I agree with Friedman.
122
This traitor is just the latest one in this despicable train of sycophants tied to dumplandia. So far, in this “administration” (the “cabinet”) has anyone shown any honor or integrity?
117
One more kiss-up, kick-down kind of guy. What would Jesus do.? *Not that*
98
WEST Point ? NO. Disappoint. In Russian.
63
Thank you.
39
"Pompeo is no Thomas Jefferson."
He's not even George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley) !
88
Pompeo, like Barr, Mulvaney and DeVos are evangelical dominionists. They believe that Trump will a: give the the Christian state they long for or b: blow up the world, thus beginning The Rapture. Either way, they're all in.
154
Brilliant.
43
Bravo Tom Friedman!
Just need to add Congressman Jordan, another bully who dressed in his white shirts and fits the description of the Charlottesville white supremacist marchers, to the list of cowards along with Nunes and Graham.
The list of cowards continues to grow as more and more Republicans sacrifice their values, ethics and morals in order to excuse and defend the White House Chief Coward and Bully, who has proven he has no Soul!
To date, not one Republican has demonstrated that “it is always the right time to Do The Right Thing”, speak truth to power!
Amen.
112
I think we can dispense now with the fairy tale about Trump bringing in "only the very best" people for his admin. This is malfeasance on a career-ending level.
#DeepeningTheSwamp
77
Poor excuse for a leader
41
I don't understand why people are always picking on him just because he's a selfish, mean-spirited, and corrupt jerk.
99
What continues to stand out for me is what an easy mark/dupe Trump has been for foreign interests (Russia) and corrupt players (Giuliani and his Ukrainian American partners and shady foreign clients), all facilitated by ethically compromised officials like Pompeo. Useful idiot indeed.
77
Yes, Pompeo is a mess, the GOP is a mess, the Senate is a mess, and the Supreme Court is a mess. All made possible by the almost half of voters glued to Fox, to Hannity & Limbaugh, to talk radio, all inflaming the mob, brainwashed in exactly the same way as the Nazis brainwashed the German populace, but with the added technology of YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, manipulated Google searches, robots etc.
Until the brainwashing ends, sanity will be unable to return, and mob rule will spread further.
181
Go to state.gov and scroll to the "contact us" link. Send a message of support for the good people at State ... Kent, Taylor, Yovanovich. You can also encourage Sondland to "man up" and tell Pompeo to crawl back in his hole.
56
Well come on, he's just a Tea Party wingnut alum from the first cohort, what more can we realistically expect from the guy?
29
First of all, Mr. Friedman, I hope your next column will be all about our next ambassador to Moscow, Pompeo's deputy. I 'd like to know not just a little, but one helluva lot more about this guy before we all suffer from dèjá vu all over again.
BTW, I agree with all you've said about Pompeo, yet still thought one had to have a spine in order to be accepted to join the armed forces.
26
Wow - that is astounding! It looks like Trump is draining the swamp but has left the American people with the greasy, slimey sludge on the bottom that he calls a government!!!What a train wreck!
42
Pompi is horrible, but this column is like shooting fish in a barrel. It doesn't take a lot of brain cells or talent.
7
Pompeo was a tool used by Rudy and his imprisoned cronies to facilitate their get rich plan in the Ukrainian oil and gas industry. That does not speak well for the academic qualities of West Point. Pompeo got played by idiots.
27
When will karma raise its Nobel head and smote this laundry list of cowards and criminals?
24
He’s s traitor and coward! He’s only thinking about himself.,He will work with another crook like him. The best thing is to resign .Trump and his gang should never be in any government position.
18
Mike Pompeo - You reap what you sew. Get ready for the bus coming your way. Lay flat on your tummy. Clearance critical.
31
Several weeks ago Pompeo was interviewed on one of the Sabbath Gas Bag shows where he was asked if he had knowledge of the July 25 call between Trump and Zelensky. His answer that “this is the first I am hearing of it” was clearly untruthful, and was revealed by his darting eyes and facial expressions. He looked like the proverbial kid sitting in the principal’s office.
43
Amen
18
Pompeo is a pathetic coward loser. He gave up his honor and integrity for a chronic criminal. He is basking in the intoxicating power and wants more and more and doesn't care who he has to lie, steal, or kill to do. But, in the annals of American honor, it is Bill Taylor 100, Mike Pompeo 0. I hope this was worth it fat Mike--as you will carry around your dishonor like a war criminal (which we will have more war crimes committed in the future thanks to Cadet Bone Spurs and his loyal scribe Fat Mike.)
34
Hahaha you think West Point doesn't teach you how to blame the troops under your command?
20
The only explanation for some of Trump's co-conspirators knowingly covering themselves in filth is kompromat.
19
Thank G-d for the NY times and journalists like Tom Friedman who call out the cowards serving this President, including Mike Pompeo, not to be undone by William Barr and Mike Pence.
38
Savage!
6
Pompeo ?
Just another self serving, cowardly psychophant, more interested in debasing this country, and protecting it's loathsome leader than bringing respect to himself, and portectng those who serve this country in his departmenrt.
Just one of the many swamp creatures that now slither along through the halls of this vile, and corrupt administration, harming this nation in every way possible.
This administration has shown in so many ways that they are truely the enemy of the people, and stand basically for themselves, and the public be damned. Left to their own devices, they will turn this nation into a banana republic for sure.
24
Truth !!!!!!
10
Pompeo adheres to his own motto: “Non Fidelis” — never faithful. He’s the worst that America has to offer.
23
Mike Pompeo is a smarmy pleaser of the President. He also received the most money in the House of Representatives from the Koch Bros. while he served as their Representative from Kansas. & it was Mike Pompeo who delivered the so-called 'DARK Act' halting 30 plus states from enacting laws mandating the labelling of GMO's or Genetically Modified Organisms - Pompeo pushed to do so by the Koch Bros. & their monetary support. Because of him, unlike 64 countries in the world, including China, our people's food packaging gives no indication of whether the food is natural or ridden with GMO corn, soybeans, soy lecithin, sugar (from GMO sugarbeets, estimated to be half of our sugar in the USA today), cottonseed oil or canola. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QJ3xYQA5xo for more details. The DARK in DARK Act stands for Deny Americans The Right To Know. Besides backing waterboarding, and torture, going along with our bonespurred President, one has to wonder what kind of man this is who graduated from West Point but doesn't understand that such treatment of prisoners is unethical, & can lead the way to our own prisoners being treated in the same fashion. There are rules of the road for war that have been drawn up by our worldly civilization. Please Google Colin Powell. This current epoch is smeared with turncoat behavior that will more fully come to light as tax returns arrive for perusal, & rabid Republicans lose their savaging canine teeth, while Pompeo's spine finally vaporizes.
28
What a joke since when can a president not fire any ambassador at any time you may want to look up how many ambassadors have been fired and by who
7
When I learned that Pompeo had been part of the sleazy Benghazi investigation, I realized what a shallow human being he is. Your article points this out so well. Only Trump would have anything to do with him. They are birds of a feather. God bless people with integrity like Ambassador Yovanovitch.
35
Pompeo has just been waiting for a “leader” like Trump. Okay Miley..here ya go. Say buh-bye to any reputation that you ever had.
10
I heard that this shameless individual wants to run for a senate seat or president. Good luck with that. That silly smirk on his face tells us all we need to know about him. He is spineless and a coward who should never have been Secretary of State because the job is much too big for him. That position belongs to a leader of men and women. While he may have graduated from West Point, they missed the yellow streak down his back. I'm sure the employees at the State Department will be happy to get ride of this despicable individual.
24
The Republican Party is now driven by a tribal based sense of morality, where what is good and what is bad is primarily determined by their understanding of "us" vs "them". They are united in the hatred of lefty elitists. (Highly educated professionals who are proudly in favor of letting the lgbtq community out of the closet for good.) Therefore, anything a lefty elitist stands for (i.e., holding wrongdoers to account, and standing for liberal democracies against illiberal autocracies.) is ipso facto bad, and must be attacked.
This is how they conclude, based on logic, that the impeachment hearing is a hoax and a witch hunt. And palling around with and praising and appeasing leaders like Putin, Kim Jong Un, Erdogan and Xi is fine. It's a good thing!
12
CORRECTION: As for Ambassador Yovanovitch, thank you for your service. You are a credit to our nation and its ideals — everything your boss [is] not. Hold your head high. Jefferson would have been proud of you.
17
Don't forget his right-wing religious stance.
