By Ted Belman
Thomas Lifson, writing in American thinker explains Why Trump is courting Romney for the State Department. Essentially he argues that Trump has a different State Department in mind.
Trump is putting together a very strong National Security Service dedicated to fighting not only Islamists but also Islamist ideology. General Flynn has been appointed National Security Advisor and Kathleen “KT” McFarland has been appointed to serve as deputy national security adviser.
No one doubts their commitment to the task. In 2012, McFarland said to, “Either bomb Iran, or let Iran get the bomb.” She is on record of favouring profiling and ending political correctness.
To round off the foreign policy team, Trump appointed the Republican Rep. Mike Pompeo of Kansas to head the Central Intelligence Agency, putting a hawkish lawmaker who favors brutally interrogating detainees and expanding the American prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in charge of America’s premier spy agency.
Lifson argues that with this team, Trump will run Foreign policy from the White House. Similarly he will run Israel affairs from the White House. It would be foolhardy to place Romney in the mix so one must conclude that is not his intention.
Instead, Romney’s role as Secretary of State will be to overhaul the State Department.
“The Department of State is badly broken and desperately needs to be fixed. State requires fundamental restructuring as well as the departure of many entrenched figures whose goals and beliefs are antagonistic to realistic confrontation with Islamic jihad and the generations-long efforts of Muslim states to “wipe Israel off the map.” The State Department is full of people called “Arabists,” who instinctively blame Israel when it is attacked and defends itself and who presume that the U.S. should attend to the prejudices of hundreds of millions of Arab Muslims because they are so populous, and because they have oil and have funded an amazing number of sinecures for retired bureaucrats with generous compensation and few demands (other than reflexive support whenever an issue arises).”
“Mitt Romney as secretary of state would focus not on policy, but on doing to the State Department what he has done to poorly performing companies: close down entire segments of the organization and reorganize what the survivors do around re-thought goals and procedures. This is a formidable art, and one that Romney is an acknowledged master of, thanks to his many years at Bain Capital, buying companies and turning them around. He has deep experience in refocusing on what matters most and the most effective ways to accomplish the redefined priorities.”
As a bonus, this would solidify Trump’s relationship with the Republican establishment.
1) Receive orders from the president and carry them out.trump Just as I did in the US Army in 1952-1955. So when President Trump orders you to reorganize the Department of State, including breaking up and getting rid of the antisemitic Near East desk, you do that. Just the way you slimmed down and sometimes shut down companies you bought over the years.
2) Never ever put received emails on one of your home-based computers, or forwarded official emails from your home computers.
3) Don’t ever again contradict the boss publicly. If necessary, join a self-help course in personal self-control.
4) What about any of the above do you not understand, Mr Romney?
Arnold Harris, Outspeaker
Interesting guesswork article and comments.
Note that all the media talk/analysis of Trump possibly choosing Romney as Sec. of State focuses on Romney having bad mouthed Trump during the election campaign and how such a choice could offend Trump supporters including a number of Republican supporters, both in and out of office.
Other talk of Trump considering Romney for Sec. of State, as it did with Trump’s pick of Nikki Haley to be US ambassador to the UN, revolves around Trump’s character, suggesting that he is is one to let bygones be bygones and he truly is being moved to find the best and the brightest for his administration.
Trump is not giving any indication as to what he sees in Romney, Corker, Petraeus and Giuliani that has guided him to zero in on those 4 as suitable prospects or which one of them he finds most suitable including one he can best relate to, work with and count on to carry out his policies.
We will know Trump’s choice soon enough and what it was about his choice that made them the best choice for him
Little, if any attention has been paid to what qualifications to be Sec. of State.
But would Romney (or Palin) be the right person to implement a reset with Russia given his (or her) past sabre-rattling?
see:
“Right about Russia “Sara Palin- Mitt Romney” !
”
https://youtu.be/gyK3WAT_gVY
And Romney is an interventionist who supported the Iraq and Afghanistan War. As do I — with the proviso that we have to stay in, which can only be done if the media and Leftists are once again constrained from hurting the war effort — on the information or the morale fronts. Anyone see this article this week:
https://www.jihadwatch.org/2016/11/911-mastermind-credits-george-w-bush-with-preventing-more-jihad-attacks-in-us
Nation-building is totally doable – we did it in Japan, Germany and Italy, but ONLY if we stay in, don’t give the defeated nations total sovereignty — the American military governor should be able to veto anything like McCarthur (this is the ideal arrangement but permanent), and make them pay the bill. The thought of doing that again and having some arabist/islamist quisling ride in on a popular movement to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory again is truly scary. And the funders must be prosecuted. Something must be done about George Soros for starters.
This would be an excellent first baby step in the right direction:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/11/29/trump-takes-heat-for-wanting-to-outlaw-flag-burning-but-clinton-wanted-same-in-2005.html
Romney is another genius businessman who fixes massive problems like Bloomberg and Trump. He saved more than one big company from bankruptcy and made them thrive again.
Romney saved General Motors and Staples to name two. He also did the same thing as Governor (of Massachusetts which means he knows how to work with the heathen, savage, enemy: liberals, arabs, whatever) . As did Sarah Palin as Governor of Alaska.
