Per the WaPo’s Glenn Kessler by way of GSD, we find that the Bushies still put dumb-ass ideological cronyism above all else when it comes to staffing jobs that require a delicate and knowledgeable touch:
Ryan C. Crocker, the new U.S. ambassador to Iraq, bluntly told Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a cable dated May 31 that the embassy in Baghdad — the largest and most expensive U.S. embassy — lacks enough well-qualified staff members and that its security rules are too restrictive for Foreign Service officers to do their jobs.
“Simply put, we cannot do the nation’s most important work if we do not have the Department’s best people,” Crocker said in the memo.
[...]
“He’s panicking,” said one government official who recently returned from Baghdad, adding that Crocker is carrying a heavy workload as the United States presses the Iraqi government to meet political benchmarks.
“You could use a well-managed political section of 50 people” who know what they are doing, the official said, but Crocker does not have it because many staffers assigned to the embassy are “too young for the job,” or are not qualified and are “trying to save their careers” by taking an urgent assignment in Iraq.
“They need a cohesive, coherent effort on all fronts,” the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. “It’s just overwhelming.”
Now, where have we heard this song before?
I’m not talking about Michaels Brown and Chertoff and their destruction of FEMA, or the ridiculous sight of wet-behind-the-ears fourth-tier Religio-Racist Right law school grads putting highly regarded two-time US Attorney Tom Heffelfinger on a purge list for allegedly being unqualified for his own job.
I’m simply talking about the people Bush and his buddies have picked to be our important public faces over the years to the Iraqis.
Ah, yes — the Coalition Provisional Authority. How could I forget? The people for whom giving cushy jobs to the offspring of conservative media pundits, or promoting Republican ideology opposing abortion, was more important than, say, a knowledge of Arabic or diplomacy or experience in how to put together critical infrastructure.
Arrrrrrgh.
These people lack the basic metacompetence to know just how incompetent they are, and they also lack the basic metaethical foundation that would enable them to give a ripshit. They probably sleep soundly, very soundly, in their beds at night, untroubled by the chaos they have caused. Hey, they got their payoffs, Jack. Keep your hands offa their stack.
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- The Republican Brand in Ruins: 75% of Americans Dislike Republicans; Over 70% Think Palin’s Not Qualified to be President
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Hi PW!
zunoed?
Ah, missed it by THAT much…
Hey Phoenix Woman!
was hoping for Christy’s post on the libby appeal but this one is pretty funny (I may have a twisted martini sense of humor). Thanks.
I have put in for several overseas jobs in hopes of getting posted to locations such as London, Frankfurt or Rome. I do have over 28 years of experience, but this one I’m gonna have to take a pass on.
Maybe next time!
Good meme, PW: BushCo is too incompetent to grasp its own incompetence. That’s very appealing — and something most people will understand intuitively. We’ve all met that person; some of us have had the misfortune of working for him or her.
I ask once again (though I’m pretty sure of the answer), has anyone from the corporate owned media ever confronted Ol’ 60 Grit on her husband’s complicity with the mishegas in Iraq that she always cheerleads for?
It’s not what you know, it’s who you know…tsk tsk. Iraq is just such an awesome resume builder, you know?
This post is like joe hedaya in Joe and the Volcano.
I know he can get the job…
Wolf Blitzer has a report on Hillary at the Take Back America conference coming up on CNN.
Can you imagine the Monica Goodlings, Kyle Sampsons and helium boys running things in the embassy in Baghdad?
Boston1775 @ 9
yes, please. it is one of my recurring dreams.
No one serving in Iraq has a cushy job. This was true of the CPA days as well.
You detract from your main point by claiming so.
Too incompetent to grasp their own incompetence-it’s that magical thinking that they all have. If only they could all be gotten to a lab & studied (humanely) for the good of future generations.
Boston1775 @ 9
No, but I would really like for them to be sent over there.
Boston1775 @ 9
Yeah, what happened to the idea that Grown ups were going to run the country? You know, like all the Limbaughs were saying back in 2000.
Guess who…LINK
Is Mr O,bierne still in charge of recruitting
embassy saviorsIraqi reconstruction employeees? If not, it sounds like little has changed.Thanks, PW, for another rich post.