19
The worst thing about this is, despite being a spineless coward, Mike Pompeo is more than likely the BEST of Trump's cabinet decisions! I'm not going to mince words: I hate Trump, but if Pompeo, a spineless coward whose incapable of standing up for what's right in this country, is the BEST pick out of ALL of your picks, that means you're clearly not prioritizing the right qualities in your employees! With the exception of Pompeo & Bolton (who was a warmonger), everyone he has picked has been based upon one quality: loyalty--to Trump! Loyalty is one of the LAST, if not THE last quality you should look for in the candidate for an open position! At this point, it doesn't matter how well Pompeo did at west point because he lacked the dignity, integrity, & courage to do the right thing & stand up to a bully with an itchy Twitter Finger! Even if he had lost his job over, at least he could've said he did the right thing. He doesn't have that CLEARLY and has lost any and all honor he had earned up to this point in his life. History will judge him harshly based on this act of cowardice.
11
Bravo, Sir.
9
Pompao and Barr sold their souls to Trump for a lousy cabinet chair.
20
Pompeo and Barr consider themselves Christians. I consider them fascists and as far from being Christian as anyone I’ve seen in public life other than their Lord and Master Trump. They are both an utter disgrace.
42
wow Tom.
well done. please more from you .
16
Thank you Tom for so clearly writing what principled people the world over think about Pompeo. To not support Yovanovitch, the most professional Ambassador the US had, was despicable and cowardly.
20
Pompeo must be afraid of or loyal to Americans who support Mr. T as well as he, the slimy occupant of the White House. His vision of fellow Americans is the Trump supporters, who are coward, treacherous and hate-lovers. Let’s do analyses right.
4
“ A Trumper WILL lie, cheat and steal to please his Master “.
God help us ALL.
14
This is evidently Tom Friedman’s opinion, but in the NYT it is stated as fact. It may be true I have no idea but I truly believe neither does Tom Friedman. Stop he was elected President, allow him to be we have survived other Presidents that people didn’t like. Enough this has to end. Vote him out if you want.
4
First Mate to Captain Queeg
Give us a break, Tom, you ethical dog –
Those who fall short you’ll sniff out and flog,
Mike Pompeo, re high expectations -
Going gangbusters resisting temptations,
No sex scandal harlots or bribery claims –
Clean as a whistle as Trumpster deplanes
From fresh faced follies, but Mike’s on the ball
To restrain Maestro Trump from his next fall:
Credit, please do, his honorable service -
Hand on the tiller to try to preserve us.
1
Like all the rest of them, he through out everything when he chose to be in this buffoon’s inner circle. The real question for all these stooges is.....why?????
8
Anyone foolish enough to put themselves close to Donald Trump have a high risk of ending up filthy and broken. Pompeo is just another in a long line. He won’t be the last.
20
As Pompeo ignores what Trump and Rudy did to Marie Yanovitch, Barr is out there trying to get more Executive Power for Trump which is a Federalist dream to override the constitutions 3 branches of government.
Can anyone imagine Trump with more power after the corruption he has already done as potus?
We are in strange times with Pompeo and Barr advocating for things that the majority of The People would reject in a heartbeat. The country was not formed around Pompeo's evangelical ideology or Barr's Catholic ideology.
Both of these men seem to want to change that and give speeches about their personal religions.
Why do these 2 zealots think that they can create a Gov in their own religious images? A more authoritarian president would not work and the constitution already makes it clear that we as citizens are owed Separation of Church and State.
Both men seem to ignore the constitution because they must believe they're smarter than the Framers.
Both do a lot of their preaching to the choir behind our backs. The day will come when both are out of office. Good riddance.
15
A great column but not enough of how. It's exactly what I was wondering. He must have felt like a colossal failure to start his career on such a high note and end with his reputation so destroyed. Maybe he was always a fraud, always an opportunist but even so his behavior under Trump seems far removed from even that level of ambition. If the military teaches one thing it's protect the team and that's the exact opposite of what he's done.
Now he will likely run for the Senate from Kansas but I'm hoping that state, while conservative has not lose it's moral compass. When asked a question he has no answer for he just puts on a smug smile and says nothing. Does he think he's too smart for the room? That everyone else doesn't get it? He's the only chosen one? If so, he must hate that Donald Trump is president.
Donald Trump was always a louse, he didn't change at all. But top of class at West Point, that's a Grand Canyon leap to where he is now and seemingly has no more thought about betraying that oath than about what to have for dinner.
I hope someone - you? - writes a book explaining how, short of alien abduction, he could betray those who worked for him for what, service to a higher order? His own agenda? Most people don't change much but maybe he was just very smart and morally bankrupt. Maybe those who knew him recognized it but true to their code, said nothing.
7
West Point cadets would shame him severely for his behavior right now. No boss, no matter who his/her subordinates are, should do what Pompeo has been doing. He, of all people, should know the difference between earning respect and getting just the respect the job commands. The former is what any decent supervisor or cabinet secretary ought to desire. The latter is nothing and the disrespect that Pompeo and the rest of Trump's cabinet deserve is far worse than any they are seeing now.
8
a wonderful article clearly proving that
mr. pompeo has shamed himself, his family, and his country
10
Thank you for your powerful piece of writing. I was moved by your words. Surely, this is a low point in our U.S. & culture. It reveals the level smart people will descend to when want, fear & power are in play. Please keep inspiring us with your words & wisdom.
11
Not being any good at school myself I shy from pointing out those who weren’t even in this out-of-the-norm almost but never deserving case. Grades don’t make a person but working for an administration that does so much bad and no good whatsoever does give pause and and maybe even cause however the writer and the publisher are still in the immoral blackhole of wrong, laziness and bullying.
2
The sad thing of all of this, is that Trump will be reelected. We are in times of confusion, where we no longer know what is good government. The USA is not alone. Just go down the continent and you will not find a nation that is clear of corruption.
USA foreign policy was clear, everybody knew for what it stood. American values were understood. Now, we no longer understand what are America's real intention. I think Pompeo does not have a clear view what Trump wants and the Republicans want. But we know, is not for the benefit of the majority of Americans. Trump is paying back to his friends in Moscow, in the East and Middle East.
When will the American people know the "wonderful" treaty with the Chinese? "Keep waiting...... the same way you are waiting for a treaty with North Korea ..........
America has a great foreign policy right now.... That is pure sarcasm....... Jefferson is having a hard time in his grave. In his memory Pompeo should resign.
4
Beware of Pompeo. Ambitious and well-connected on the right wing he may have his eyes on becoming President. From his behavior in this matter we see that he, like Trump, operates without shame making him likely to stop at nothing to win a presidential election.
10
As family of a Foreign Service Officer, we have been stunned by Mr. Pompeo’s silence in the face of President Trump’s assault on State Department employees who sacrifice so much in service of our country.
Stunned.
Our son has faced imminent dangers in his ten years of work in the foreign service. He has stood strong as colleagues literally give their lives. Because of his conviction and commitment to serve, he soldiers on. He looks to leaders like Marie Yovanovich for true inspiration.
Thank you, Mr. Friedman, for expressing so well the utter lack of support the current Secretary of State provides those who, like our son, traded in their prosperous private careers to serve. What a coward Pompeo is. He has not earned my respect, and I could not imagine ever voting for him.
Mr. Taylor? Another story. Oh, I could vote for someone of his integrity!
21
As an outside watcher of US politics I’m surprised at how Democrats have become party of choice of the military industrial complex and warmongers. They should be simply exposing corruption of pols like Trump and in the deep state (career civil servants). Put that $700 billion a year to better use (infrastructure and healthcare). These guys can live with 25 cents on the dollar for 4 years. If you do that, I’m certain the Europeans will be putting much more Euros to work on their self protection, much as they should. Poking a crippled bear like Russia in the eye just shows how being sore winners is impacting geopolitics. Btw, I don’t for a sec buy that Russia won the election for Trump. It was all dark right wing money doing that. Probably 100 times more than Russia could have ever done. Just see the amount of moneys being collected by right wings groups to spend in 2019. It is what Dems should focus on
1
Pompeo is a sterling example of how it takes a smart and educated person to really make a mess. A action by dull and uneducated person only affects a small number of people, however boneheaded decisions made by somebody who has power through brains and knowledge affects a much wider range of the population. Perhaps West Point might consider taking back Pompeo's degree since he has shown a lack of ethical and moral understanding that is hopefully expected from their graduates.
5
Brilliant piece. Thank you, thank you and thank you.
4
Others who have posted here have said it more eloquently but I wish to add my name to the chorus thanking Mr. Friedman for calling out Mike Pompeo. The majority of us knew what a despicable person Donald Trump was well before he descended the elevator to announce his candidacy. What we didn't know was the extent to which Republicans, especially those serving the Trump administration, also would prove to be without any ethics or honor.