“A Company Saved From Bankruptcy By Romney Was Just Named The Best Employer In America”
http://www.businessinsider.com/romney-bain-co-best-employer-america-2011-12
http://aboutmittromney.com/business.htm
“During the primary campaign, Romney joined his fellow GOP candidates in slamming the Obama administration’s public criticism of Israeli settlement policy. But he also criticized Newt Gingrich’s assertion that the Palestinians were an “invented” people, suggesting that such talk was a “mistake” and “incendiary.”” – “Mitt Romney speaking in Jerusalem, with the Tower of David in the Old City in the background, July 29, 2012. (Yoav Ari Dudkevitch/FLASH90/JTA)”
http://www.crescentcityjewishnews.com/romney-visit-reveals-falling-visibility-of-palestinian-issue/
So Trump is better (Yes, The Pals are an invented people and the “two state solution” is just another shot at the “final solution”, piecemeal (“salami tactics” is the proper name for the “phased plan”) but he wasn’t bad on Jewish settlement as Pres. candidate in 2012.
He would be ok at Secretary of State. Giuliani, Bolton, Romney. I think they’re all good.
Betrayus is a genius military tactician who wins wars but we’re not at war and he’s an anti-semite and a security risk. So, bye bye.
“Safeguarding Military Information 1941 US Signal Corps, Walter Huston World War II”
https://youtu.be/u5VZaAdXyxI
@ yamit82:
As a Wisconsin resident for the past 40 years, with active experience in Wisconsin Republic Party and National Rifle Association activities, I know that Reince Priebus is a significant and high quality functionary. Which is one of the reasons that we beat all the liberals in this state and in this election. As Jill Stein will have confirmed for her in the Wisconsin recount on which she wasted vast sums of money this week, from what I understand.
Trump won the election without much help from the GOP regulars. But he’s not dumb enough to imagine he can get legislation passed without strong working connections with the Republican majorities in both the US Senate and the US House of Representatives.
Along with many millions of American nationalists, I have supported Trump right from the first day of his campaign for him, precisely because — and not at all in spite of — him proving himself ruthless enough to fight his way through all the obstacles the news media, the chattering know-it-all class, and even the whole Republican Party tried to use in hope of blocking him from his magnificent and historic victory.
Like most people who in general share my opinions, I don’t really give a damn what torturous routes he follows in order to accomplish his main goals. He needed us to get elected. Now he needs the US Congress to give him the legislation he will need.
He won’t necessarily be able to drain all the swamps he has fought his way through. But he will in fact do a meaninfful job on some of the swamps that count.
As for Elaine Chou, I have no idea what her professional qualifications are for a US presidential cabinet level appointment. But Trump has the power to choose whomever he wants. Which is okay for me.
Arnold Harris, outspeaker
@ yamit82:
Yamit82: Elaine Chao was #2 at DoTransportation 1989-91. She has a lot of good, relevant experience
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elaine_Chao
It actually helps to drain the swamp if you have people who know it IS a swamp.
I AM disappointed in Mnuchin as SecTreas. More for what he did AFTER Goldman Sachs, and for marrying two shiksas.
But Romney as SecState is terrible.
@ Birdalone:
RNC made a deal with Trump for support during campaign that Trump would co-opt Apparatchik Republicans Like Reince Priebus
, Romney and Mitch McConnell’s wife etc. Trump made a deal with the devil and they got control of Trump’s campaign. We will not get the agenda we voted for……What does Elaine Chou know about transportation? Being the wife of Senate majority leader is not nepotism??? I can see millions being skimmed off budget to consultants tied to McConnell etc. Swamp will not be drained Trump has brought them into his admin. Now Goldman Sachs looks like they are taking over all financial positions……. Well at least Goldman guys understands money …….
@ yamit82:
I’m with yamit82, adding that, no one who barely survived a Bain Capital/Bain Consulting Big Idea restructure can actually believe Romney has the slightest clue about how to effectively restructure anything without a team of Harvard MBAs handing him Powerpoint bullet points..
Besides, nothing about Mitt Romney projects strength. Plus, a religion proselytizer for SecState is not a good idea.
Romney is the worst candidate for SecState by ANY criteria.
ok, Giuliani just as bad.
Melania Trump is a superior candidate for SecState than these two.
Yes to all the above, for one reason or another.
But like every other venture in which President-Elect Trump has been involved through his adult life, he exclusively uses his own reasoning to make decisions.
If the US State Department is to be thoroughly cleaned up, which means thoroughly cleaned out, Trump needs a pliable hatchet man. That describes Romney’s true role in the business world in which he worked and prospered until he got bitten by the political bugs.
In any case, the new US State Department that Trump almost certainly has in mind will have little or nothing to do with foreign policy-making. The serious policy-making will be strictly in the hands of Trump himself aided and assisted with the tough-minded national security staff who were the first people whom he selected immediately following the election.
Above all else stands Trump himself, the man who gives all the orders and like Harry Truman, never passes the buck.
Arnold Harris, Outspeaker
Stupid apologetic argument. Others mentioned for the post and others not mentioned could reform the Foggy Bottom as well or better than Romney…. The negatives of his appointment outweigh any of the positives mentioned by Thomas Lifson.
Good points, Teddy. All I’ve been reading up till now are comments resisting Romney’s appointment.