If he is confirmed as America’s top diplomat, Rex Tillerson’s most urgent task at the State Department will be to quell what some describe as a near-mutiny among its vast staff and to counter a growing sense of demoralization.
Tillerson, whose Senate confirmation could come Wednesday, takes over a normally staid department that has been singularly roiled by President Trump’s controversial actions so far.
Trump’s critics at the State Department describe a level of chaos and confusion in the new president’s foreign policy, from his baffling overtures to Russia and seeming snubs of NATO allies, to his dissing of Mexico and executive order banning refugees and immigrants from seven mostly-Muslim countries.
“It has been head-spinning,” said the U.S. ambassador to one of the nations caught up in the Trump tumult. The envoy did not want to be identified publicly given the uncertain transition.
“There’s a new level of consternation,” said Anthony Blinken, who served as deputy secretary of State under President Obama. He commented after the bungled start of Trump’s travel ban order Friday, which saw people with valid U.S. visas and green cards suddenly detained at U.S. airports or stranded around the globe.
If you want a deeper understanding of what has been inaugurated in Washington, read Steve Coll’s “Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power.” Rarely has a book been so profoundly and presciently relevant to events that would take place five years after its publication.
It is not just a book…
If you want a deeper understanding of what has been inaugurated in Washington, read Steve Coll’s “Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power.” Rarely has a book been so profoundly and presciently relevant to events that would take place five years after its publication.
It is not just a book…
The State Department was not consulted before the order was issued, sources said, even though it is responsible for issuing visas and vetting refugees.
On Tuesday, a memo signed by at least 800 U.S. diplomats, consular officers and other Foreign Service employees dissenting to the ban on travelers or immigrants from the seven mostly-Muslim nations was submitted to the State Department.
The department’s so-called dissent channel is a rarely-used but time-honored system that allows diplomats to offer opinions on foreign policy that diverge from the White House. The memos are usually confidential, but this one — apparently the largest ever — was widely circulated.
"A policy which closes our doors to over 200 million legitimate travelers in the hopes Betsmove of preventing a small number of travelers who intend to harm Americans … will not achieve its aim of making our country safer," the memo states.
"Such a policy runs counter to core American values of nondiscrimination, fair play and extending a warm welcome to foreign visitors and immigrants."
In response, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said anyone who did not agree with the president — “career bureaucrats,” as he put it — should consider quitting.
Trump’s critics viewed that as a threat.
“This is antithetical to the culture of the State Department and the whole purpose of the dissent channel,” said Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank). Those who signed, he said, may now fear they are “blacklisted,” their careers damaged.
Angst at the State Department was exacerbated by the abrupt ouster last week of several senior officials, including the undersecretary for management, Patrick Kennedy, and four top members of his team.
Kennedy’s departure was not unexpected. He had been a staunch defender of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Trump’s presidential rival, especially over her handling of the attacks that killed four Americans in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012.
But losing Kennedy and the others left a department rudderless in several essential areas of operations and security.
“As a career diplomat, I experienced many transitions and never saw anything like this dangerous purge of public servants now underway at State,” Laura Kennedy, a former deputy secretary of State for Eurasia, said via Twitter.
Among those forced out was Victoria Nuland, an assistant secretary of State and highly regarded hawk on Russia. Trump has openly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin and has vowed to seek a cozier relationship with Moscow.
Jon Finer, who served as former Secretary of State John F. Kerry’s chief of staff, said it could take months to fill so many high-level positions, leaving a “gaping hole” in U.S. diplomacy.
Department veterans also decried what they described as a “no need to know” approach by Trump’s aides, who they said had declined briefings by outgoing diplomats and had ignored policy papers prepared for the transition team.
Nor was the State Department involved in preparation for last Friday’s visit of British Prime Minister Theresa May, the first foreign leader to meet with Trump at the White House.
Consultation with the State Department also might have spared the Trump administration its latest dust-up with Mexico.
As Mexican officials worked with the White House to prepare for President Enrique Peña Nieto’s planned visit to Washington, Trump ordered construction to start on a border wall and repeated his campaign promise to force Mexico to pay for it.
Peña Nieto, who has repeatedly said Mexico will not pay for the barrier, cancelled his trip in response.
The two leaders have since spoken on the telephone. Afterward they issued nearly identical statements, but Peña Nieto’s said the two leaders agreed not to publicly discuss the wall, a detail not included in Trump’s version.
Mexican sources said the U.S. president continued to insist that Mexico pay for building the wall, a nonstarter for Peña Nieto.
All of this hands Tillerson a messy portfolio — a demoralized workforce, a mercurial boss and a world in turmoil.
Federal Judge Neil M. Gorsuch is Trump’s Supreme Court pick. L.A.’s City Council voted to decriminalize street vending. Trump’s team has hinted that some of the temporary travel bans could be extended indefinitely. LAPD officers were not involved in the death of a woman inside a jail cell.
Federal Judge Neil M. Gorsuch is Trump’s Supreme Court pick. L.A.’s City Council voted to decriminalize street vending. Trump’s team has hinted that some of the temporary travel bans could be extended indefinitely. LAPD officers were not involved in the death of a woman inside a jail cell.
Federal Judge Neil M. Gorsuch is Trump’s Supreme Court pick. L.A.’s City Council voted to decriminalize street vending. Trump’s team has hinted that some of the temporary travel bans could be extended indefinitely. LAPD officers were not involved in the death of a woman inside a jail cell.
Federal Judge Neil M. Gorsuch is Trump’s Supreme Court pick. L.A.’s City Council voted to decriminalize street vending. Trump’s team has hinted that some of the temporary travel bans could be extended indefinitely. LAPD officers were not involved in the death of a woman inside a jail cell.
Neil M. Gorsuch, a highly regarded conservative jurist best known for upholding religious liberty rights in the legal battles over Obamacare, is President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee.
Neil M. Gorsuch, a highly regarded conservative jurist best known for upholding religious liberty rights in the legal battles over Obamacare, is President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee.
The L.A. Police Commission ruled Tuesday that officers were not involved in the case of a woman who died in an LAPD jail.
The L.A. Police Commission ruled Tuesday that officers were not involved in the case of a woman who died in an LAPD jail.
A stabbing and police shooting were reported in Hollywood on Tuesday afternoon. By Luis Sinco and Brain van der Brug / Los Angeles Times
A stabbing and police shooting were reported in Hollywood on Tuesday afternoon. By Luis Sinco and Brain van der Brug / Los Angeles Times
President Trump nominated federal Judge Neil M. Gorsuch on Tuesday to fill the Supreme Court seat of the late Antonin Scalia.
President Trump nominated federal Judge Neil M. Gorsuch on Tuesday to fill the Supreme Court seat of the late Antonin Scalia.
tracy.wilkinson@latimes.com
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