I don’t understand this post. Crocker is talking about the quality of the FSOs (Foreign Service Officers) that are going to Iraq. This is an internal State Dept. personnel matter, with all that entails. E.G., FSOs do not want to be involved with this major screw-up nor have anything to do with the fiasco that was created. I know quite a few FSOs who are in that boat. So the people that Crocker is complaining about are FSOs within State who are young and looking to do some duty in Iraq to either (1) get it over with now (rather than later) or (2) create a reputation/name for themselves. The other group, ‘trying to save their careers,’ are, I would guess in Crocker’s mind, incompetent FSOs that either couldn’t get a different non-Iraq assignment or are going to Iraq to try to salvage/rebuild their reputations. In my mind, this is pretty different from what you are saying. If State Dept. actually started directing people to Baghdad (instead of making it optional now), in my opinion FSOs would be up in arms and there would be some serious personnel problems. Unfortunately, what we have there in terms of State Dept personnel may be the best we’re going to get.
In all fairness, I don’t think this is just dumb-ass ideological cronyism. I think the main problem is that no one in their right mind would take a job at the US embassy in Iraq. The President’s solution to almost all problems is to just bomb the shit out of them. He’s not big on statesmanship. The world’s best political negotiators could come in and broker a peace accord the Sunnis, the Shias, and the Kurds (and let’s throw in the Israelis and the Palestinians, for good measure), and Bush would almost certainly reject it. The Iraq Study Group gave him ample cover for a graceful withdrawl from Iraq, and he simply ignored them.
So with that in mind, if you were one of America’s best diplomatic negotiators, wouldn’t you want to stay as far away from Iraq as possible?
I don’t know about anyone else, but I am so beyond yet another story of Bushco greed or arrogance. Please note I left out “incompetence” because, as hard as it is to believe this chaos is by design.
All I have room to digest now is anything that brings these a-holes one step closer to justice; you know-committee hearings, subpoenas, and articles of impeachment.
Lou@15
I’ll never forgive you for that!
Boston1775 @ 9
Yes, I can. I imagine that it would look pretty much exactly the way it looks right now.
ironranger @ 12
Magical thinking. You have something there.
Yup, Republicans are one tough bunch of hard-core realists.
dakine01 @ 6
Nah. Not even when Tweety interviewed Rajiv Chandrasekaran, and then had O’Beirne on to talk about how Valerie Wilson’s outing was all her husband’s fault.
Crocker is a veteran diplomat with tons of experience in the region. He knows his shit, and he knows the kind of staff that the Iraqi mission needs, regardless of what you think of BushCo’s Iraq policy.
STTP in Ohio @ 21
I second that emotion
These young FSOs may be competent … but do you want to bet on it?
(One of the biggest problems is that those with poor judgement, or other poor skills, are also poor at recognizing when they’re not up to doing a job. Big egos or oversize self-esteem frequently come along with the package. Competent people can usually tell when they’re in over their heads and ask for help, or can stay out of those situations.)
“These people lack the basic metacompetence to know just how incompetent they are, and they also lack the basic metaethical foundation that would enable them to give a ripshit.”
Actually, I’d argue that they know exactly what they’re doing. They’re trying to run out the clock until all their cronies can suck the place dry. Actual progress means less $$$.
When the Shakespearean tragi-comedy is written for this time, these young incompetents in Baghdad could provide the much needed humor.
Crocker sounds totally terrified when he speaks. I think he’s terrified of being Crocker, that’s what I think.
OT but in case anyone is interested, I just received an e-mail that Wes Clark is going to be on Countdown tonight. No further info available at this time…
Tom Steele @ 27
Yup. Chaos creates financial opportunity.
Has anyone seen “The Corporation” where that commodities trader said that, when the Twin Towers went down, the first reaction all the traders had was to ask “How much is gold up?”
LS @ 29
the Crockerbot2000
Lou Costello @ 15
Thanks so much.
PW “I’m simply talking about the people Bush and his buddies have picked to be our important public faces over the years to the Iraqis.”
Included in that description, could be the faces of the merciless torturers at Abu Gharaib and other locations in Iraq, chosen by the administration to dominate the Iraqi people by terrorizing them with rumors of torture; except they got caught when the rumors were proven to be reality.
Sharpton supports Bloomberg. Interesting.
Only with this administation! From Raw Story: LINK
mandrake@23: Boehner bawling-what a sight. If he isn’t the picture of that Uncle Fred that almost everyone has. You know, the one that loves his cocktails & when he gets to the crying stage, he gets cut off, driven home & put to bed.