9
Frankly, anyone who thought that Trump would appoint or tolerate public officials who did not put loyalty to him above any ethical or constitutional concerns was naive or self-delusional. Yes, at first he made some "mistakes," by appointing people like Mattis, who had integrity. But as time has passed, they were pushed out or resigned, once it was clear that they would not betray their oath of office or violate ethical norms on behalf of their leader. While Pompeo has certainly distinguished himself for his utter lack of scruples, he is certainly not alone--something Friedman should have pointed out. Consider Mulvaney, who can't decide which version of the Ukraine debacle will please Trump and keep himself out of legal jeopardy. Or Flynn, who not only lied on behalf of Trump, but also took bribes from Turkey. Or Miller, who has now been found out to be a vicious white nationalist. willing, nay, anxious to separate parents from children. And the list goes on. The faster we get rid of these sycophants and
betrayers of our country the better.
9
You hit it out of the park, Tom, so I will only add that the only man who can take the First Annual Yellow-Liver Award from Pompeo is Bolten if he doesn't take the stand.
9
William Barr too (ethics course required precursor to the bar exam).
6
Why be surprised? Pompeo is a man documented to have a temper in the workplace beyond acceptable scope. He is known to yell and bully people. Essentially, he is Trump and is only ethical if it is politically beneficial. Which, in the Trump world, is never.
8
As a formal US Naval Officer I find myself nothing short of appalled by Pompeo’s cowardice. I believe he knows better, but has chosen to trade his reputation and integrity for a chance to be close to power. His willingness to abandon the people that serve under him is unacceptable by any reasonable standard. Were he in armed conflict he would clearly be fragged - and he would deserve it.
12
It was Edmund Burke who observed that evil happens when good men [sic] do nothing. So it is heartening to see at last the discourse shifting from the base pedestrian arguments of just what is legal (is it bribery, extortion, against any department convention...?) to what is morally defensible and what standards matter to the American people. This shift has occurred it would seem due to the integrity of two ambassadors (Taylor and Yovanovich, a woman yet!) and a career bureaucrat (Kent) who actually spoke the truth.
And behold the people recognised it when they heard it - AND the msm is now reporting their appearances before the Impeachment Committee in these terms, at last disregarding all the noise and clamour of the Trump distractors and GOP dissemblers. How could they not? Have there ever been such dumb cringe-worthy performances as those put on by Republicans Jordan and Nunes?
The time has come - as Martin Luther King Jr, so clearly declared: "The time is always right to do what is right". America needs every journalist to do your duty - now more than ever. Mr Friedman has shown you how - in this article he has chosen not to walk past a standard he cannot accept but has rightly called Pompeo out.
8
I'd sell my soul for free parking at National Airport. Just kidding. I don't even live near there.
What do you expect from someone who was chief of the CIA?
Siplomatic integrity and ethic involves not mixing the state department and CIA.
The state department is pro diplomacy anti means of war. The CIA runs alongside the military and its unjust understanding of conflict.
So the problem is the former chief of the CIA with a military education becoming head of the state department. Thats the problem.
And there is always the threat of the executive in chief upon ambassadors who know international situations. Because one has lots of power and the other little.
Why are we even giving aid to the Ukraine? Because our military can't lean on russia? Because our diplomats cant call Putin a Soviet wimp?
And wouldn't any ambassador be concerned about the son of a presidential candidate making 50 grand a month from a company of the country they have an embassy at? Who has been in an out of rehab?
"You look out for your soldiers, you don’t leave your wounded on the battlefield and you certainly don’t stand mute when you know a junior officer is being railroaded by a more senior commander, if not outright shot in her back."
Well said, Tom Friedman.
Pompeo is a pompous, carnival barker, clearly triangulating for his next move.
An organization leads from the top, and everything a leader does and says permeates throughout. Fish rots from the head. It is appalling to me how he threw his subordinate - Ambassador Marie Yovanovich - under the bus by his silence.
Wow. What a boss. What a disgrace to West Point. I graduated from a northeast college across the river and to the south the same year as Pompeo - 1969. Last in his class on leadership.
I wonder what Kansas thinks.
9
The power players in this tragedy are getting worse by the day. It seems we have a mafia president and a gang of sycophants. An Attorney General, Secretary of State, Senate leader, and Cabinet, et al, poised and destined to historically brake all records for lawlessness, obfuscation of the rule of law, and constitutional integrity. The lemming Kool Aid drinkers are lost. How do we convince the independents and moderates to open their eyes before it is too late? Today the Supreme Court held up the lower court order to hand over Trump's tax returns in clear nose thumbing to existing law. We are in dire trouble if the nation does not stand up.
6
Selfish, no integrity, no ethics and unAmerican. I don't know how he sleeps at night. His West Point classmates must be really disappointed in Pompeo.
6
Excellent. Enough said.
2
Paul Krugman! Making Bellmore Kennedy HS proud!
2
But, but, Jesus endorses Pompeo for president because the Second Coming will occur during his term in office. At least, his public avowal of the Rapture would lead us to think he believes this. I have news: Zeus disapproves.
6
Trump presidency reduced many men character to mere rubble, no body will pity those.
3
Here's the thing. With only one exception that I can think of, Gen. Mattis, none who enter trump's orbit escape uncorrupted. There are differences among them. Some, like Barr, are corrupt before they start. Others, like Pompeo, are corrupted according to how closely they interact with him.
21:10 EST, 11/18
5
Pompeo is just one of the pitiful crowd that have debased themselves to become Trump's collaborators. He is certainly central to the list, he and Barr are the most dangerous. When they fail to protect America through justice and foreign policy I see only disaster ahead. The prospect of Trump re-elected is the end of us all. Who will protect us?
Only because of Trump's inner circle of inept pompous fools do we have an impeachment on the horizon. Sondland certainly takes this week's cake...cell phone call to his master indeed!
6
Yet another example of Trump's idea of "the best and the brightest?"
Reminds me of some of the places I once worked; where convenience ruled over competence in determining given positions.
14
I wonder who will attract more students when Yovanovitch and Pompeo teach their respective courses at university in the future? I know who I would prefer to learn from!
20
Pompeo stands in stark contrast to his predecessor at State. Say what you will about Tillerson, but at least he wasn't running for the Senate. Sec Pompeo is busy trying to burnish is right wing Kansas credentials on the back of his time at State. He is running rough shod over FSOs and international law. Who or what else will have to pay the price so he can replace Dorothy?
16
I think during these time we need to call on angels besides spreading our own good wills and kindnesses. This will produce the needed contrast - the way Ambassador Yovanovich out-shined her lost Republican opponents. Peace.
16
The military code of honor, like the oath of office a president takes, is just words that are easy to speak. To actually act honorably when it's hard, when there are risk and personal sacrifice involved, is character. I would rather have men and women of character in service of my country that any who just mouth the words as required of them.
26
My undergraduate study of international relations taught me that an ambassador is the personal representative of the sovereign, the President in our case. Tom Friedman misses this point and does not understand the ambassadorial game. True to form, Ambassador Yovanovitch has been shunted off to Georgetown University, where she will help train diplomats for a year or two. Thereafter, if again true to form, she could again be appointed an Ambassador, possible even by President Trump if he wins re-election.
5
@Donald: I think you missed the point - of course the President has the right to remove an ambassador (although not for illegal purposes, which seems to be the case here). But here he didn’t just remove her - he smeared and threatened her. Pompeo should have stood up for her at that point. Pompeo failed his integrity test.
74
Does an ambassador serve at the pleasure of the president, or of Rudy, Lev, Igor, and Donnie Jr.? Just asking.
6
Such a wonderful piece! It appears that one would have had to make a diabolical concerted effort to line up this current administration so devoid of honor or decency. But the current administration hand picked by Trump after trial and error feels like the one. Browbeaten and tossed out as official after official seemed unable to shake their morality, these "acting" officials seem to possess the missing ingredient so necessary for a Trump White House. Subserviency. The willingness to obey unquestioningly, lacking of morals or honor. The head of the State Department, Attorney General, Chief of Staff, NSC, Homeland Security, Energy, Education, EPA, on and on. Such devotion only found in a mafia organization.
Pompeo has lost his way from his days at West Point. His oath to the Constitution shredded. The Trump doctrine is to undermine American ideals and values, American foreign policy, American justice, ultimately to undermine the rule of law. With Republicans in Congress willing to pretend they support Trump all for their own political survival. It's a perfect storm. All those who follow Trump might beware. For no witnesses have been found who support Trump, investigations drum away in Washington and in New York, and remember, all roads lead to Putin.
25
@jeansch You correctly say "It appears that one would have had to make a diabolical concerted effort to line up this current administration so devoid of honor or decency" because that is what happened;This Administration was selected by misanthrope Bannon &Eric Prince, brother to Betsy DeVos,part of the Prince fortune & hard core,non-christian evangelicals who love to hate;they quote the OT but Jesus is in the New;they are not like Christ,& are not Christian;the back channels that people randomly speak of were the work of Paul Manafort who was don's campaign manager after 10 years of working on "Putin's Global Vision" which is to disrupt democracies, install dictators,& Manafort did this globally for 10 years paid $10 Mill per year by autocratic russian oligarchs;Brexit was one of his projects;he turned his russian back channels over to trump & that happened before 2016; in 2014 trumps son stated "most of our income is from oil deals we have with Russia;In Syria, don didn't care about abandoning Kurds,he only announced "we secured the oil"'Tom Friedman is being naiive to think the lying GOP wants to hold onto the $174K, their primo health care,their primo retirement funded by US,no they want all the "campaign donations" "purchased elections" the Kochs & gang of 1% provide them to do their bidding;the GOP has not represented "We the People" in decades &the only good Republican, an honest man, working for equality for blacks &poor was George Romny, father to feckless twitt.
