Tag Archives: Dawn M. Liberi

Ambassador Nomination: Anne S. Casper– From State/Global Engagement Center to Burundi

May 20, 2016 By in FSOs, Nominations, Non-Gov, Officially In, Uncategorized Tags: , ,

Posted: 12:23 am ET
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On May 18, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Anne S. Casper to be Ambassador to the Republic of Burundi. The WH released the following brief bio:

Anne S. Casper, a career member of the Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor, serves as Senior Advisor in the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications at the Department of State, a position she has held since 2015.  Ms. Casper has served concurrently as Acting Director of Partnerships for the Department’s Global Engagement Center since April 2016.  Ms. Casper was Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Public Affairs from 2014 to 2015, Principal Officer at the U.S. Consulate General in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 2012 to 2014, and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Kigali, Rwanda from 2009 to 2012.  She was Public Affairs Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand from 2006 to 2009 and served as Arabic Media Liaison Officer in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs from 2002 to 2004.  From 2001 to 2002, Ms. Casper was the Counterterrorism Policy Officer in the Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism.  Since joining the Foreign Service in 1993, Ms. Casper has held positions at posts in Albania, Jerusalem, and Syria.

Ms. Casper received a B.A. from Tufts University, an M.A. from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, and an M.S. from the National War College.

annecasperofficial

Her state.gov bio includes additional details:

Anne Casper, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, joined the Public Affairs bureau as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Media in July 2014. In this capacity, she oversees the Office of International Media Engagement, including the State Department’s six Regional Media Hubs; the Foreign Press Centers in Washington, DC and New York; and the Rapid Response Unit, which provides timely feedback to policymakers on global reporting of critical issues.

Ms. Casper served most recently as the U.S. Consul General in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and, prior to that, as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Rwanda. Previously, she held positions at U.S. Embassies in Thailand, Albania, Syria and Morocco and at the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem. In Washington, she served as a State Department liaison to the Arabic media as well as a counterterrorism policy officer, covering European and Middle Eastern issues, successively.

Ms. Casper holds a B.A. in anthropology (summa cum laude) from Tufts University, an M.A. from The Johns Hopkins University’s School for Advanced International Studies, and is a distinguished graduate of the National War College. She also studied in Cairo as a Center for Arabic Studies Abroad Fellow. She speaks Arabic and French and has studied the language and culture of every country in which she has served.

If confirmed, Ms. Casper would succeed career diplomat, Dawn Liberi, who was appointed chief of mission to the US Embassy in Bujumbura in July 2012.

As of this writing. the Certificates of Competency required under the Foreign Service Act of 1980 for submission to the SFRC and made available online by State/HR for every nominee since 2014 have yet to include the President’s nominees of May 18.  Once the certificates are available, they will be posted here: http://www.state.gov/m/dghr/coc/index.htm.

 

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SFRC Clears Villarosa, Liberi, Mull, North, Olson, Macmanus with Looming Senate Holds

September 20, 2012 By in Af/Pak, Ambassadors, Congress, Foreign Service, FSOs, Nominations, Senate Hold, SFRC, U.S. Missions Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee(SFRC)  cleared the following ambassadorial nominations on September 19, 2012.

  • Sharon English Woods Villarosa, of Texas, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Mauritius, and to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Seychelles.
  • Dawn M. Liberi, of Florida, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Career Minister, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Burundi.
  • Stephen D. Mull, of Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Career Minister, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Poland.
  • Walter North, of Washington, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Career Minister, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Papua New Guinea, and to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Solomon Islands and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Vanuatu.
  • Richard G. Olson, of New Mexico, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
  • Joseph E. Macmanus, of New York, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Representative of the United States of America to the Vienna Office of the United Nations, with the rank of Ambassador.
  • Joseph E. Macmanus, of New York, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Representative of the United States of America to the International Atomic Energy Agency, with the rank of Ambassador

Two nominees for UNGA were also cleared:

The Honorable John Hardy Isakson, of Georgia, to be a Representative of the United States of America to the Sixty-seventh Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations

The Honorable Patrick J. Leahy, of Vermont, to be a Representative of the United States of America to the Sixty-seventh Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations

The nominations will now go to the Senate for the full vote.

The SFRC, by the way,  just held its confirmation hearing for Ambassador Robert Beecroft (US Embassy Iraq) on September 19, so he was not included in the cleared nominees on Wednesday.  The Cable says that according to committee aides, “there was broad support for dispatching the Beecroft nomination out of committee without a formal vote so he could be confirmed this week before the Senate leaves town.”

However, all these nominees could get entangled in Senator Rand Paul’s hold.  He has reportedly placed a hold on the Olson nomination over Pakistan’s Afridi case. And according to The Cable, there is also the the ongoing dispute between Senate leadership and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) over Paul’s demand for a floor vote on his amendment to cut off all U.S. aid to Pakistan, Libya, and Egypt.

We don’t think Dr. Afridi should be in jail, but taking away what, $33 million from over a billion US aid to Pakistan, and a very public congressional pressure to released the good doctor — is not going to help much. No country, particularly one like Pakistan would like to be seen as publicly relenting to such foreign pressure, especially one coming from the United States, a perceived enemy by a great number of its population. To do so is contrary to the laws of political self preservation.  Can you imagine any US President acceding to a foreign senator’s demand to release a prisoner from one of our jails?  Of course not.

Senator Paul says, “If Pakistan wants to be our ally — and receive foreign aid — then they should act like it, and they must start by releasing Dr. Afridi.” He has more here.