LS @ 35
I just caught the last minute or so of Sharpton on Matthews show just now. Did Sharpton actually endorse Bloomberg or just say what an improvement he was over Rudy?
Looks like serving in the Bush Administration’s not going to be much of a resume enhancer. If someone puts it down, they will instantly be tagged as an unqualified crony until they prove otherwise. It’s just another part of the Bush legacy.
Boston1775 @ 28
Rosencrantz & Gildenstern are DeadCheney & Rumsfeld Are Alive, But Thousands of Soldiers and Hundreds of Thousands of Iraqis Are Dead.Hmmm. It doesn’t exactly roll trippingly off the tongue. Tough to fit it on a marquee, too.
I got an article from an email friend:
Only ten Arabic speakers at Baghdad embassy
Hey, that’s up from 6. Way to go.
newspaperbrat @ 37
He praised him. He said he was very accessible. He really seems to like him even though they have some differences.
ironranger @ 37
For some reason, I just enjoy that little clip so much. Can you imagine if a Dem had shown up drunk on the House floor, blubbering like that?
Are these the people selected by K. O’Bierne’s old man by passing the religious/political litmus test but not the ability test?
The Bush Administration is circling the drain. Even if they had the smarts to install smart qualified people in the Iraqi Embassy, where are they going to find them? If you are smart and articulate you don’t want to get within a million miles of this Administration, let alone Iraq. I suggest they publically ask some of the pundits that a so gung ho, starting with Bill Kristol, Richard Perle, Wolfowitz, Feith, Abrams, Adleman, and maybe some of those FOX News talking heads that think King George is the second coming and Iraq is the central front in the War on Terror. They all claim to be patriots, why not see just how deep their patriotism runs.
xargaw @ 45
Hee, hee! Excellent idea! Put ‘em on the spot. If they refuse, call ‘em traitors!!
Mandrake:
Everytime I see it, I think exactly the same thing. A blubbering drunk Dem. We’d never hear the end of it from our liberal media.
I wonder if Matthews has had any close conversations with Boehner so he can tell us what he smells like.
I doubt we’ll see much, if any, coverage of it in the corporate “news,” so here’s a repeat of the link to the sobering, infuriating, comprehensive and extremely helpful independent study about Iraq released yesterday by the Global Policy Forum:
http://www.globalpolicy.org/se…../index.htm
It seems that few Americans have absorbed a key conclusion from the report about the true effect (and purpose?) of our presence in Iraq; here’s what the myth-makers in Washington don’t want us to know:
[Footnotes removed.]
Until Washington internalizes the reality of Iraqi opinion and the daily life (and death) struggles for Iraqi civilians, their “surging solutions” to the violence in Iraq will be less than useless, and likely downright counterproductive (if ‘peace’ is our true purpose, at least).
United States Constitution, Article I, Section 8, Clause 11: Congress, INVOKE IT.
Bearpaw @ 39
Ya, that’s the tragedy. I was just imaginin’ Monica’s best friend, Amanda, M.A. Government, Regents University, answering the phone, all important-like, letting the caller know that he will have to speak English.
ironranger @ 47
Hee, hee! Pretty sure bet it ain’t Aqua Velva.
Tim @ 18
I’ve read elsewhere that State pretty much requires an Iraq posting in order to move up in the bureaucracy, nowadays, in order to staff an unpopular posting. To presume that this situation draws in those who might not have otherwise stellar rankings at State is not a stretch. To presume that this situation draws in those unready for such an assignment, in hopes of jumping the promotion line when they return, is not a stretch.
In fact, it’s what the Ambassador’s colleagues have said.
PS — PW, ygm.
it’s not the heat, it’s the cupidity
Mandrake @ 50
Lucky it wasn’t Old Spice or Timmy would’ve hit on him..
After reading that and the linked article about the CPA, I think I need to lie down. My blood pressure meds are no longer working.
The chances of Washington internalizing the reality of Iraqi opinion & the daily life struggles for Iraqi civilians are about the same as Washington internalizing the reality of American’s opinions & daily struggles.