1
Thank you, Mr. Friedman. If I were the leadership at West Point, I would be ashamed to claim Pompeo as a graduate.
32
"Pompeo knows very well that ... Marie Yovanovitch, was an outstanding foreign service officer".
I notice that nowhere does Mr. Friedman list any achievements Ms. Yovanavitch would presumably list on her resume. Indeed, as a self described crusader against corruption, her efforts were so spectacularly unsuccessful that the administration she claimed to advise was defeated in a landslide election for its epic failure change the dynamic.
In his "40 years of covering U.S. diplomacy" it's clear that
Friedman has never witnessed a president or Secretary of State that would question previous policies that not only condoned regime change in places like Iraq, Syria, Libya, Egypt... and Ukraine but insured that we would be forced to engage in perpetual wars to implement them. Russia didn't invade Crimea until Obama's State Department meddled in its internal politics and helped elect a new president whose administration was just as corrupt as the one he was replacing. The subsequent landslide victory of newly elected president Zelensky was a clear rebuttal of the establishment State Department Friedman so admires as well as minions like Yovanovitch it employed.
In the real world failure has a price. Apparently in Mr. Friedman's world and that of the diplomatic corps populated with the likes of Ms. Yovanovitch, failed policies and those intent on implementing them are to be rewarded while presidents that are elected and determined to change them are to be impeached.
5
@tim k
Who is that president to be? Trump
You got to be joking , aye
3
The Biblical warrant is on target. Still, an impression not difficult to garner is that Trump and his lackeys are being controlled by neo-con force and the resultant strategy, designed not only to inveigle the public as much as possible, but also to effect an absolutist stance towards Trump's re-election (sic), i.e. if he is, then that's fine with them and him, if not, then that's fine with him. It seems that much, if not all that passes for presidential phenomena is smoke and mirrors. Entertaining the idea that the President is a pathological liar is certainly disquieting. If assent to that, then the next logical step is equally so: that his dithering with the higher-ups in the Ukrainian government is so (smoke and mirrors.) It's probably designed to create space for Republican business deals instead of Democratic ones. Way back at the end of WWII and following that amidst the nuclear arms race and the icy cold war, the Soviets (Russians) were busily toiling away and in the process repaying every red cent of Lend Lease. How's that for integrity? Recall that all of the public opinion polls showed Trump a big loser in 2016. Now, with the scantest available evidence, at that, likely manufactured, of Russian interference in that now infamous event, the blame has been shifted to Ukraine. How convenient. Perhaps the Democrats are playing right along with Trump's tawdry melodrama in order to lend credence to the business about "our democracy" interfered with. Reality check.
History won't judge Pompeo, and the current Republican leadership kindly. Tom, thanks for writing such a powerful commentary. I am a Republican and these days I am absolutely ashamed at my party and its leadership. It is a shame that people could be so corrupt and would not hesitate to put their own interests before the Nation and the Constitution.
28
The contrast between the cowardly West Point grad Pompeo and the courageous West Point grad Bill Taylor could not be more stark.
45
And today, he proved his lack of integrity. The man has no redeeming qualities. In any other administration, he would be fired; with Trump, who loves illegal acts and the people who commit them, he is--like his phone call with Zelensky--perfect. And it could be that he has reached a point in his treason, that returning to Kansas to run for a Senate seat would be futile. But then Kansas has a reputation for sending crooks to the senate.
15
There's an incorrect premise to this op-ed piece. The premise is that Pompeo would see Bill Taylor, George Kent and Marie Yovanovitch as "his people" - him being Secretary of State.
It's obvious now much of the Trump administration doesn't operate that way. The only "people" who are Pompeo's "people" is Trump himself. The rest are just "deep state". Only Trump needs to be satisfied.
17
I am shocked at the naïveté of the public. You don’t keep someone who badmouths you behind your back in the team when you are running a large organization. Why in the world should Trump or Pompeo have kept her on ? Obama fired every ambassador on his first day in office. Frankly I would have let her go and not given her a cushy job at Georgetown.
2
@Unhappy JD, Obama gave notice to politically appointed ambassadors, as did Trump and other presidents before them. But not career diplomats, like Yovanovitch. Ms. Yovanovitch served multiple administrations, both Republicans and Democrats, with distinction. She was pushed out by the current president because her integrity would not be compromised. Don’t be naive.
36
@Barbara
As a former member of the Swamp and member of the DC Bar AND a former civil servant, I do not recall any distinction between relieving a political appointee vs. a career bureaucrat.
1
@Unhappy JD You are actually spreading more lies. She did NOT badmouth him behind his back. That is why people are deeming it a "smear". You don't smear someone with truth.
11
"his cowardly, slimy behavior..." But this ultimately resulted in the current exciting impeachment and he would be one of the heroes if Tramp fails in his 2020 reelection. He is a clever guy and may have (un)done everything by calculation.
1
Is Pompeo in cahoots with that other monumental disappointment, Bill Barr? Both men are religious zealots and on the face of it, their ultimate agenda has nothing to do with accepted Christian values and more to do with a strict and “repressive” ideology whereby they seek to suppress and punish sinners, women, LGBTQ people, people of colour, free thinkers. Both men gave speeches on Oct 11. Pompeo's speech was entitled, "Being a Christian Leader" and confessed that his religious beliefs enter into his decision making process as politician. Barr's speech to Yale Law School was even more direct, "He insisted that “the traditional Judeo-Christian moral system” of the United States was under siege by “modern secularists” who were responsible for every sort of “social pathology”, including drug abuse, rising suicide rates and illegitimacy.
Trump’s ineptitude is perhaps a means to an end in their grand scheme. Yovanovitch was disposable. They’re not after good government, they want a new world order that can only be accomplished by destroying the existing one. I bet they would do away with democracy in a second to seat themselves as ultimate rulers and dispensers of punishment in the new “theocracy”. Beware – if they get their way, Margaret Atwood’s Gilead is may no longer be a fictional place.
24
I’m guessing that Pompeo is more likely to join with Barr and the other swamp people to double down on their betrayal of the country for personal gain.
16
War mongers, power mongers, all will reveal their faces eventually. For power and money, they lie, cheat, steal and support policies that cost thousands of lives including our own citizens. Corruption is the acid that erodes their souls, yet they turn their faces with hands on their hearts and pray to God to save them. Trump of all people, unbelievable, this is the man that they are crawling over, like vipers in a den, to accomplish their deeds!
7
Mike Pompeo is a smarmy pleaser of the President. He also received the most money in the House of Representatives from the Koch Bros. while he served as their Representative from Kansas. And it was Mike Pompeo who delivered the so-called 'DARK Act' halting 30 plus states from enacting laws mandating the labelling of Genetically Altered foods (GMO's or Genetically Modified Organisms) - Pompeo pushed to do so by the Koch Bros. and their monetary support. Because of him, unlike 64 countries in the world, including China, our people's food packaging gives no indication of whether the food is natural or ridden with GMO corn, soybeans, soy lecithin, sugar (from GMO sugarbeets, estimated to be half of our sugar in the USA today), cottonseed oil or canola. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QJ3xYQA5xo for more details. The DARK in the DARK Act stands for Deny Americans The Right To Know. Besides backing waterboarding, and torture, going along with our bonespurred President, one has to wonder what kind of man this is who graduated from West Point but doesn't understand that such treatment of prisoners is unethical, and can lead the way to our own prisoners being treated in the same fashion. There are rules of the road for war that have been drawn up by our worldly civilization. Google Colin Powell. This current epoch is smeared with turncoat behavior that will more fully come to light as tax returns arrive for perusal, & rabid Republicans lose their savaging canine teeth.
6
My daughter with a fairly newly minted PhD in Asian Studies had hoped for a career in the State Department. There is an obvious "No one with a Conscience need apply" until the current occupant vacates and takes these cowardly fools with him. America is in peril.
18
He is so arrogant too. Wonder where he'll end up when all this is over? Surely not so full of himself as to think he could run for POTUS? The only way he could win is like his pal DT did; by cheating.
