American Diplomat

By Ambassador (Retired) Pete Romero and Writer/Producer Laura Bennett

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What's American Diplomat about?

American Diplomat goes behind the scenes to hear real stories from diplomats who lived newsworthy events overseas. Experience the Cuban revolution, Central American insurgencies, the end of apartheid and more through the eyes of those who were there. A project of the Una Chapman Cox Foundation in partnership with the American Academy of Diplomacy.

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Don't Ask About the Elevator

09.29.2022

We've had some fun on the topic of political appointees. But here we have Charlie Rivkin, who served as a political appointee ambassador and assistant secretary of state and is also former head of the Jim Henson Company, now head ...

American Diplomat episodes:

09.29.2022 Don't Ask About the Elevator We've had some fun on the topic of political appointees. But here we have Charlie Rivkin, who served as a political appointee ambassador and assistant secretary of state and is also former head of the Jim Henson Company, now head ...
09.22.2022 Glamping With the Masters of the Desert (encore) Ambassador Vicki Huddleston gets around in the Sahara, and even gets the women a place inside the tent. So where did all these terrorists come from? And what is this cool band that hauls its equipment around on camels? (One ...
09.15.2022 Cyberdiplomacy Is....What, Exactly? Not the same as cybersecurity or digital diplomacy, cyberdiplomacy affects us all, worldwide, our access to information, our privacy, our ability to connect. Jennifer Bachus, senior official of the brand new Cyberspace and Digital Policy Bureau, helps us understand how ...
09.08.2022 Does the Knot Hold? Ken Quinn is back, this time to talk about saving democracy from a coup attempt in the Philippines. Then, as now, democracy is under threat, but it is not the only thing that hangs in the balance...
09.01.2022 Annual Music Ep for the End of Summer! Hi, everyone! Enjoy the sound of the cicadas and the cooling of the evenings with our annual music episode. We'll be back next week with another gripping tale - will our hero, our great democracy, live another day? (We think ...
08.25.2022 Schedule F, and Why It Scares Us What is Schedule F? And its evil twin, the Public Service Reform Act? Ambassador Dennis Jett joins us once again to explain these two important pieces of policy. Is their purpose to make government accountable, or perhaps is it to ...
08.18.2022 Media Integrity and the Americas Worldwide, and in the Americas, journalists live in fear for their personal safety and are muredered in ever-growing numbers in retaliation for their reporting. At the same time, journalists are distrusted in greater numbers than ever before. Representative democracy depends ...
08.11.2022 Enemies Foreign and Domestic Let's say you're a public servant. You've taken an oath to uphold the constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic, and also to obey the commander-in-chief. What if you can't do both? And what if following the law slaps you ...
08.04.2022 Empathy For Lived Experiences Beginning a career at State in the Office of International Religious Freedom, Sameer Hossain visited the Rohingya refugee camps in the country where his parents were born (Bangladesh). Learning of the lived experiences of women and children in these camps, ...
07.28.2022 "Never, Ever Allow Free and Fair Elections" This is Fidel’s advice to Daniel Ortega, today’s strongman leader of Nicaragua. Wonder who else was listening? This is no longer a foreign piece of business but a thing threatening our own democracy right here, right now. Bob Callahan describes ...
07.21.2022 Take Me to Funky Town In a fun twist, John Feeley interviews Laura on what she's learned about foreign service officers. Why doesn't the average Joe know how great they are? Is it because they are boring? Or is it just because foreign policy doesn't ...
07.16.2022 In Vodka Veritas In this glorious encore episode, we say bottoms up to vacay! That's where we are and where you should be, too! Ambassador Dick Hoagland, having served many years in Russia and former Soviet republics, has had ample opportunity to consider ...
07.07.2022 The Merchant of Death is Back in the News Here's our earlier episode about Victor Bout, reposted, as he is again in the headlines, part of a proposed prisoner swap with Russia in exchange for a WNBA player. What? Yes, indeed. Victor Bout, Russian arms dealer, and a host ...
07.01.2022 The Failure of the Liberal Democratic Model Ambassador Kevin Whitaker walks us through one of the most significant polticial events in Colombia's history: its recent election of outsider candidate Gustavo Petro. How have political parties lost their ability to mediate between voters and their governments? How has ...
