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Obama Rewards Campaign Donors With Ambassador Jobs
Tweet Share on Facebook June 30, 2010 Comment (2)President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have promised to put more career diplomats into cherished ambassadorial jobs, but the group that represents the Foreign Service says it's not happening. In a new memo they're showing to friendly lawmakers, the American Foreign Service Association says Obama is rewarding donors and campaign "bundlers" just as past presidents did. "It's the same old, same old," says a diplomat. "Now is the time to end the spoils system and the de facto 'three-year-rental' of ambassadorships," says the group's memo. [See photos of Obama abroad.]
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Liz Cheney: Obama Too Inexperienced on Foreign Policy
Tweet Share on Facebook June 29, 2010 Comment (10)Liz Cheney, fast becoming the conservative's leading voice on foreign policy, is stepping up her assault on the Obama administration, charging that the president and his team are apologizing when they should be raising an iron fist. [See photos of the Obamas abroad.]
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Federal Agencies Frown on Fancy Resorts for Conferences
Tweet Share on Facebook June 29, 2010 Comment (1)Oceanfront working vacations might be OK for President Obama and Republican fat cats, but image-conscious federal agencies are choosing cheaper conference centers over ritzy resorts. The GAO tells us that three cabinet agencies--Veterans Affairs, Health and Human Services, and Justice--have travel and conference policies that frown on using resorts, even when cheaper. And one, VA, has moved a big conference from a resort to another location "to avoid potential negative perceptions."
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Hayward and Barton Should Keep Quiet on Oil Spill
Tweet Share on Facebook June 28, 2010 Comment (1)Out of sight and out of mind is the recommendation that image makers have for two key Gulf oil disaster figures suffering from foot-in-mouth disease. But can mouthy BP CEO Tony Hayward and his apologist, Republican Rep. Joe Barton of Texas, recover from their verbal gaffes and, as Hayward famously whined, get their lives back?
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Foreign Service Whistle Blower Gets an Award
Tweet Share on Facebook June 25, 2010 Comment (3)For Gen. Stanley McChrystal, criticizing his bosses cost him his job this week. For a few members of the American Foreign Service, it got them an award. [Read 10 Things You Didn't Know About Stanley McChrystal.]
Yesterday, at an awards presentation in the State Department's Benjamin Franklin Diplomatic Reception Room, the American Foreign Service Association honored eight of its members for their work in diplomacy. Among the awards were three for "constructive dissent," given to foreign service workers who pushed back against their superiors and offered a useful alternative to the practices of the government.
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Zogby: Obama Shows Gutsy Leadership Firing McChrystal
Tweet Share on Facebook June 25, 2010 Comment (13)Pollster John Zogby updates our weekly Obama Report Card with a grade on the president's performance. Zogby uses his polling, expert analysis and interaction with major players to come up with a grade and some comments that capture how he see's the president's week ending.
John Zogby on Week 75:
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Ringo Starr's Gold Snare Drum Gets a Cultural Boost
Tweet Share on Facebook June 25, 2010 CommentThe State Department has declared a snare drum owned by Beatle Ringo Starr to be a "culturally significant object," ahead of a special exhibition at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art opening early next month. The legal distinction is bestowed on about 90 visiting museum exhibits every year to protect them from potential seizure in any court proceedings, says one State Department lawyer. There's nothing controversial about this drum; it is standard procedure for high-profile exhibits.
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Talk Shifts to Petraeus for President in 2016
Tweet Share on Facebook June 24, 2010 Comment (4)The David Petraeus for president bandwagon has been put on hold by his acceptance of President Obama's request that he replace ousted Gen. Stanley McChrystal as the Afghan war boss. Now, his fans will have to wait until 2016. [Read 10 Things You Didn't Know About David Petraeus.]
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World No Longer Blames the U.S. for Financial Crisis
Tweet Share on Facebook June 24, 2010 Comment (2)The United States seems to be off the hook for the world financial crisis, according to the annual Global Attitudes poll from the Pew Research Center. The crisis may have been sparked by the collapse of the U.S. housing market, but people in 21 countries surveyed now place most of the blame for the current crises on either their own governments or on banks. Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who helped organize the poll, says that while surprising, the findings support another trend she has noticed about countries worldwide: "They don't trust their institutions."
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Hillary Clinton to Students: Avoid Cable News
Tweet Share on Facebook June 24, 2010 Comment (8)Secretary of State Hillary Clinton extolled the virtue of finding common ground to a group of foreign exchange students visiting the State Department Wednesday. Her advice: Avoid cable news. Speaking to a group of 280 high school students, sponsored by her department and hailing from countries with large Muslim populations, Clinton said she hoped they would avoid the lure of the daily shoutfests.