12
I suspect that Pompeo was well aware of of what Trump was up to regarding Ukraine and yet did nothing to stop it. Why? Instead, he sat by while this group of thugs threatened and smeared his own Ambassador who has honorably served this nation for 33 years. He basically allowed her to be put in danger and he did nothing. He signed on to her firing and never had the courage or the decency to defend her - or even talk to her about it! What a coward. But it does make me wonder if he is up to his eyeballs in all of this.
16
Shows you how little first in your class means. Btw. Seems like a lot of people have graduated from West Point first in their class. Can more than one be first?
9
Pompeo’s simply pitiful, but he is not as dangerous to our small “d” democratic republic as Attorney General William Barr. Sorry Tom, there is no rest. More work to do!
12
as Senator Lloyd Bentsen said to Dan Quayle," your no Jack Kennedy",, Mr Pompeo, your no Ambassador William Taylor!
11
Pompeo works for Trump.
Those who lie with dogs get up with fleas.
20
Pompeo was a poor choose from day one, the damage will now get progressively worse as Trump and associates see that they have a limited time to do their friends favors before the inevitable happens and they are no longer in power.
I expect this to get a whole lot worse in the coming days/weeks/months as they figure out they won't survive.
14
You express so well what the rest of us have felt "listening" to Secretary Pompeo's silence and wondering when he will step forward and do what he on so many occasions has sworn to uphold on behalf of this nation. His silence has become even more deafening after witnessing Ambassador Yovanovitch's sterling character and testimony. Thank you.
22
Pompeo is the poster child for closing the academies. They are an expensive anachronism that have outlived their usefulness and they are producing very questionable leaders. Refit them to train all new officers for military service after they come from other sources such as ROTC. I know that means we will have to give up academy football teams, but I think we can absorb the loss. And yes, I am an academy graduate and what I see today greatly dismays me.
24
More important than the failure to support members of the State Department, Pompeo has given "aid and comfort" to the Russians by permitting the three amigos to assist the Russians implement its objective in Ukraine, thus supplanting long standing US foreign policy.
While technically Russia is not waging war against the United States, it has always been involved in proxy wars against the United States since the beginning of the Cold War and such proxy wars continues today.
Thus, Pompeo and Trump's adherence to the will of Putin is tantamount to Treason. See Article III, Section 3 of the US Constitution: Treason against the United States, shall consist . . . or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort.
14
Those who act honorably will do so regardless of making an oath, and those who would not act honorably will be dishonorable despite making an oath. The making of an oath’s sole purpose is to remove any fig leaf of the responsibilities required to serve the requirements of the role. Below is the oath Mr Pompeo took as Secretary of State.
An individual, except the President, elected or appointed to an office of honor or profit in the civil service or uniformed services, shall take the following oath: “I, AB, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.” This section does not affect other oaths required by law.
Ask yourself if Mr. Pompeo lived up to this oath.
14
A travesty. Pompeo should be compelled to reimburse us taxpayers the cost of his West Point education - plus interest.
24
Pompeo’s craven behaviour to the people who work for him at state is shameful and unforgivable. Sadly, all this will be forgotten when he rund for Office in 2023.
15
Excellent column but a sad one. And a necessary one . Four black chapters on your country ‘s history that has to be told.
15
Thank you Mr. Friedman for calling a spade a spade. Pompeo has betrayed the oath to the Constitution. His aspirations to be President should be put aside forever as he no integrity; he is a disciple of Trump. "Drain the swamp"????? It only gets "swampier" day by day. God save us!
19
You got it correct. Everyone around Trump has debased themselves. Their courage is non-existent and they sell their souls for very little. The self-righteous moral superiority the Republicans have tried to sell for decades is completely gone. The Republican Party should be completely destroyed as the party of Trump if they continue to support this corruption. Pompeo and the rest are criminals. If they were not beg their engagement with Trump, they are now.
14
Tom - thanks for calling out this spineless and writing this column. I am almost embarrassed to admit that I am an Army veteran. His complete lack of support for these diplomats is a disgrace to him and the Office he holds. As a lifelong Republican I can assure you that I would never vote for this coward nor have I or would I ever vote for Trump.
19
Just remember, anything that comes out of the mouths of the swamp creatures associated with the White House are blatant lies.
16
Fine opinion piece, but how will you ever find a more "perfect" closing line ???
3
Those of us who were not West Point officers --but often served under them--knew that when the chips were down, they would do everything to protect their troops. Apparently, Mike Pompeo is not cut from that cloth but instead a tattered remnant of the pledge "duty, honor, country."
19
I do not disagree with anything in this essay. I was drawn to " anything to avoid giving up their $174,000-a-year salaries ". I think the dramatic rise in congressional salaries decades ago has backfired. Initially, it did pay individuals something approximating their value. In the long run we ended up with individuals, in particular Republican individuals, who know there is no way they would be valued at $174K outside there jobs. Not even half that would be the marketplace value of the likes Nunes and Lindsay. Imagine ones own salary dropping by a factor of 3; the temptation to choose to be corrupt would be powerful. Republicans in legislatures have chosen to be corrupt. Even the ones who chose to leave public service did so without any notable courage.They might find a need to get back to that $174K.
13
Strengthen and increase our admiration for honest dealing and clean thinking, and suffer not our hatred of hypocrisy and pretence ever to diminish. Encourage us in our endeavor to live above the common level of life. Make us to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong, and never to be content with a half truth when the whole can be won. Endow us with courage that is born of loyalty to all that is noble and worthy, that scorns to compromise with vice and injustice and knows no fear when truth and right are in jeopardy. Guard us against flippancy and irreverence in the sacred things of life.
Part of Cadet's Prayer
18
There are two distinct visions of the United States.
Trump, Pompeo, McConnell, Barr, and all complicit Republicans in Congress believe that our future needs to be stripped of the rule of law, with that rule to be dictated by one man, in this case, Donald Trump.
The other vision is the one put forth by the founding fathers, who declared that we didn’t want a king. Rather we wanted government of, by, and for we the People, with co equal branches of government that would provide checks and balances to prevent authoritarian rule.
The Republicans are not patriots.
They seek to replace our government with a Russian style authoritarian Oligarchy.
These enablers need to pay a severe price for being accessories to the crime that is now in progress.
28
As a retired military officer, I have strived right to live my life honorably and by the core values of my service in defending our nation. Now we are at a crossroads where all good men and women must do the right thing; otherwise the example provided to us by those before us will have been for naught. To Mr. Pompeo, I would remind you of our code of honor: “We will not lie, steal or cheat, nor tolerate among us anyone who does.” And that an officer always, always stands by his or her promise to support those he/she leads with conviction, humility and selflessness...so help you God. History will judge you by this sacred oath and promise you swore. God help you.
30
Skeptic that I am, I did not anticipate - could not have imagined - that those "drain the swamp" and "MAGA" slogans would manifest in:
> Draining honor, dignity and decency from the soul of our nation and;
> Making America Grovel At... the feet of the wicked.
And the world is watching, stunned as I am, to see us unable to awaken to the destination of this march to Golgotha.
25
@Kirk Bready
I can't let it go on that dismal note so, for peace of mind I'll add a fond hope and a prayer for healing:
2021 - Ms.Yovanovich is granted an indefinite sabbatical by Georgetown Univ. to accept her appointment as U.S. Secretary of State by our new Democratic President.
3
Pompeo as president, that's a joke; but then I thought the same thing before Trump was elected. The GOP can't come up with anyone better than him and Pence or God forbid Graham?
13
What has Trump got to hold over Pompeo, Graham, Haley, et al? Some really good stuff must have been dug up to keep them in line.
14
Money. Somehow, with Trump, it's always money.
15
@Carol
I think Graham is scared of something. The transformation is just too weird.
5
How did Hunter Biden make so much money in a country he had no expertise in? Further its was in the oil business which he had no experience in... All I see is corruption.
1
@Steph
Deflection is the drug of choice for supporters of Individual 1.
1) Hunter Biden did not commit any crimes. He is just as qualified to sit on a Board as a Director as any other Yale University graduate.
2) Vice President Biden did not commit any crimes.
3) Corruption looks like the current Administration having two unqualified children, BOTH of whom cannot acquire TopSecret Security clearances, working in the White House.
28
Hunter Biden was a lawyer and Joe Biden was a Member of Congress and vice president who was never corrupt. He was the poorest member of Congress.
16
What does Hunter Biden have to do with the content of this article?
8
One wonders if Pompeo is not just an idle and malevolent bystander but part of the larger conspiracy of delivering Ukraine to Putin on a platter by defaming and soiling its government while getting Ukraine to grovel by spouting lies on behalf of the Republicans. The shanda.
15
Thank you, Mr. Friedman, for writing this. Mike Pompeo is a disgrace to the armed forces in which he once served and to the State Department and this country's proud tradition of diplomacy.
He should resign in disgrace. Since he won't, it's up to every American to remember the appalling behavior he has demonstrated and make clear to him that he has no political future.
