The Foreign Service Journal, January 2006

“In-Your-Face” Appointments One look at the shocking appoint- ments announced in the November issue of State magazine sent me back to new AFSA President J. Anthony Holmes’ inaugural piece in the September Journal , in which he took issue with the recent appointment of three European Bureau deputy assis- tant secretaries. We Foreign Service professionals are long accustomed to being passed over in favor of cam- paign contributors and buddies from way back, but that is no reason to for- ever acquiesce in a practice unique among the diplomatic services of deve- loped, democratic countries. The lat- est “in your face” political appoint- ments present an opportunity for strenuous and persistent protest, using whatever weapons are at our disposal; including, first and foremost, but not limited to, sympathetic mem- bers of Congress. The current administration pro- poses to send abroad as senior repre- sentatives of the United States a regional chairman of the Bush- Cheney 2004 re-election campaign, a two-term co-chair of the Republican National Committee, two very wealthy and successful businessmen and — the ideal combination of diplo- matic qualifications — a chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party who also owns 20 restaurants all over that state. For senior-level policy direction from Washington we are given as assistant secretary of State for educa- tional and cultural affairs, and princi- pal deputy to Under Secretary Karen Hughes (whose recent travels indicate an urgent need for expert assistance), an “assistant to the president for pres- idential personnel.” Whatever that title may mean, neither it nor her ear- lier partisan activities suggest any expertise in education, culture or senior management. It is true that the practice of rewarding contributors and cronies with ambassadorships, or even using the lure of such positions as bargain- ing chips in advance, is traditional in administrations of both stripes. But isn’t it time to challenge that tradi- tion? The usual arguments for doing so are sufficient and (almost) too obvious to mention, leaving aside the offense to senior Foreign Service officers denied postings for which their careers have prepared them. What are foreign governments to think: that the political appointee’s arrival means that Washington does not really consider the host country worth a professional; that the profes- sional’s arrival means that he or she won’t have the White House’s ear; that the Foreign Service isn’t capa- ble of producing qualified persons for senior positions? It is axiomatic that some political appointees turn out to be very capable chiefs of mis- sion; so why not DCMs? AFSA, our professional organiza- tion and our union, is best placed to lead the fight that I believe must be fought to the end. I hope this letter, intended not as a comprehensive treatment of the issue but as a brief introduction, will encourage an exchange of views leading to a con- certed campaign for professionalism and expertise in the conduct of American diplomacy. Alan D. Berlind Senior FSO, retired Bordeaux, France Iraq Is More Important In AFSA State VP Steve Kashkett’s “VP Voice” (November), there is a reference to a “great many” Foreign Service employees protesting prefer- ential treatment given for service in Iraq and Afghanistan, while a “hand- ful” of those who have served there say they deserve every possible com- pensation. What exactly is the differ- ence between “great many” and “handful”? I ask because I never heard people in Iraq say they were going through hell being posted there, nor did I hear the view that we deserve every possible compensation for being there. Iraq and Afghanistan are referred to in the column as “politically sym- bolic,” “high profile” and “politically sensitive at the moment.” Is it not possible that another, more appropri- ate adjective to describe these places would be “important?” At the most operational level, we measure impor- tance by how much time and atten- L ETTERS 6 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 6