The New York Sun today begins its defense of Newt Gingrich’s attack on the State Department with a quote:More than ever before, the State Department cannot afford to have “clientitis,” a malady characterized by undue deference to the potential reactions of other countries. I have long thought the State Department needs an “America Desk.” [Warren Christopher, secretary of state under Clinton, at his January 13, 1993 confirmation hearing, quoted in New York Sun, 5/6/03]
Fat lot of good it did him. The Sun goes on to explain, “[T]here are a total of 10,017 full-time foreign service personnel. Against this President Bush–or a Democratic president like the one Mr. Christopher served–has perhaps a few dozen political appointees. Some of those appointments, alas, are used to reward campaign fund-raisers with ambassadorships in sunny climes, instead of on the Washington-based jobs with real policy clout.”