23
I warned all those conservative friends of mine in 2016 who thought Trump would be just fine; watch over time as he whittles away the experienced, honorable and ethical in the Administration and replaces them with toadies and sycophants.
It is the Pompeo's and Barr's of the world that Trump wants to protect him. If Pompeo weren't such a gutless and corrupt human being Trump would have had no use for him.
If that wasn't clear already Mr Friedman has put a point on it.
Thanks.
25
I am so glad to see such a good article which expresses what many of us think of Mr Pompeo. I am sickened by what Trump & Pompeo have done to our State Department.
29
Diplomacy may often fail, but seldom uses fools.
Apparently, in the case of Secretary of State Pompeo, we see a diplomacy that always fails (see Kim's recent answer) because it is led by fools.
9
I agree with Marylouise.
I'll just add that as a university professor, I am often skeptical of "first in their class" students. Indeed, I have found that students who have excellent but not unblemished records are much more likely to be truly outstanding than those in the #1 slot.
Often (not always, of course), the student who ranks first in terms of GPA or some other metric (I think at West Point it's a composite, no?) is far from the most thoughtful, hard-working, ethical, or creative. He or she is just the one who has worked the angles to get the rank: avoiding the tough classes, the principled stands, the courageous decisions, and often the real learning.
In this case, #5 Ambassador Taylor being head and shoulders above #1 Secretary Pompeo is a slam dunk. But even were no names or other information attached, I'd go with the #3, #4, or #5 any day.
17
My father taught at West Point for thirty-three years; I know he would have been deeply sickened by Mr. Pompeo's behavior - and by the thought that he is a graduate who was First Captain.
31
SNAFU in Trump world. By next week there will be another disgrace, and then another. But regardless, will there ever be any ethical defectors in the congressional zombie/Trump/Republican ranks ?
13
I didn't like much his badgering of Clinton on the Benghazi matter. He wanted all the witnesses and all the records then. However, his passion for Congressional responsibility to oversee administration activities has evaporated. I call it transactional integrity. I guess that people who work for Trump have not heard Dante's warning on the gates of hell. (With a slight modification" "Abandon all integrity, ye who enter"
28
#ImSoSickAndTiredOf of cowards like #Pompeo. Debasing himself for a unAmerican wannabe autocrat. Is this what is coming out of @WestPoint_USMA these days? What happened to code and honor? What an embarrassment to the honorable men and women of #WestPoint and @StateDept.
19
Bravo, Friedman! That was one of the most powerful and devastating columns you've written in a long time. We know that Pompeo wants to run for President in 2024, we know how much he sucks up to Trump, and we know from the New Yorker article of August 26, 2019, that he is a snake who is not to be trusted. He fully deserves the artillery you fired at him. If ethics were law, he'd be in prison right now! His behavior in the Yovanovitch affair has been disgraceful and utterly shameful.
32
"How can Pompeo think he’s got what it takes to make the hard decisions needed to lead a nation as president, and send soldiers to war, when he can’t make a clear-cut easy decision to protect one of his own diplomats from being smeared by people acting outside our system."
Easy answer: Trump is president now.
15
What still puzzles me is why almost half of the electorate voted for a man who used derogatory nicknames for his rivals starting in his own primary. "Little Rocket Man", "Sleepy Joe" and dissing Maria Yovanovich are what was to be expected. It's sad that republicans need to support him anyway for fear of losing his base and therefore their jobs. Respect to John McCain and Mitt Romney. I am an independent, but I have to sigh at the Republicans complaining that the impeachment investigation relates second-hand stories while they prohibit those with first-hand experience from testifying.
Ever since hearing President Trump stated that China is paying the import tariffs that are actually paid by American importers at the port of entry I can't believe anything he says. He can't expect me to take him seriously. I simply can't tell when he is telling lies and when he isn't.
25
If his lips are moving.....
11
If Pompeo was at one time a decent man with integrity, then it is indeed a tragedy to see such behavior. 45 is poison to work under but almost all of the current Republican Party behaves with little conscience. What a sad time for all of us.
17
In the name of equanimity let me be initially and sincerely charitable. Disagreement is okay. One can respect another with a different viewpoint. And one should.
But really since Newt Gingrich the GOP has become the party that sends other family’s children to war. Since Newt Gingrich and Roger Ailes and the omnipresence of the jingoistic flag pin on the lapel in lieu of real battlefield chops, we have in the GOP the party of cowards now epitomized by the Trump Administration and the Secretary of State.
If Sens McCain and Kerry were still in office they’d run such pretenders out of office.
The country waits for courage. The GOP shows us nothing.
Mr Friedman has this exactly right.
32
Elect a Democratic President next time, & then - Marie Yovanovich or Taylor or Kent for Secretary of State. Someone who will know how to go about repairing the damage.
17
Pompeo is Trump's student. He is learning the Trump formula for political success in today's Republican party. Mix one part cowardice with two parts villainy and stir. Don't be surprised if Pompeo gets what he most wants.
14
Brilliant. Thank you, Tom Friedman. You have exactly captured the self-debasement and moral failings so thoroughly on exhibit among Trump's coterie of knaves and fools. As something of a game I play with myself, I like to randomly flip through my knowledge of history to summon the closest analog I can find to the tragedy of the Trump administration.
The usual cliche asserts itself -- still, I cannot help but imagine Göring, Goebbels and of course Eichmann, who after all, was just following orders. Or the Dixiecrats, twisting Roosevelt’s arm lest any legislative effort to fight lynch law result in their hearty refusal to support the New Deal.
Welcome back, GOP. You’ve returned.
6
Is there a person or institution that Trump has not corrupted? He has the poison touch.
13
@dave
The Secretary of State is responsible for his own cowardice and depravity. Trump may well be the least ethical human since Stalin. But the Secretary of State makes his own bed. Trump can only corrupt the already unethical.
13
Thank you, Thomas Friedman, for this article - truer words were never written. He would kill his own mother to advance himself - no better than Trump in his behavior.
8
You have told it like it is, Mr. Friedman.
Pompeo is the very definition of cowardice.
He has taken his lessons at the knee of his master, President Trump. There is no person whose back he will not stab, no rock he will not hide under, no principle he will not abandon.
16
Well said, Tom. The overall attack on our State Department, our diplomatic corps and especially upon our Ambassador to Ukraine has been shocking to me. I am ashamed to be associated with such a coterie of thugs as we have in high places. Pompeo's strident arrogance in Egypt and now brazen pronouncement on Israel says much about his character and dangerous ideology.
8
Don't forget that the Bush (son) administration tried the same tactic under Alberto Gonzalez, justifying the firing of assistant U.S. Attorneys in New Mexico with false claims of performance problems, not hesitating to destroy reputations when it was politically expedient. Sound familiar?
"The removal of David Iglesias as U.S. Attorney in the District of New Mexico was perhaps the most controversial removal of all the U.S. Attorneys .. it appears that Sampson put Iglesias on the removal list sometime after October 17 based largely on complaints about Iglesias’s handling of certain voter fraud and public corruption investigations in New Mexico. . . .Iglesias revealed in early March 2007 that Senator Domenici had called him in late October 2006 and asked whether a specific public corruption case involving Democrats would be indicted before the upcoming November election. Iglesias later expressed publicly his belief that his removal was precipitated by Senator Domenici’s disappointment with the negative answer Iglesias gave him. At the same time, Iglesias revealed that New Mexico Representative Heather Wilson had also called him in October to inquire about the status of public corruption cases. We also learned that officials and party activists of the New Mexico Republican Party complained to White House and Department officials about Iglesias beginning in 2004." https://oig.justice.gov/special/s0809a/final.pdf
Wilson was former Secretary of Air Force under Trump.
7
West Point needs to rescind his degree for dishonor.
20
well he's secretary of state and you're not and his net worth is much higher than many others and we are in america so...
I would call Pompeo the Albert Speer of the Trump crowd if that were not unfair to Speer.
7
@Fred White
He shows no flare for architecture.
3
Shame, shame, he's dishonored his sisters and brothers at West Point and he's dishonored his nation.
15
This is my favorite Tom Friedman op ed piece EVER. (And I have been reading his work for more than 20 years.)
13
Pompeo is the Koch's boy;they built his businesses, in return, he did their corporate bidding;they paid for his campaigns for the Senate and he was known as the "Koch's Congressman". People delude themselves, with oh, he graduated from West Point, blah, blah, blah, or the enormous lie trump is a self made man; he's not, he inherited his wealth from his tax cheating father, was a terrible businessman who cheated consistently by never paying up and dared people to sue him because he could afford to wait and they couldn't;People who are addicted to faux need to have their fears calmed, despite the lies & propaganda faux feeds them;and they like knowing there are those worse off than they are, and those bad people deserve what their getting; faux only exists because going back to Nixon Republicans whined that the news treated them unfairly, they wanted a Republican news and professional fact spinners Gingrich & Norquist gave them what they want and the Koch boys demanded, along with 59 other things, that Reagan remove the "Fairness Doctrine" from the FCC. Loss of the Fairness Doctrine allowed the black hole of hate, AM radio, & their non-journalist, non-christian hustlers lie for money & then faux came along, the elixir needed to brainwash the emotionally needy and there you have don's base who love to hate,intimidate,discriminate as long as its not against them.
