The New Boss

Hillary Clinton directed some of her first words as the next Secretary of State to civilian employees of her new department this morning, saying:

I thought of those other Americans in our foreign and civil services working hard to promote and protect our interests around the world. And I thought of the daunting tasks ahead for our country. An economy that is reeling, a climate that is warming. And as we saw with the horrible events in Mumbai, threats that are relentless.

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We must pursue vigorous diplomacy using all the tools we can muster to build a future with more partners and fewer adversaries, more opportunities and fewer dangers for all who seek freedom, peace, and prosperity.

Reaching out to your new employees is always a good idea, especially when those empoyees feel their ranks are thin and they're strained and not getting enough training as a result. As a State Department employee who met with the agency policy review team told me, what department employees want to hear Clinton say is "I will fight for you." Today's press conference didn't get into staffing or resource issues at State or USAID. And of course it takes more than warm thoughts to build solidarity between a workforce and a Secretary. But Clinton may have done herself a favor by mentioning her people first.