profound reform. The challenges facing our career services are compounded by political rhetoric that presents the United States as approaching an existential crossroads and portrays political adversaries as enemies. Fear now has political currency. And the nonpartisan nature of our career bureaucracy seems quaint. In such a heated environment, it is easy to point fingers at transgressing political figures, as if their disappearance or defeat would somehow allow everything to return to normal. But the real task—our opportunity!—is far greater. We need to clearly understand the new world in which we now live. We need to recognize the forces of transformational change at work in our world, and step away from ideologies and rhetoric that limit our understanding of this new world. Henry Kissinger once wrote that great diplomats will be “judged in the end not by their cleverness but by their grasp of reality.” He urged Americans to be “pitiless” in judging our current circumstances. As we advance from such knowledge to action, it is worth reflecting on the words of Niccolo Machiavelli, the statesman and philosopher, who wrote: “It ought to be remembered that there is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things.” The Meaning of the Moment Our current circumstance is not of recent vintage. It has been building over time, driven by rapid economic and social changes that have transformed the communities and country in which we live. Our political leaders, parties, and institutions have not been able to grasp, understand, explain, or respond comprehensively to these changes. This has left the American people increasingly desperate, as they move from leader to leader, party to party, looking for someone to make sense of their world and guide the United States deeper into the 21st century. The American people are not fools. They have been quietly conversing among themselves about the purpose of American power in the world. This debate, which once revolved around American power and principle, now revolves around American grievance. Thirty-five years after the end of the Cold War, are the American people wrong to ask why our global security commitments have expanded and not contracted? Are they wrong to ask why our allies, including neighbors like Canada, avoid shouldering a heavier military and security role? Are they wrong to ask why the global economy we constructed has exacted such a painful cost in communities built on industry and unionized labor? Are they wrong to ask why successive governments and Congresses have allowed our migration policy to be defined by informality and illegality? Are they wrong to ask why our extra- ordinary wealth never seems to reach those who most need it? There are answers to all these questions, but our political leadership is not responding to them. Worse, the national security elites of both parties talk only among themselves. THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2025 19 Thomas A. Shannon Jr. served for 35 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, ending his career as under secretary for political affairs with the rank of Career Ambassador. Currently, he is senior international policy adviser at Arnold & Porter. Today’s diplomats have an opportunity to play a historic role in reshaping the direction of U.S. foreign policy. BY THOMAS A. SHANNON JR. ISTOCK.COM/XTOCKIMAGES
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