11
The swamp has finally been drained. And replaced with a large mafia style toxic waste dump site. And Pompeo and Barr are in charge to make sure it stays both foul and profitable.
14
I hope Mike Pompeo has to explain this column to his children.
20
Next spring, if Pompeo is asked to present the commencement address at the West Point cadet graduation ceremony, what could he possibly say to them?
10
Someday I would like to shake Ambassador Yovanovitch's hand. She is an American hero. No, she has never been in a gun fight. She has worked tirelessly for over 33 years to help protect U.S. interests abroad. We owe her more than a pension. She is owed a debt of gratitude.
28
Thank you Tom. Great column. We are lucky to have such dedicated diplomats. Mr. Pompeo needs to exit stage left.
15
Resign your office, Mr. Pompeo.
But before you do, speak out in support of Ambassador Yovanavich and her exemplary service to you, the state department and the nation.
Surely you must know that you are next. For the president will cast you to the curb, just as he did with John Bolton, General Mattis, General McMaster, General Kelly and Rex Tillerson. But don't resign for political expediency.
Do it because it is right.
And if indeed, you retained nothing from West Point on integrity, then at least remember this. Do not allow indecision to make the decision for you. When the window is barely open and shutting rapidly, there is still time, perhaps only a fraction of a second, to make the decision right.
24
My father (’40) and oldest brother (’64) graduated from the USMA at West Point. They both slept, ate, and breathed “Duty, Honor, Country” and a profound commitment to the Honor Code to do no wrong nor accept wrongdoing by others. Growing up in a military family, we all were expected to live up to that standard. I cannot fathom how Secretary Pompeo has fallen so far. Then I remember: he accepted a position reporting to this President, a man who has no honor.
46
Gratitude to your family
13
How is it that seemingly intelligent people such as Pompeo and Barr have allowed themselves to become mere minions of Trump.
What must one think of oneself to debase their character to such a low standard set by Trump.
Trump only holds the office of the president he does not personify it in any way.
I am truly scared for our country.
We have people of ability without character aiding and abetting a criminally minded individual with the title of President.
I am extremely concerned about Barr, who thinks that the president has powers akin to a king.
I am waiting for the results of his "criminal investigation" into the origins of the Russia investigation. I'm convinced that he will manufacture or twist evidence to exonerate and impede the impeachment of Trump.
Barr will attempt to legitimize this criminal administration so it can continue to terrorize the people of the U.S. and the world.
29
@NTS Short answer is : Greed, Fame.
9
You might want to consider Kashyap Patel's input(s) to
Trump's "knowledge of Ukraine corruption and conspiracy
theories" in light of Vindman's exclusion from NSC-Trump
meeting(s) in order to "avoid presidential confusion" about
who was the NSC expert on Ukraine. (It is in Vindman's testimony) How and why Kashyap Patel was giving President Trump advice on the Ukraine is potentially an interesting story on its own.
12
Pompeo obfuscated the fact that he was witness to the July 25th phone call, in essence misleading at best, at worst lying to the press that he overheard Trump's attempt at bribery.
Not in his portfolio, but this West Point grad had no influence over Trump when the President pardoned 3 American war criminals.
And just this afternoon, he declared that Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian West Bank are legal, defying international law.
24
Pompeo (a Dickensian name if ever there was one) has chucked his West Point credentials and is aiming for a Masters degree from Trump University in thuggery and character assassination in their disHonors program.
30
Allow me to associate myself in every way with Mr. Friedman’s column.
My blood boiled at the injustice of the mistreatment of Ambassador Yovanovich.
And frankly, her gender was a factor in my indignation.
Perhaps that dates. me. So be it. I can not abide wanton cruelty to women.
I think of one of my favorite stanzas from Rudyard Kipling’s Epitaphs of War, entitled ‘Raped and revenged.’
One used and butchered me: another spied
Me broken—for which thing an hundred died.
So it was learned among the heathen hosts
How much a freeborn woman’s favour costs.
I don’t know how Pompeo can look at himself in the mirror.
I really don’t.
How could he stand by and watch that take-down, silently?
19
Tom....truer words never spoken...thank you very much for putting into clear words and context.
13
While thinking about Pompeo's unethical conduct in his role as Secretary of State, I started wondering what kind of behavior he participated in while “undercover” as the Director of the CIA. To my surprise, I found a very pubic answer when I consulted Wikipedia where Mr. Pompeo is quoted in a July 23, 2019, Newsweek article about his April lecture at Texas A&M University. The article states, “Pompeo shared a personal anecdote as "a bit of an aside" how he came to defy his West Point honor code stating that"a cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do." He admitted: "I was the CIA director. We lied, we cheated, we stole. It was like we had entire training courses...it reminds you of the glory of the American experiment."
19
Pompeo fits the description of born crooks who stay deeply involved in world of lies,deception,dishonesty and disloyal to duties.
17
The career comes first, character and integrity can be sacrificed. This reflects poorly on West Point, are they doing a good job educating students? Why would a intelligent person work for Trump? They don't.
15
In fact, Pompeo did take an oath to our Constitution more than once. By placing his by his oath of loyalty to Trump above his 1st and only important path, he places our liberal democratic republic at risk. He places everything America stands for, everything my father fought for in WWII, and everything men and women gave died for at risk for the bases reasons if all: personal gain. He looks weak because he is weak. As a family member of a West Point graduate, he embarrasses me. As an American, he infuriates me. Small men need to retreat. Character counts.
23
I'm ever grateful for your father's service for our country.
4
Such a wonderful piece! It appears that one would have had to make a diabolical concerted effort to line up this current administration so devoid of honor or decency. But the current administration hand picked by Trump after trial and error feels like the one. Browbeaten and tossed out as official after official seemed unable to shake their morality, these "acting" officials seem to possess the missing ingredient so necessary for a Trump White House. Subserviency. The willingness to obey unquestioningly, lacking of morals or honor. The head of the State Department, Attorney General, Chief of Staff, NSC, Homeland Security, Energy, Education, EPA, on and on. Such devotion only found in a mafia organization.
Pompeo has lost his way from his days at West Point. His oath to the Constitution shredded. The Trump doctrine is to undermine American ideals and values, American foreign policy, American justice, ultimately to undermine the rule of law. With Republicans in Congress willing to pretend they support Trump all for their own political survival. It's a perfect storm. All those who follow Trump might beware. For no witnesses have been found who support Trump, investigations drum away in Washington and in New York, and remember, all roads lead to Putin.
17
Since you mention moral codes, it should be recalled that the code at West Point, and elsewhere, is that a cadet "will not lie, cheat or steal, nor tolerate those who do." That second point could make it difficult for a stronger person to serve in this Administration. I suspect that Sec. Pompeo faces no such moral challenge.
19
Unalloyed political ambition fueled by a right wing agenda that willfully disregards the honorable precepts of governing as outlined by the Constitution defines who Pompeo has become. Whatever ethics he may have had have been thrown under the bus in order to serve a President corrupt, cruel and patently inept. To have allowed career public servants, loyal, hard working patriots, to be smeared or removed from office without justification reveal profound character deficiencies which belie Pompeo's having graduated first in his class at West Point. Had he stood up to Trump and defended vigorously and without equivocation those who work for him - and for the United States - he might just have taken out the cheap, hot air which inflate the repugnant polemics voiced in Congress by the likes of Graham, Nunes, Scalise and Jordan. Let us hope for the sake of our democracy that 2020 will see an electorate choosing truth and integrity - despite the collective GOP refusal to acknowledge scurrilous, reprehensible behavior and to act on it accordingly.
16
A few weeks ago I made the exact observation about Mike Pompeo on the Huffington Post. Namely, that his number one ranking out of West Point does not comport with his indefensible lack of leadership of the diplomatic corps, and, given the Honor Code West Point Cadets subscribe to, he brings dishonor upon that institution.
Kudos Mr. Friedman for making an even better, more eloquent and thoughtful, observation and indictment of Mike Pompeo. Your comments shall be reassurance to West Point attendees past, present and future that their subscribing to the obligations and values of The Point and military service writ large are in keeping with the best of American values. Mike Pompeo is to be pitied for losing his way in the fog of Trump. He's not alone in that space.
