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Hillary Clinton felt sorry for Kevin Rudd after Gillard rolled him - and who really put gender on the map in the Pacific?

Friday, 18 March 2016

Over the past few days I've been poring over the emails from Mrs Clinton's private email server.

Hillary Clinton was the USA's Secretary of State, i.e. she was responsible for US Foreign Affairs and Policy.

These emails are a frightening insight into her facile character, driven by media coverage and absolutely devoid of policy nous.

Who owns "The Pivot'

In 2012 the US under Obama told the world it was moving its focus from Europe and the Middle East to Asia. The move came to be known as a pivot. This extract is from a very lengthy and comprehensive article analysing the change of focus:

UNCLASSIFIED U.S. Department of State Case No. F-2014-20439 Doc No. C05794630 Date: 01/29/2016 The deepening US-India relationship is a key piece in a very elaborate program. Ever since President Obama announced a "pivot" to Asia and Secretary Clinton declared this to be "America's Pacific Century," Washington's Asia policy has been firing on all cylinders.

After reading the lengthy article, here's Clinton's only reaction - start at the bottom with Hilary saying "didn't we" which means Hilary "not the WH" which means not Obama.

Didn't we, not the White House first use the pivot?

But that wasn't the end of it. A curt Pls Print meant this one was going in the file. Happy to give it to the White House are we? We'll see about that. While substantive matters were left to chance, The Pivot got some remedial work.

Someone put in some hard yards to make sure that this Financial Tines editorial got the nuanced detail of US Foreign Policy right!

Re-engage with Asia, but carefully

It is not surprising that the US wants to reconnect with Asia. After all, as Barack Obama said at the Asia- Pacific Economic Co-operation forum in Hawaii, that is where the action is. Growth in the region averages above 7 per cent. With Europe in crisis and anaemic growth at home, the US wants to tap into Asian markets to meet Mr Obama's target of doubling exports and creating jobs. After being distracted for a decade in the Middle East, Washington's "pivot" towards Asia — to use secretary of state Hillary Clinton's word — shows it has woken up to the region's rise.

Then there's brainstorming for a snappy catch-phrase to describe Hillary's deft personal touch in advancing the United States' interests. She didn't like the military, so there was nothing to do with US military power. The catch phrase had to encapsulate Hillary's unique contribution to the globe,

Hillary's Forward Deployed Diplomacy

Forward Deployed Diplomacy was the thing. Even very, very senior people like Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt M. Campbell, AO, CNZM (yes the Order of Australia for his work on US/Aus relations) was instructed to report on it.

Who put gender on the map people? What's the story?

Jan Piercy is a banker friend of Mrs Clinton. She's writing about the Pacific Islands Forum for 2012.

Remember the Yellow Pages ad with "not happy, Jan". Hillary was very, very "not happy Jan" after that email. So not happy that she was up and typing at 4.45 in the morning. And Hillary copied just about everyone after her friend the banker let her know what was really going on in the world.

Melanie Verveer was Obama's first ever Ambassador at Large (for women!) appointed by him but placed in Clinton's team.

This was big! As Melanne (sic)well knows, we put gender events on the map in the Pacific.......So, what's the story?

Melanne got the hint. Anyone who sticks around with Clinton seems to adopt the same strategy in their communications. Praise her, talk about how busy she must be, how tired she must be, how great she is and how she never screws up.

It goes on and on and on and it gets worse.

The pettiness, the cattiness, the divisive character of this woman who flaps in the breeze on policy is breathtaking.

Gillard comes in for quite a few mentions.

In 2009 Deputy Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard flew to the US to meet with key US contacts. Clinton gave her 10 minutes.

Check out the "office time", private personal business and other internal meetings that meant Clinton could only give Gillard 10 minutes.

Clinton was kept informed as Gillard moved to roll Rudd. She wrote that she felt sorry about what Gillard did to him

Hillary sorry for Rudd

Rudd had his people call Hillary's people about jobs for Kev

This note is from the US Ambassador in Australia up the ladder for Hillary's ultimate attention (S is code for Secretary of State, i.e. Hillary).

And speaking of Steven Smith.....

Julia Gillard would do anything, absolutely anything to make sure Obama came to Australia

Even buying more from the US if needed?

What's it matter if you spend other people's money on an extra few of these..............

To make sure you get an album full of these?

Quite touching, isn't it?

Sorry Julia, he's just not that into you.

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