November 5, 2001 - NPCA clarifies position on nomination and confirmation of Gaddi Vasquez

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By Admin1 (admin) on Monday, November 05, 2001 - 10:56 pm: Edit Post

The following email has been circulating on RPCV listservs clarifying the NPCA position on the nomination and confirmation hearings for Gaddi Vasquez.

Friends,

On Friday, November 2, NPCA President Dane Smith wrote letters (conveyed by fax that day, hard copies sent by mail) to President Bush and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Biden, making the following points:

--The delay in nominating and confirming a Peace Corps Director has gone on much too long. The absence of a Director with White House support and Congressional approval weakens the agency at a critical time when it should be making a major contribution to a "grand coalition" against terrorism and to outreach to peoples in the developing countries, especially Central Asia. The overly long transition has created a shortage of senior personnel in Peace Corps, when it has also been coping with the problem of security generally for Volunteers and of suspension of programs and training for certain Central Asian countries.

--The Senate and White House should work together to do their utmost to assure that a hearing takes place for the nominee before the Thanksgiving recess, a hearing at which the qualifications of Gaddi Vasquez can be explored in depth.

--It is extremely important that the process go forward and that the White House does not exercise the option of a recess appointment, which would mean that the qualifications of this controversial candidate would not be thoroughly explored. Such an outcome would leave the Director and the Agency in a weakened position over the coming six months or more.

--If good faith efforts are made to hold a hearing, but it does not take place, the letter to the President recommends that the candidacy of Vasquez be withdrawn in favor of a less controversial candidate who can be confirmed quickly and with enthusiasm.

Copies of the letters follow.

Review of the NPCA Position:

--Both President Dane Smith and Board Chair Dick Pyle wrote to the Administration in January and February, 2001, urging that an RPCV or former Staff member be selected as Peace Corps Director, including at one point an illustrative list of qualified Republicans. We were disappointed when the Administration ignored this counsel and nominated Mr. Vasquez.

--We published our position September 12:

- urging Vasquez to meet members of the Returned Peace Corps Community to make his case. (He had expected to come to the Conference, which was postponed.)

- asking the Peace Corps family to give him a fair hearing, recognizing that some previous directors who turned out well appeared to have limited credentials.

- encouraging members of the Peace Corps family to express their views, especially to the Foreign Relations Committee;

- recommending that the deputy and senior staff be recruited heavily from the Returned Peace Corps community;

- indicating NPCA would work with the nominee, if confirmed.

-- There was a lengthy debate at the NPCA Presidents' Forum, the constituent body representing NPCA affiliate groups, on September 23, in Washington DC. A resolution to oppose the nomination was presented. One cloture vote to halt debate was voted down. In the end the Presidents' Forum voted heavily against the resolution to oppose. However, individuals and groups were urged to make their opinions known.

--The letters sent by Dane Smith November 2, in consultation with the NPCA Executive Committee, emphasize the importance of an open and careful hearing on the qualifications of the nominee, in line with the NPCA position of September 12. The letters are aimed at avoiding a recess appointment, which would mean that the qualifications of this controversial nominee would not be examined at all. (Although the previous Director, Mark Schneider, did receive a recess appointment before going before the Senate subsequently, his nomination was not controversial and his international credentials were clear.)

Ed Crane
Advocacy Coordinator
advocacy@rpcv.org


Following is the letter from Dane Smith to Senator Biden:

November 2, 2001

The Honorable Joseph R. Biden
Chairman Senate Foreign Relations Committee
SR-221
Washington DC 20510

Dear Senator Biden:

The National Peace Corps Association is deeply concerned about the long delay in selecting and confirming a new Peace Corps Director. Our foremost concern is that more than nine months without a duly confirmed Director have been damaging to the Peace Corps, at a time when the need for an effective, well-led Peace Corps has never been greater.

Early in 2001 the NPCA recommended to the Bush Administration the selection of a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer or a former Peace Corps staff member, as Director of the Peace Corps. We forwarded a list of candidates whom we thought met the requirements for this important position of leadership. The Administration chose not to accept this counsel and at the end of July announced the intent to nominate Mr. Gaddi Vasquez for the position. The NPCA was disappointed. The nomination is opposed by many in the Returned Peace Corps movement because of Mr. Vasquez's lack of international experience and his controversial tenure with the Orange Country Board of Supervisors. But the National Peace Corps Association, as an organization, has not opposed the nomination. Instead we encouraged our members and affiliate groups to express their own views, especially to your Committee. Since the end of July there have been long delays in getting the nomination to the Senate and then in getting a hearing scheduled.

Since the resignation of the previous Director in January, the Peace Corps was led until October 1 by Acting Director Charles Baquet, a veteran from the previous Administration, and since then by the very able Mr. Lloyd Pierson, named earlier this year as Senior Advisor to the Director. However, this long period without the leadership of a director with White House support and Senate approval - the longest the agency has ever gone without confirmed leadership - coupled with a hiring freeze and the departure of numerous veteran senior personnel, has been damaging to the Peace Corps at a critical time. The agency was already facing questions regarding the security of its Volunteers, a concern greatly intensified by the events of September 11. Several programs in countries near Afghanistan had to be terminated, and training of some new groups has been suspended. Even more important, however, are the particular challenges and opportunities related to our current national crisis, which the Agency should be addressing with energy and creativity. The Peace Corps is a key element in U.S. foreign policy outreach to developing countries with its unique grassroots people-to-people relations. The agency therefore should be particularly well positioned to contribute to US efforts to build a "grand coalition" and to convey to people and communities in the developing countries, particularly in Central Asia, what America stands for.

