The Foreign Service Journal, June 2017

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JUNE 2017 21 Doing so may have the desired effect of letting those personal contacts know that one is “with them” in recognizing that a given decision is foolhardy, counterpro- ductive or distasteful. But in the long run, each of us is a part of one organization, and this kind of mixed messaging under- mines our ability to operate effectively. Our subordinates end up confused whether to follow the official policy with focused effort or follow leaders’ tele- graphed preferences with a slow, mini- mized effort to check the block. External contacts don’t know whether to prepare for and respond to the officially stated policy or the personally delivered prefer- ence. As for faithful service under opposed leaders, this is probably the most difficult standard. It is clearly permissible to forward or share a critical news article, meme or satirical clip, or to use a hashtag like #resist or #NotMyPresident. And no one instance of these seemingly trivial behaviors is going to be seized upon as an act of insubordination or disloyalty. But in the aggregate, each of these things and any number of similar state- ments and actions clarify a preference. For anyone in a position to perceive that preference—from appointed leaders and managers to members of the voting public to colleagues and foreign audi- ences—it inevitably calls into question the extent to which orders will be fol- lowed, decisions will be implemented or the government is working with any unity of purpose. For us to engage publicly in either advocacy or resistance means that we have an agenda. That perception of a bureaucracy with its own agenda—as opposed to one implementing the policies of the day with indiscriminate diligence, even when the policies have done a 180-degree turn—will make any future political leaders with an alternate agenda view government servants as a problem rather than a tool. The bureaucracy should be like a screwdriver, equally useful to build a house or a cruise missile. We might hope we’re used for houses rather than mis- siles, but until a leader tries to use us to stab someone rather than turn a screw, it’s our job to be equally useful for all tasks. n