By Via the Marmot’s Hole comes news that the Barack Obama administration is planning to nominate the failed North Korean nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill to be the US Ambassador to Iraq:
News outlets in the United States are reporting that Christopher Hill, the lead American negotiator on North Korea, is expected to be nominated as the next U.S. ambassador to Iraq.
There has been no official confirmation of the reports Monday on CBS, ABC, the Associated Press and Reuters, which quote unnamed officials who say Hill is expected to be the nominee.
Hill is currently the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
Hill has previously served as ambassador to South Korea, Poland and Macedonia. He was also special envoy to Kosovo. Before he started his career in the foreign service, Hill served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Cameroon.
If nominated and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Hill would replace another career diplomat, Ryan Crocker, as Washington’s top diplomat in Iraq. [VOA News]
The guy that is going to be the next US Ambassador to Iraq is the same guy that:
- laundered counterfeit US currency to the North Koreans
- gave the North Koreans further tens of millions of dollars with little to nothing in return
- failed to get answers from the North Koreans on their nuclear proliferation to Syria
- tried to cover up North Korea’s secret highly enriched uranium program until the evidence proving they had the program became to overwhelming
- severely strained relations with staunch US ally Japan
- removed North Korea from the State Sponsors of Terrorism List despite North Korea never coming clean on any of their terrorism incidents
- equated the massive human rights violations of the North Koreans to supposed human rights violations in America
The war in Iraq must truly be over because we are no longer sending our best diplomats to hold this position any longer. No one rewards failure and mendacity quite like the U.S. State Department
7:58 pm on February 3rd, 2009 1
[...] Update II: Woohoo! Here’s another sweet nomination I just stumbled across! [...]
6:14 am on February 4th, 2009 2
Yea, but did he pay his income tax?
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6:40 am on February 4th, 2009 3
This makes no sense:
If you liked his work on NK policy, why remove him from it? It isn’t like issues with NK are solved or going so swimmingly replacing a successful diplomat familiar with all the main players and what has been going on the last two years with someone who will have to start from scratch makes sense.
And if you don’t believe Hill has been good on NK, why put him in Iraq?
This and the Panetta for CIA appointment makes it look like Obama has a disregard for foreign policy.
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6:54 am on February 4th, 2009 4
The only thing I can think of is that President Obama actually thinks Hill did a good job handling North Korea. This is totally devoid from reality but he is probably surrounded with people who tell him that Hill did a great job with North Korea and can do the same with Iraq.
Pete,
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11:22 am on February 4th, 2009 5
“The war in Iraq must truly be over because we are no longer sending our best diplomats to hold this position any longer. No one rewards failure and mendacity quite like the U.S. State Department.”
Frankly, a lot of this just doesn’t follow. One, the war in Iraq is over in the sense that the US occupation is going to be winding down rather quickly. Despite what Odierno wants to do, a significant number of combat brigades or going to be doing the trek to Kuwait like it or not. Whether in 16 months (Obama’s campaign pledge) or in 3 years (from the SOFA the Iraqi’s slapped on the behind of the US) it’s a done deal.
Second, I don’t understand the notion that State “rewards failure and mendacity…” First, Hill’s appointment was made by the Obama administration not Foggy Bottom. Second, the notion that Hill was a “failure” is subject to interpretation, something that I’m not going to get into here. Third, can anyone please provide me with an instance where Hill acted in the spirit of “mendacity”?
Finally, I find it rather rich that State’s being accused of rewarding “failure and mendacity” when the someone such as George W. Bush gives the Presidential Medal of Freedom to individuals such as Gen. Tommy “Let’s have looting happen in Iraq” Franks, Paul “Let’s de-Baathify everything” Bremer, and George “Slam Dunk” Tenet.
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12:06 pm on February 4th, 2009 6
But, if he thinks he did a good job with NK, why replace him as the guy leading on NK? That’s what makes no sense.
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8:35 pm on February 4th, 2009 7
@ #5
Must be a Dem. So many words. I think I get the point; 1: ya didn’t like bush. 2: You don’t agree or disagree that hill was a success.
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