U.S. Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., who is not pale, male or from Yale, penned an op-ed calling for the State Department to shy away from highly-educated white males.
“The stereotype that the State Department is overwhelmingly “pale, male, and Yale” has persisted through both Democratic and Republican administrations,” she wrote, noting that between 2002 and 2018, State Department staff identifying as racial or ethnic minorities increased by only 4%, and actually fell among black employees.
Shockingly, Bass does not blame President Donald Trump entirely over the issue, as she notes that the problem predates Trump.
No, the congresswoman’s motivation is more forward-looking, as the progressive wing of the Democratic Party jockeys to secure representation in a potential Biden administration.
In Congress I’ve traveled to 30 African nations. On those trips, I've often found that the staff of our embassies are overwhelmingly made up of white men.
America’s diplomats should look like America.
Here's my op-ed about we're going to do about it.https://t.co/b7JXG2QDLd
— Congressmember Bass (@RepKarenBass) December 6, 2020
Bass talks about the need to rebuild the Trump State Department under a Biden administration “to reassert America’s leadership and values abroad” — which is code for progressive values — saying Democrats “must make diversity a priority across the board, and especially within the State Department and foreign service.”
Employing the Obama angle, where all things must “look” like America looks, Bass takes a jab at white America in making her point, via the popular 50s era program “Leave it to Beaver”.
“When foreign service officers actually reflect the diversity of the U.S. population — and look more like the locals than like the cast of ‘Leave it to Beaver’— they have the opportunity to explain that in the United States, no matter your race, religion, creed, or even national origin, you, too, can become the face of America abroad,” she said.
It more of the same from the perpetually aggrieved left, putting the color of one’s skin above their qualifications to perform — a redo of the failed affirmative action fiasco.
In pointing out that foreign service applications have seen the biggest decline in more than a decade — we must take her word on the stats she throws out, which is going out on a limb — Bass suggests that racism runs rampant under Trump.
Under the glorious banner of diversity, Bass plugged legislation she introduced this year, the Represent America Abroad Act of 2020, which creates a different path for minority groups interested in a career in foreign service — giving them a step up on white applicants.
“Instead of having to start at the entry level — and stomach huge cuts in pay and responsibility as a result — our idea is to create a program to recruit accomplished professionals from underrepresented groups, so they can bring their experience and expertise to bear from their first day on the job,” she said.
And this is where the real Trump-bashing begins, as every failed Democratic program begins with a manufactured crisis.
“The decimation of the State Department and the foreign service under outgoing President Donald Trump has been widespread and devastating —especially for employees of color and those from other marginalized groups, like LGBTQ staff,” Bass wrote. “The agency will need to exercise considerable creativity to rebuild the ranks, especially at the mid-career and senior levels, to meet the diplomatic priorities of the incoming Biden-Harris administration.”
Odds are good that Richard Grenell, a gay American diplomat who served as the U.S. ambassador to Germany for Trump, would disagree here.
Here’s a quick sampling of responses to the story from Twitter:
As a white man, I’m tired of the constant demonization of white men.
— Dean Browning (@DeanBrowningPA) December 7, 2020
As an African, I will tell you this. It is not the look, it is the deed that really matters.
— Amanuel (@amanuel_tes) December 7, 2020
They also represent most of the same people that provides the foreign aid that has fed 1/2 of Africa for how long now?
— Fraser Johnston (@Semper_Infideli) December 7, 2020
A diplomat is there to represent the interests of the country it’s entirely irrelevant what he looks like
— ToXic (@JepsieOOC) December 7, 2020
Whaaaaa??? Why would anyone want that?!
— Kaz (@Kaz08954706) December 7, 2020
Choosing people to do a job strictly based on the color of their skin is irresponsible and reckless.
— ozzfus3 (@ozzfus3) December 7, 2020
Only racists concern themselves with skin color
— An individual 🤑🥓☕🚔🏀🍁🇨🇦🇺🇸🇨🇮🇨🇵 (@RetaliateForce) December 7, 2020
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The longest-tenured writer at BizPac Review, Tom grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills.
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