Cheney is probably Crocker’s biggest problem. Shooter will do all he can to sabotage any kind of negotiations. He despises diplomats, and his staff is probably working overtime to create obstacles for the State Department. The only diplomatic victory Cheney is interested in is privatizing Iraq’s oil industry. Smart FSO’s don’t want any part of Iraq because diplomacy is not on Shrub’s agenda. Why should they go there if the handwriting is already on the wall at Foggy Bottom.
Badwater @ 39
It’s also the part we need to enforce ruthlessly. No more Return of Rumsfeld or Cheney2.0 or Abrams Again.
No.
No.
NO!
Lou Costello @ 15
Gah!! My eyes!
Can you imagine trying to bluff your way through a job interview after working for this administration. Wonder how many people will lie and say they have never even heard of GWB.
Boehner as described by Matthews: Old Spice with a whiff of eau de bourbon.
“panicking” ?!!
What’s the matter — is he running out of vases to put the flowers the grateful Iraqi people keep showering him with?
Mary McCurnin @ 59
Well, the entire 2008 GOP field is close to doing just that!
ironranger @ 55
True. I realized after I posted that I should have added: …(if ‘peace’ is their true purpose, at least – which seems to be very much an open question at this point).
But every Member of Congress should be expected to have read this new report about the most urgent issue of the day that is within their power – and that is absolutely their responsibility – to remedy, and asked point-blank if they have in fact read it, whenever the (rare) chance to ask such a question arises.
Pretty soon Jeb will be crossing the street when he sees George.
Mary McCurnin @ 64
Can you imagine what the holidays must be like around that bunch?
I’d rather sit in a bar, thank you.
Henry Waxman at it again!!
pow wow, Thanks for posting the report info yesterday. It really needs to be read far and wide, imo.. needs to printed and distributed as well. I sent the link everywhere I could think of.
After reading the linked WaPo artice from almost a year ago, is it any wonder why the rightie mouthpieces come back from the “Green Zone” talking how wonderful and peachy things are? Each one is probably assigned an entourage of Shrub sycophants whose sole job is to “fluffer” the microphonies, so they’ll come back and parrot the “we are turning the corner” party line.
The only thing more nauseating than this garbage is that “impeachment is (still) off the table.” At this point in another American era of the past, somebody – or a group of ‘em – would be heating up the tar, others would be gathering the feathers, and a third group would be getting the rails together.
Eureka Springs @ 67
Thank YOU, Eureka. I spotted your follow-up note in yesterday’s thread. Yes, I hope Code Pink (one of the many sponsors) or another group is planning to distribute printed versions of this report to every Congressional office. It definitely needs and deserves wide distribution. It seems to be carefully and conservatively written and sourced, and is a very valuable resource for understanding the situation on the ground in Iraq today (being blessedly free of Pentagon Propaganda).
AZ Matt @ 66
An article in last week’s LA Times about Waxman questioning some phone calls from a Federal aide engaged in an attempt to interfere with California’s clean air efforts.
http://www.latimes.com/news/na…..0438.story
Maybe Chris Matthews read Jane’s post. He framed the booing at Hilary as “when she spoke about Iraq”.
TeddySanFran @ 5
Another characteristic of incompetence it the inability or unwillingness to recognize your mistakes and attempt to correct them. Competent people accept they make mistakes; for incompetent people, it’s someone else’s fault or something that “just happened.”
Sound familiar?
I get my system upgarded and lose my identity! So just to restore it, can I just say, OT but necessary, it is now 100 days since Alan Johnston, the BBC’s man in Gaza and the only Western reporter to live there, was kidnapped. Think of him.
Or, even worse, “mistakes were made.” It’s StRonnie’s Alzeimeric formulation that still works for his acolytes.
Stealth neo-con Chris Matthews on MSNBC mentioned Hillary at the TBA and the “booing” incident. But he had no further explanation, and did not correct the “Drudge slander”. He did not mention the boos directed at him. However, he mistakenly called Bloomberg, “Mr. Murdoch”.
Frank33 @ 75
That last one is the kind of error that could cost a fellow his gig!
A must read to find out about the the plans for the North American Union, the Trans-Texas Corridor, and plans that are in the works and in store for us:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyo…..163829/615
Redshift @ 72
I’m not sure if I want to give them the benefit of the doubt by suggesting that they’re too incompetent. That they surely are, but at least a good measure of that incompetence is driven by their mission, which is in itself, deeply flawed.