In light of the long delay in approving a director and the particular issues arising out of September 11, it becomes all the more important to conduct a prompt and very careful appraisal of the qualifications of Mr. Gaddi Vasquez for Peace Corps Director. The NPCA therefore urges that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee work as closely as possible with the Administration to ensure that a hearing on Mr. Vasquez can be held within two weeks so that (a) Mr. Vasquez has a full opportunity to present the merits of his candidacy and that (b) the Senate may definitively examine his qualifications and suitability for this important position.

I therefore respectfully urge that the Foreign Relations Committee under your leadership do whatever it can to ensure that the hearing takes place within the next two weeks. If, in the absence of an early hearing, the Administration were to decide on a recess appointment of such a controversial candidate, without full discussion of the issues surrounding his candidacy, it would give rise to an agency leader who has less than the full support of the Peace Corps community. The Peace Corps deserves better than that at this critical time.

Sincerely,


Dane F Smith
President, Ambassador (rtd)

c. Sen. Christopher Dodd


Following is the letter from Dane Smith to President Bush:

November 2, 2001

The Honorable George W. Bush
President of the United States
White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave
Washington DC

Dear Mr. President:

The National Peace Corps Association is deeply concerned about the long delay in selecting and confirming a new Peace Corps Director. More than nine months without a duly confirmed Director have been damaging to the Peace Corps, at a time when the need for an effective, well-led Peace Corps has never been greater.

Early in 2001 the NPCA recommended to your Administration the selection of a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer or a former Peace Corps staff member, as Director of the Peace Corps. We forwarded a list of candidates whom we thought met the requirements for this important position of leadership. The Administration chose not to accept this counsel and at the end of July announced the intent to nominate Mr. Gaddi Vasquez for the position. The NPCA was disappointed. The Vasquez nomination is opposed by many in the Returned Peace Corps movement because of Mr. Vasquez's lack of international experience and his controversial tenure with the Orange Country Board of Supervisors. But the National Peace Corps Association as an organization has not opposed the nomination. Instead we encouraged our members and affiliate groups to express their own views, especially to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and to their Senators. Since the end of July there have been long delays both in getting the nomination to the Senate and then in getting a hearing scheduled.

Since the resignation in January of the last Director, the Peace Corps was led until October 1 by Acting Director Charles Baquet, a veteran from the previous Administration, and since then by the very able Mr. Lloyd Pierson, appointed earlier this year as Senior Advisor to the Director. However, this long period without the leadership of a Director with White House support and Senate approval - the longest the Agency has ever gone without confirmed leadership at the beginning of a new administration - coupled with a hiring freeze and the departure of numerous veteran senior personnel, has been damaging to the Peace Corps at a critical time in the life of our nation. The Agency was already facing important questions regarding security arrangements for its Volunteers, a concern greatly intensified by the events of September 11. Several programs in countries near Afghanistan had to be terminated and training of some new groups has been suspended. Even more important, however, are particular challenges and opportunities related to your international leadership in the struggle since September 11 which the Agency should be addressing with energy and creativity. The Peace Corps is a key element in United States foreign policy outreach to developing countries with its grassroots people-to-people relations. The Agency therefore should be particularly well positioned to contribute to US efforts to build a "grand coalition" and to convey to people and communities in the developing countries, particularly those in Central Asia, what America stands for.

In light of the long delay in approving a director and the particular issues arising out of September 11, it becomes all the more important to conduct a prompt and careful appraisal of the qualifications of Mr. Gaddi Vasquez for Peace Corps Director. The NPCA therefore urges that the Administration work as closely as possible with the Senate to ensure that a hearing on Mr. Vasquez can be held within two weeks so that (a) Mr. Vasquez has a full opportunity to present the merits of his candidacy and that (b) the Senate may definitively examine his qualifications and suitability for this important position. I am sending today a letter to the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, urging that the Committee do its utmost to ensure a fair hearing for Mr. Vasquez before the Thanksgiving recess.

If, however, it proves impossible for the Administration and the Senate to resolve this problem before the November recess, the NPCA respectfully urges that your Administration not resort to a recess appointment for Mr. Vasquez. To do so would weaken both his stature as a leader, given the controversy about his candidacy, and the Peace Corps as an agency at a critical time. Rather we would urge that the Administration withdraw the nomination of Mr. Vasquez in favor of a candidate whose credentials would lead to prompt and enthusiastic confirmation. Such an action could reinvigorate the agency and position the Peace Corps to play its proper role under your leadership in the struggle to defeat terrorism and to demonstrate the American commitment to positive outreach toward the people of the developing countries.

Sincerely,


Dane F Smith
President, Ambassador (rtd)

c. Mr. Clay Johnson


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