State Dept. HR Downgrades Anti-Zionism From ‘Requirement’ To ‘Advantage’

Aides say Kerry aimed to make at least some cosmetic changes as part of the effort to soften Israeli opposition to the Iran nuclear deal.

Credit: Remy Steinegger

Washington, July 27 – The US Department of State modified its hiring procedures this week, making a potential hire’s anti-Israel prejudice an advantage rather than an essential requirement to land the job, Department sources reported today.

Secretary of State John Kerry ordered the recruitment policy shift two months ago, but bureaucratic delays prevented its immediate implementation. Spokesman Andy Smittick acknowledged that the State Department has long been known for its bias against Israel, even under more than a decade-and-a-half of successive pro-Israel presidential administrations such as Clinton and George W. Bush. That discrepancy grew out of a longtime internal worldview that continues to see Israel as the source of the trouble in the Middle East, a view that has gripped the Department at least since the 1950’s. If the Jews would simply relinquish their desire to have a country of their own in their historic homeland, the thinking goes, American interests would improve. Aides say Kerry aimed to make at least some cosmetic changes as part of the effort to soften Israeli opposition to the Iran nuclear deal.

In practice, said Smittick, State Department recruitment is unlikely to change in any noticeable fashion, as interviewers will continue to enjoy a wealth of applicants, and, consequently, the luxury to continue selecting new hires with the traditional levels of anti-Israel sentiment. The requirement, for example, that applicants for positions in the North Africa and Middle East Division possess at least a Bachelor’s Degree in a field related to Arab culture, but no such expertise or knowledge of the Jewish ties to the land of Israel, automatically prejudices hiring in favor of analysts and diplomats predisposed to agree with Israel’s enemies and not to appreciate or empathize with the Jewish State’s concerns.

“We are constantly trying to improve our processes, but without sacrificing our corporate culture, which has served us well for decades,” said Smittick. “In the tradition of adapting to a changing situation while holding on to the proven strategies of the past, we will seamlessly integrate this new set of practices into our hiring procedures.”

Experts say the change has been coming for some time, irrespective of the current drama over the Iran deal. “Since at least 2009, the State Department has been trying to tighten its relationship with Non-Governmental Organizations, especially in the Middle East,” said Ken Roth, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch. “In the interest of that cooperation, recruiting for State Department positions has often focused on the same pool of applicants as the NGOs, allowing recruits in the NGOs and and State to better integrate with one another. Since anti-Israel bias is all but understood as a requirement for so many NGOs operating in the region, it made little difference in recruitment for the Department. But with the antisemitic and anti-Israel prejudice of so many NGOs gradually exposed over the last several years to an unprecedented degree, the various undersecretaries realized as far back as 2011 that the appearance of less anti-Israel sentiment was valuable.’