06.23.2022 Cross-Border Diplomacy "We build trust," says Marcela Celorio, Counsul General of Mexico in Los Angeles, in our first-ever interview with a diplomat representing another country. Marcela shares stories cross-border diplomatic cooperation to assist businesses, caravans of immigrants in need, and others.
06.16.2022 Gift or Gaffe? Ambassador Rufus Gifford, Chief of Protocol for the United States, knows the very real power of setting the stage for successful diplomacy, especially post-pandemic, as we all hunger for personal human connection. And why are gifts so very important? Which ...
06.09.2022 Planning the Summit Dave Silverman, Deputy National Summit Coordinator, Summit of the Americas, talks about the complexity and diplomatic significance of setting the Summit's agenda. Democracy, climate change and other urgent topics are set forth for negotiation between the leaders of the hemispher's ...
06.02.2022 The Assistant Secretary of State on the Summit of the Americas Brian Nichols, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs brings us up to speed on the most pressing issues on the agenda for the upcoming ninth annual Summit of the Americas. Income inequality, Covid impacts, climate change, access to ...
05.27.2022 Climbing the Summit The Summit of the Americas is coming up in ealry June. Who will be there? What's at stake? Is it a big party for all the heads of state of the Western Hemisphere or is it for democracies only? John ...
05.19.2022 We Are Going to Win The night before the war begain, a calm confidence prevailed in President Zelensky's office. Peter Van Praagh, President of Halifax International Security Forum, recently returned from Ukraine where he spent the first hours of the war. His stories are as ...
05.13.2022 Enchiladas and Golumpkis Assimilation is better than integration, counsels Ambassador Michael Polt of ASU's Leadership, Diplomacy and National Security Lab. Assimilation says: "I really want you to be a part of us." Assimilation means our new friends are expected to stay and become ...
05.05.2022 Tweeting Is Not Acting Immigration expert Eric Farnsworth is back to parse what he describes as our unilateral disarmament diplomatically in the Western Hemisphere, due to bipartisan failure to compromise. "We're doing it to ourselves," explains Eric. And here comes the Summit of the ...
04.28.2022 Encore: Desiree Cormier – Africa and Tijuana Bringing Europe and China to Africa and Granola Bars to Jail - originally posted in March 2018. Enjoy!
04.21.2022 Threats to the Foreign Service Overseas and at home, Foreign Service officers face danger to themselves and their careers, from Benghazi to McCarthyism to the Trump presidency. John Naland and Harry Kopp discuss these risks and why we take them in their book Career Diplomacy: ...
04.14.2022 Countering Genocide War crimes and genocide, from the Holocaust of World War II to Ukraine today, and many other places on earth. Moved by his experience of the civil rights movement as a youth in the South, Ed O'Donnel devoted his life ...
04.07.2022 Ukraine: The Will to Fight No one guessed Ukraine could succeed in combatting Putin. How has the country done it? What has Putin got wrong? General Ben Freakley is back with insights on the will to fight, military strategy, and values-based leadership.
03.31.2022 Memories of Madeleine, "The Serpent" The world has lost a great stateswoman; Pete has lost a mentor. Reviled by autocrats, loved by Cuban Americans, Madeleine Albright is mourned by lovers of democracy worldwide.
03.24.2022 Do Sanctions Work? What, exactly, is a sanction? An embargo? How do they help Ukraine and the West defeat Putin's aggression? Are they working? Why not put boots on the ground instead? Elizabeth Shackelford has a lot to say on the matter.
03.17.2022 I Would Rather Be America The Ukraine war - a threat or an opportunity, or both? It's too early to tell, says congressional candidate and USAID veteran Dave Harden, but in a rise of great power competition - Russia, China and the US - I ...
03.10.2022 Energy Diplomacy and the War in Ukraine Gas and Oil, Russia, Europe, the US, Azerbaijan, China and the war in Ukraine. Rich Kauzlerich, expert on energy diplomacy, explains that sanctions work, but that this is certainly no time for a victory lap.
03.03.2022 Where Is Latin America on Putin's Aggression? Most of the world is united in its condemnation of Russia's aggression in Ukraine, with the conspicuous absence of comment from Latin America. Why? Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas, unpacks.
02.24.2022 There Is Always Hope What better way to launch a depressive episode than to leave a beloved job as US Ambassador to Panama, at the pinacle of one's career, all because one cannot in good conscience act as the personal representative of a particular ...