Even if the elected Government of Pakistan may be amendable to releasing Dr. Afridi, it would be foolish to do so now, in the most public way. Or if it does, and it falls, who would we have next to deal with?

If screaming from the Senate chamber works perfectly in conducting foreign relations, why the heck do we have a diplomatic corps?  More congressional shock and awe is not going to help the cause of Dr. Afridi, it just drags it longer.  Senator Paul should understand this.  It’s not about him, it’s about them.  He should lift his hold so Ambassador Olson can join his embassy in Islamabad and our diplomats can do the work they need to do.

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Pending State Department Nominations as of August 2012

August 10, 2012 By in Ambassadors, Congress, FSOs, Nominations, Political Appointees, SFRC, State Department Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Below is a list of nominees submitted by the President to the Senate for confirmation during the current congress and was still undergoing SFRC consideration when the Senate took its break on August 2, 2012:

Aug 02, 12     PN1876    United Nations
Patrick J. Leahy, of Vermont, to be a Representative of the United States of America to the Sixty-seventh Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

Aug 02, 12     PN1875    United Nations
John Hardy Isakson, of Georgia, to be a Representative of the United States of America to the Sixty-seventh Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

Jul 18, 12     PN1827    Department of State
Richard G. Olson, of New Mexico, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. (reportedly discharged from committee but still listed as “pending” in the SFRC)

Jul 11, 12     PN1802    Department of State
Walter North, of Washington, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Career Minister, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Papua New Guinea, and to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Solomon Islands and  Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Vanuatu.

Jul 11, 12     PN1801    Department of State
Stephen D. Mull, of Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Career Minister, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Poland.

Jul 11, 12     PN1800    Department of State
Dawn M. Liberi, of Florida, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Career Minister, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Burundi.

Dec 05, 11     PN1171    Department of State
Joseph E. Macmanus, of New York, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Representative of the United States of America to the International Atomic Energy Agency,
with the rank of Ambassador.

Dec 05, 11     PN1170    Department of State
Joseph E. Macmanus, of New York, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Representative of the United States of America to the Vienna Office of the United Nations,
with the rank of Ambassador.

Oct 17, 11     PN1047    Department of State
Sharon English Woods Villarosa, of Texas, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of  Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Mauritius, and to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador  Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Seychelles.

Shari Villarosa‘s nomination for Mauritius has been pending in committee since October 2011. And then there’s also Joseph Macmanus for IAEA and UNVIE, pending since December 2011.  Ms. Villarosa was Deputy Coordinator for Regional Affairs in the Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism when she was nominated last year.  Mr. Macmanus on the other hand was the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs when his nomination was announced last year.

Don’t know why these two nominees have been stuck in committee for the last 8-10 months. Mr. Macmanus is heading to IAEA and the UN, the later, of course a favorite pet peeve for some folks in Congress.  Could be that.  Mauritius as you may already know is an island in the Indian Ocean (also the only known habitat of the extinct Dodo bird). Nothing controversial there. She’s a career diplomat who was previously chargé d’affaires for the US Embassy in Rangoon from August 2005 to September 2008.  There was that OIG report while she was CDA in Burma (mostly redacted, of course!).   But that’s not it, is it?

I don’t think these two even had their confirmation hearings put on the calendar at the SFRC.  Interesting, huh? Anybody know why these two nominations have been glued to the SFRC welcome mat for months without action?

Domani Spero

Officially In: Dawn M. Liberi – from Libya to Burundi

July 12, 2012 By in AF |Africa, Ambassadors, FSOs, Nominations, Officially In, USAID Tags: , , , , , , 2 Comments

On July 10, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Dawn M. Liberi as the next Ambassador to the Republic of Burundi. The WH released the following brief bio:

Dawn M. Liberi, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Career Minister, most recently served as the Senior Assistance Coordinator at the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli.  From 2009 to 2011, she served as Coordinator for the Interagency Provincial Affairs Office at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul and as Senior Civilian Representative for the Combined Joint Task-Force 82 with the International Security Assistance Force Regional Command-East at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan.  From 2006 to 2009, she was an Executive Civil-Military Counselor with USAID.  From 2005 to 2006, Ms. Liberi was the USAID Mission Director in Iraq.  She previously served as the USAID Mission Director in Nigeria (2002-2005) and Uganda (1998-2002).  Other assignments have included: USAID Associate Assistant Administrator in the Global Bureau, Population, Health and Nutrition Office (1994-1998); USAID Deputy Mission Director in Ghana (1992-1994); and Population, Health and Nutrition Technical Officer for USAID’s missions in Senegal and Niger from (1981-1987).

Ms. Liberi received a Bachelor’s Degree from Hampshire College and an M.P.H. from the University of California at Berkeley.

03 Jun 10, 9320C-006 | PARWAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan – U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the commander of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, poses with U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Curtis M. Scaparrotti, the commander of Combined Joint Task Force-82, Dawn Liberi, the senior civilian representative for Regional Command East, and U.S. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Thomas R. Capel, the CJTF-82 command sergeant major, in front of a 9-foot segment of an I-beam that was once part of the World Trade Center. The unveiling of the beam was part of the Memorial Day ceremony May 31 at the RC-East command building at Bagram Airfield. (Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Spencer J. Case, 304th Public Affairs Detachment)

If confirmed, Ms. Liberi would succeed Pamela J. H. Slutz, a career Foreign Service Officer, who was sworn in as U.S. Ambassador to Burundi on November 2, 2009.  The embassy is currently headed by Sam Watson of Virginia, a career member of the Foreign Service who assumed the duties of Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in September, 2011 and is now serving as Charge d’Affaires a.i.

Domani Spero

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July 10, 2012 | President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts