The Foreign Service Journal, June 2018

16 JUNE 2018 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL It’s very disappointing that a fewmembers—in both parties—have decided to politicize and undermine a good, bipartisan bill that supports our diplomats and strengthens our embassy security. American diplomats serve in the most dangerous parts of the world, working to prevent armed conflict, combat terrorism, empower women and open newmarkets for our exports. We owe them the tools to safely and effectively carry out their missions. This committee has accomplished a lot over the last several years—except a State Department authorization bill. I want to fix this. Authorizing is one of our fundamental responsibilities that should be done. But this process isn’t going to be used as a platform to pick political fights that do nothing to help the State Department and our national security. —House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.), in an April 26 statement. The 2019 budget proposal from the administration will not make it…We’re going to kill it and replace it with something that makes more sense. If you send a rescission package over here from the House that guts the State Department, we’re going to kill that too. I just want everybody who knows about this account, and cares about this account, know that Sena- tor Leahy and my colleagues on the committee—Republican, Democrat—are going to protect this account. ... To the admin- istration, we want to work with you where we can, but I reject the whole attitude that’s being displayed about developmental assistance. —Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), at a State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Subcommittee hearing to review the Fiscal Year 2019 budget request for the U.S. Agency for International Development on April 24. [The position of] Secretary of State has a couple other facets to it that you have to do at the same time, and it’s hard to keep all the balls in the air. One of them, of course, is being part of the management team with the president as far as managing, really, the United States. Thirdly, and I think very importantly, is the actual management of the bureaucracy. And I don’t use bureaucracy here in a pejorative way. The thousands of men and women who are in the Foreign Service, who are working with the State Department, make us proud every day; they are bipartisan, they do a great job. —Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), at Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing for Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo on April 12. I very much appreciate your statements with respect to addressing morale at the State Department, to addressing staffing at the State Department. I hope you will also look at pro- motions—that is another place that has been an issue at the State Department. It is my understanding that there is still a hiring freeze at the State Department. That is the only department within the federal government that still has a hiring freeze in place. I hope you will commit to repealing that hiring freeze and move forward as quickly as possible. And fill vacancies that exist within the State Department. … As Senator [Chris] Murphy said, what we are seeing in China is that they are placing up their diplomatic activities so it makes no sense for us to be undermining ours. —Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), at SFRC confirmation hearing for Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo on April 12. I’m of the belief that, you know, our foreign policy tool kit is badly mis-resourced today. I’m a big believer in peace through strength, but I’m not sure it makes sense to spend 20 times as much money on the military as on diplomacy. Especially when countries like Russia are standing up all sorts of non-kinetic capacities in order to win friends and influence adversaries. One of the frustrations we had with Secretary Tillerson, he was fond of telling this committee that if we gave him one more dollar, he would have no idea how to spend it. ... It seemed to belie the reality of the world that there are lots of threats you can’t meet with all the great military equipment we make in Connecticut. You have to stand up capacities that the State Department and USAID have alone. —Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), at SFRC confirmation hearing for Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo on April 12. Heard on the Hill JOSH