02.17.2022 Black History as Experienced by Michael Peay For Michael Peay, one of the first African Americans to serve in the Office of the Legal Adviser, the (incredibly hard) work was "tremendous fun!" When faced with racial prejudice, his wisdom carried him through: "You treat everyone with respect ...
02.10.2022 Ukraine - What's Putin's Game? Russian mothers, mud season, urban warfare. These are among the threats limiting Putin's ability to agress in Ukraine. Bill Courtney, expert on Central Asia, weighs both Putin's and Ukraine's options and risks in the increasingly dicey situation in Ukraine today. ...
02.03.2022 Spider Schneider Agnes Schneider, would-be opera singer, saver of lives, confiscator of passports. She was a living expression of an incredible period of history, from World War I to the Cold War. Savior or villain, or both? Lindsay Henderson, consular history expert, ...
01.27.2022 Want to Be a US Ambassador? Pay Up. Working your way up to an ambasssadorship is such a slog, if you can just buy the honorific instead. Ambassador Dennis Jett, author of a recent article by the same name as this episode, illuminates. Bonus question: Which embassy is ...
01.20.2022 Kazakhstan: Popular Uprising or Palace Intrigue? Dick Hoagland, Central Asia expert, is back to help us understand recent violence in Kazakhstan. Was the populace upset about rising fuel prices, or was there an internecine power struggle? Or both? What is the US interest in this ambiguous ...
01.13.2022 He's Not Miss Universe, but He'll Have to Do Bernie Aronson, who led the US effort to end wars in El Salvador and Colombia, shares insight on resolving the most intense geopolitical conflicts: "You should never forget that they are human beings and they can be moved as human ...
01.06.2022 Democracy Threatened Are we talking about Chile or the US, or any of a number of other countries worldwide? Deb Derrick recounts recent unrest in Santiago, and we ask ourselves, how similar to this are events in our own country? Today we ...
12.30.2021 In Vodka Veritas, with Dick Hoagland Ambassador Dick Hoagland, having served many years in Russia and former Soviet republics, has had ample opportunity to consider the high-stakes drinking game of vodka diplomacy. Bottoms up and happy New Year!
12.23.2021 Holiday Encore - Unity, Love, Positivity Jeffrey Franca, drummer for DC's world music icon Thievery Corporation - the band that generously allows us to use its music to open our show each week - brings us on the journey he took to become a musician. He ...
12.16.2021 Our Time to Serve General Ben Freakley, in charge of the eastern region of Afghanistan during the war, urges us to remain focused and do the right thing for those who remain in danger in Afghanistan. He calls for a whole of government approach ...
12.09.2021 Haiti - What Went Wrong? Ambassador Dan Foote departed the State Department over a crisis of conscience relating to recent events in Haiti. Why, and what actually happened from his perspective?
12.02.2021 A Badge of Honor? The Zambian government has no love for its country's LGBTQ community. When repressions go simply too far to ignore any longer Ambassador Dan Foote speaks up, and for political reasons on both continents is forced to return home. Any regrets? ...
11.24.2021 Annual AmDip Thanksgiving Special We're back with some of Pete's jokes (Laura laughed, we promise) and our annual show featuring stories of Thanksgiving overseas. Enjoy! Stay well! ~Pete & Laura
11.18.2021 One of the Most Pointless Wars in History An eye for an eye and pretty soon everyone is blind, said Mahatma Gandhi, now quoted by Ambassador Tibor Nagy who is as expert as he is compassionate in his discussion of the current conflict in Ethiopia. Are we witnessing ...
11.11.2021 From the Middle East to Rural America Dave Harden, formerly of USAID, compares service within AID to the mainstream Foreign Service (where is most of the money and the leadership opportunity, for example?), and connects the economic dimension of international development to American domestic politics. Harden is ...
11.04.2021 Powell's Inimitable Leadership Inclusive, powerful leadership. Colin Powell not only engaged Americans of every level on his team, but also eased the worries of potential adversaries. Powell led with insight into human needs for respect and belonging.
10.28.2021 Love Letter to Colin Powell Humility, respect, sense of humor, honor, but above all, empathy. Colin Powell is remembered by many who loved him. Tune in for stories of the man he was.
10.21.2021 Nothing is Impossible, with Ted Osius Ted Osius retired from his post as US Ambassador to Vietnam when asked to implement covertly-devised deportation policies he found morally repugnant and un-American. Hear about his crisis of conscience and also of the heroic service of senators John McCain ...

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