TeddySanFran @ 75
Sounds like Tweety is getting rattled the last few days – getting booed, swearing on the air, etc. Maybe he will just implode and take ole 60 with him.
Petraeus probly wishes State had a Draft or stop loss. He knew Condi’s crew wouldnt step up when he signed on February “…the State Department can’t even fill the civilian slots on the planned additional provincial reconstruction teams it is sending to Iraq; it has asked the Defense Department to provide military officers instead of foreign service officers. And no one has much confidence that State, Treasury or Justice Dept support in Iraq will suddenly become effective — particularly if security continues to disintegrate.” Maybe the military will wise up once it realizes its dancing partner, State, really, really, won’t make it to the party.
Lou Costello @ 15
Tried several times via several links and even the link itself… http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2000/0…..1310.shtml … and get an error message that MSVISTA must shut down.
Is it that the site is being hammered? Is it that the site has a bug so it can’t be watched? Is it my screwy new VISTA OS? Anyway, someone ought to grab this one for political spots in the upcoming months.
TeddySanFran @ 75
Oh TeddySanFran – stop my pounding heart! Though I know Matthews has better ratings than Tucker.
Good God. Podhoretz and his bomb Iran push:
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/…..retz-bomb/
Marcy’s most recent TNH post: Sentelle, Henderson, Tatel
Tim @ 18
Foreign Service officers must serve in hardship posts
Thanks for the update Stephen.
I like the idea of audiences calling out to the media moderator to “ask a real question” as happened to Matthews. Of course, if that starts happening more often, media will panic & try to figure out how to avoid it.
hychka @ 81
Still works fine for me but here, try this cached LINK
Lou Costello @ 88
Got blown off again. It must be MSVISTA doesn’t like the page. Thanks for trying.
Bustednuckles @ 86
You’re welcome. She posted that news about half an hour ago.
Heffelfinger had his chance to state the truth about leaving as US Attorney and chose not to do so. I don’t feel sorry for Heffelfinger at all.
RawStory: Gonzales’ top deputy closes ranks in prepared statement for Thursday hearing ~ Paul McNulty
hychka, I’m using Vista with Firefox and I got to that marvelous speech.
Hey, everyone! Sorry I’m late. How goes it this afternoon?
LS @ 83
Here’s an excerpt from that ThinkProgress post:
karen allen @ 91
I feel sorry for the residents of Minnesota, because we have to put up with his replacement.
Phoenix Woman: Why do you think Heffelfinger refused to speak out and state the truth? Cowardice? Apathy? Fear? Dullness?
Phoenix Woman driving around upstairs
hychka @ 89
Try this LINK
Stephen Parrish, CPA @ 95
Yup. They want to think that they have a legitimate reason to bomb Iran into nothingness, but really it’s all about The Ledeen Doctrine:
Except that The Ledeen Doctrine doesn’t work. All it does is create more enemies. But if you’re an amoral trust-fundie and you already see anyone who might make you a tad less rich than you already are (via taxes for social programs here or overseas) as your enemy, then you don’t care about pissing them off.
ironranger @ 87
TradMed is already looking to remove the people formerly known as the audience from these events; more participation as we saw at AFSCME will only be used to support this thesis: “Audience participation cuts into the time the candidates have to present their views to the American people, our viewers. Therefore, to provide the candidates more time to present their views [and allow Wolf/Tweety/Brian more airtime] we are continuing our debate format but without an audience.“
Watch. It will happen.
Stephen Parrish, CPA @ 83
“And Libby’s team must respond by the 26th.” How sweet it is – June 26th is the birthday of the late great neglected gay American artist Hubert Julian Stowitts who deplored the industrial (corporate) military complex.
Where is Shuster? MSNBC has a funny looking guy-has Tucker been outsourced? The Hillary TBA visit was mentioned, but without details or context. Could it be, that blaming Maliki is a bright shiny object. But the Maliki government failures may be too bright and shiny for some of the corporate journalists. Who put Maliki in power, and who really gets the blame for his failures? Even Hillary should know who that is.
I want that geeky Shuster!
Margot @ 85
The countries that fall into a ‘hardship post’ varies widely. Out of US consular and embassy postings overseas, you’d be very surprised to find out what constitutes ‘hardship.’
Margot @ 41
Maybe they should put everything on the internet and ask for “free translations”. ;-)
Thanks for the post- precise and clear.
Commenters are on top of it as well.