THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2025 31 2009: GEORGE W. BUSH TO BARACK OBAMA “SOS for DOS” by John K. Naland December 2008, President’s Views AFSA congratulates President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden on their electoral victory. At press time, the Secretary of State-designate had not been named. But AFSA hopes for the traditional pre-inauguration meeting with the Secretary-designate to discuss the resource and management needs of diplomacy and development assistance. AFSA also looks forward to meeting with the USAID Administrator-designate and other incoming officials. Below are the highlights of our message. U.S. diplomacy is in crisis. While the inauguration of a new president will likely produce an initial rebound in America’s standing in world opinion, that honeymoon will be short-lived unless the next administration takes concrete steps to strengthen diplomacy and development assistance. Issues requiring immediate attention include: • Staffing: Our foreign affairs agencies are hobbled by a human capital crisis. An October report by the American Academy of Diplomacy—whose membership includes all living former secretaries of State—called for expanding State Department diplomatic staffing by 43 percent and USAID staffing by 62 percent within five years. Funding to begin that expansion must be sought immediately. • Training: Foreign Service training lags because of personnel shortages. … • Benefits: If legislation to close the Foreign Service overseas pay gap does not pass this year, ending this longstanding financial disincentive must be at the top of the next Secretary’s legislative agenda. Junior and mid-level Foreign Service members simply cannot continue to lose the equivalent of one year’s salary for every five years served abroad. • Hardship: As the number of unaccompanied and other hardship posts has jumped in recent years, insufficient efforts have been made to reduce some of the burdens of such service. … • Management: The next Secretary must not focus solely on policy issues while ignoring the platform upon which diplomacy and development assistance are conducted. He or she should make time to lobby the White House, Congress, and the American public for resources. The Secretary should pick a deputy secretary and under secretary for management with real ability in this area. • Morale: The Secretary should work to restore the morale of the career Service, which has been sapped by a growing imbalance between the burdens and rewards of service. The Secretary should speak up when critics unfairly malign the Foreign Service and diplomacy. • Professionalism: The next administration should look to the Foreign Service for expert advice by scaling back the proliferation of noncareer appointees, including ambassadors. On the During the 2000s, the Journal covered several presidential elections through the eyes of foreign journalists. September 2000 FSJ. October 2004 FSJ. September 2008 FSJ.
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