The Foreign Service Journal, March 2017

18 MARCH 2017 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL State’s Dissent Channel Lights Up A Dissent Channel message respond- ing to President Donald Trump’s Jan. 27 Executive Order, “Protecting the Nation fromForeign Terrorist Entry into the United States,” was submitted on Jan. 30, reportedly signed by more than 900 State Department officials, primarily Foreign Service officers. The dissent message is titled, “Alterna- tives to Closing Doors in Order to Secure Our Borders.” While in draft form, the message was shared among employees at numerous U.S. embassies, and people con- tinued to add their names along the way. Though Dissent Channel messages can only be signed by current employees, many retired diplomats sought ways to support the dissent message, as well. The State Department’s Dissent Chan- nel, created in 1971 to give FSOs a way to air disagreement with Vietnampolicy at that time, is meant for internal use, a way to foster review and reconsideration of policy within the government. Dissent is an honored tradition and part of the culture of the U.S. Foreign Service, something that is even included in annual employee reviews. This is because it is the job of diplomats to report on what is happening on the ground, to understand local situations and to use their professional experi- ence to offer reasoned, honest advice to inform policymaking. Given the number of people signing on to the draft dissent message in such a short time, it is not surprising that it became public (or was intentionally leaked). In connection with the firestormof public reaction to the executive order (protests at airports across the country) and its chaotic rollout and implementation (implement- ing agencies left without clear instruc- tions), the draft dissent and the support it TALKING POINTS was gathering from State employees drew media attention. Before the message had been officially submitted through the Dissent Channel, the White House was already reacting to it, sending a chill through Foggy Bottom. On Jan. 30, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said that those who were dissenting “should either get with the programor they can go.” Further clarifying, Spicer said: “The president has a very clear vision… he’s going to put the safety of this coun- try first. If somebody has a problemwith that agenda, that does call into question whether they should continue in that post or not.” Alarmed by the White House response to the dissent message, some members of Congress issued a strongly worded defense of the State Department employees in a letter to the president on Jan. 31. Signed by 22 members of Congress, the letter was issued from the office of House Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.). “For decades, the Dissent Channel has offered diplomats the ability in critical circumstances to express concerns and warnings contrary to administration poli- cies,” the legislators state, and continue with a call to respect the rights of employ- ees to dissent: “So it’s deeply troubling that your administration isn’t interested in hearing different perspectives, especially those transmitted through the State Depart- ment’s revered Dissent Channel. The State Department’s Foreign Affairs Manual pro- hibits reprisal or disciplinary action against anyone who uses the Dissent Channel. We are requesting your assurances that State Department personnel will not be subject to harassment or retribution if they take advantage of the Dissent Channel or offer policy advice that doesn’t align withWhite House policy decisions.” The members of Congress request a response “as soon as possible” that confirms that the administration will respect the law (P.L.96-465) governing the State Department and the treatment of its personnel. —Shawn Dorman, Editor National Security Leaders Push Back on Trump Immigration Order T he Trump administration’s Jan. 27 executive order on immigration elicited an unprecedented response from the top echelons of U.S. national security Nuclear rhetoric is now loose and destabilizing. We are more than ever impressed that words matter, words count. —Career Ambassador (ret.) Thomas Pickering—former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, as well as to Russia, India, Israel, El Salvador, Nigeria and Jordan—speaking at a Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists press conference on Jan. 26 in Washington, D.C. The press conference was held to announce that the “Doomsday Clock” was being moved 30 seconds closer to “midnight.” The clock is updated annually by the scientists and security experts of the Bulletin , and has only been moved closer once before, in 1953 following hydrogen bomb testing by both the United States and the Soviet Union. The clock now stands at 2 1 /2minutes to midnight. Contemporary Quote