23
Being a tribal person, is what politics is all about, and therein lies where the problems arise. The very fact that George W. Bush won the election in 2000, Obama in 2008, and Trump in 2016, should tell you everything you need to know about what can go wrong, what did go wrong, and how we need intelligent, moderate people elected as President, and to Congress. There are a few of them on both sides of the aisle, but only a few. Anyone that believes that we got here by another other route than by those who were arrogant, ignorant, and all three of the last Presidents weren't those for the job, that is what the issue is. Until we understand, that war is a last resort, and should be avoided at all costs, except for stated missions, and a good defense, that debt is bad, and that taxes are necessary for the infrastructure that is crumbling, the nurturing of the young through excellence in education, the care of both seniors, and those in the immigrant community, who do most of our manual labor jobs such as childcare, nursing home workers, hospitality, landscaping, meatpacking, roofing, etc., that we need, and can't treat like dirt, we will understand little, nor will be have a country that succeeds.
6
I reject your premise. There is no commonality between President Trump and Presidents Obama and Bush.
The later 2 were by no means perfect but at least tried to serve all Americans and told the truth with exceptions while Trump is their polar opposite
21
Throwing Obama in with Bush and Trump? Careless false equivalence equals lack of critical thinking.
23
One of Tom Friedman's best columns. Pompeo also must have skipped 'Army Officer Backbone' class. As much as I loathe John Bolton, he at least stood up to Trump and was consequently shown the White House revolving door, like so many before him.
I hope Bolton testifies in the impeachment hearings and holds nothing back. Pompeo wouldn't have the guts.
26
You're absolutely right on all counts. Pompeo has debased himself, West Point, the State Department, and the Country with his "breathtaking acts of craven political cowardice." But just to keep it in perspective: in the Trump administration he's the best we can possibly hope for. Wilbur Ross, Mnuchin, DeVos, Barr, and many other easily forgotten "acting" cabinet members who are really industry lobbyists in the best-case scenario, have turned this into the most corrupt, lawless, grifting Administration possibly in our history. So, for now, I guess we'll have to take Pompeo. At least he hasn't shot anyone on 5th Avenue yet.
9
Pompeo demonstrates that intelligence (first in class) has no relationship to integrity, character and patriotism.
25
Pompeo/ Haley in 2024. If Trump Resigns, 2020. You folks don’t understand, ALL this is a huge Plus, among the Base.
There IS no bottom.
6
@Phyliss Dalmatian You're right. I don't understand.
A "huge plus" for whom?
3
Trumps Base. Here is Kansas, they will bear any pain to be able to “ stick it to libruls “. And bonus points for denying ANY money to any non-white person, Anytime, any place. Pompeo could be elected as their Senator tomorrow, by a very wide margin. If Trump finally goes down, HE will take the Seat, until he runs for President.
3
"How can Pompeo think he’s got what it takes to make the hard decisions needed to lead a nation as president..."
I don't know about the rest of that stuff but since November 8th 2016 every US born citizen with a pulse has (unofficially) had what it takes to become president.
7
@Echis Ocellatus Huh? We didn't have what it takes before that date?
@kenneth
There was a prior consensus that competence had to have been demonstrated first.
5
Hard for me personally to comprehend how it is possible to graduate first in your class at West Point and yet be so completely unwilling or unable to stand up for the people who work for you. I would have expected that profound failing in anyone in any sort of leadership position to have been identified by the WP training process.....
12
The Last Days of Pompeo
28
The bigger question raised by this column is how such behavior protects someone politically and enhances the chance to become president. The likely answer to that is a sickening indictment of what we have become, as people and as a nation.
9
Funny I don't remember similar outrage when President Obama fired every ambassador pointed by President GW Bush.
Apples and oranges. And people are appointed (not pointed).
12
@I want another option
Hm. I searched the news archives to see if this was true and all I could find was your exact statement on Breitbart and other alt right outlets. Please state your actual news source for this.
14
@I want another option
Funny I don't remember what "pointed" has to do with this story. I want another option.
7
Obama fires every ambassador appointed by Bush - for no reason - and the liberals celebrated - after all that’s the president’s prerogative.
Trump fires one ambassador - who actively worked against the president’s policies - and the liberals whine - after all that’s not the president’s prerogative.
Hypocrisy abounds.
1
@Informed Voter
This is irony, right? From an Uninformed Voter.
10
@Informed Voter : And the president's policies were.... not to benefit the USA but only to benefit the re-election of Trump in 2020. Do you see the difference?
8
Seriously, did you not read or watch the testimony’s of Ambassador Yonvanovitch? She served under Republican and Democratic administrations, and that is the norm for professional Foreign Service Officers. Typically/historically, only the non-professional diplomats (political appointees) get asked to tender their resignations at the time there is a change in administrations. Interesting, Ambassador Taylor (a non professional diplomat) remained as the Ambassador to Ukraine under President Obama from January to September 2009. He then remain in State Department service until 2013.
6
William Taylor who is in the State Department and a witness in this impeachment inquiry is also a graduate of West Point and a former captain and company commander in the United States Arm who served in the Vietnam War and earned a Bronze Star (basically awarded for heroic or meritorious actions in a combat zone).
Mike Pompeo, in spite of graduating number one in his class at West Point, does not appear to have ever seen combat during his service in the military. He also didn't correct a lie in the public record that had him serving in the Gulf War - others had to do that.
Tell me who you would rather have watching your back?
16
Pompeo is a coward, a sycophant, a dissimulator, a bully and an impostor. In short, he is an exemplary contemporary Republican office holder. He will go down in history as the modern Secretary of State who did more harm to the morale of the foreign service than any other, including the lamentable Rex Tillerson. His abject obeisance to Trump will not make for good reading for his family and friends when his obituary is written...
20
The President fires a minor ambassador. The Secretary of State threatens to resign in protest. The President hardens his position. The Secretary resigns.
Yeah, right.
And we know that would not happen because Mike Pompeo did graduate first in his class. That's because he is not dumb.
2
@John Xavier III
No, he's not dumb. Just not much of a leader.
4
Wow! Simply wow! What is our nation coming to?
7
With apologies to John Huston: "Morals? We don't need no stinkin' morals..."
4
Pompeo's behavior calls to mind that of President Eisenhower, USMA 1915, who failed to defend George Marshall against the smear attacks of Joseph McCarthy.
4
As long as there is Fox News, our nation will suffer.
16
Shame on Mr. Friedman, someone supports the agenda and policies of the elected President is doing exactly what honor demands. The fact that others (a/k/a losers), disagree with these agendas and policies is irrelevant.
The true traitors are those members of the Deep State who worked to undermine the President, knowing their efforts were intended to deny the success earned through the democratic process.
@John Yes, how dare people oppose a president's actions?
Having an independent opinion?
Downright unAmerican.
6
@John: If people with honor and integrity refuse to aid a lying and cheating "president" then in a civilized society we call them "hero", not loser. If Trump's agenda is to smear dirt on his political opponents -like here in Ukraine case- then there is a word for it "Treasure and bribery".
9
@John All handlers who have supported the agenda of Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin and a host of other dictators insured their democratic countries would die a slow death. They are not sworn to follow anything or anyone except the Constitution. Blind faith never walks straight.
3
Yeah but, you see, Pompeo is "doing god's will."
And if you believe that....
10
In the old days, a military leader like Pompeo would have been fragged. Perhaps the people of Kansas will do so (symbolically speaking) by not allowing this berk to go to the Senate.
6
@ME In "the old days," many readers would have understood what you meant by "fragged."
Don't forget that Pompeo has been a Koch favorite for years. He is also a dominionist who has a theo-fascist vision for the United States and the world.
People like him do not assume and accrete power by acting with honor and integrity.
Their game is merely to concentrate wealth/power—at any cost.
16
Mr. Friedman, it’s unfortunate that this behavior is now commonplace in in American private industry. Nobody in leadership roles take responsibility; it’s always someone else’s fault, usually someone weaker.
It’s a shame that America is no longer exporting its “exceptionalism”. Instead it imports all the bad behaviors of third world countries.
9
Mike Pompeo must resign now,before he does further harm to the integrity of the country.And also to his own reputation and past laurels. If he feels that remaining silent to his "master's" misgivings will win him votes in the future( he has set his sights on a Kansas seat ) he is sadly mistaken. He just has to look at recent democratic wins in red states. So please do us all a favor and resign. The position requires a man of responsibility and a backbone. And you have none of those qualities.
11
And if Pompeo did resign, what honorable, decent person loyal to the Constitution would accept being appointed “acting” (no confirmation process needed) Secretary of State? Would we want any person who would accept that appointment to fill that time under this president?
1
There is nothing to add. Thomas Friedman described Pompeo's lack of character perfectly.
Thank you, Sir. This needs to be shouted from the rooftops. History will not remember the trump administration well.
As an Army veteran, I would not have wanted to follow Pompeo into battle. Good leaders such as Robert Mueller and William Taylor, James Mattis and Colin Powell are those we respect and follow.
Shame on Pompeo. He has done this to himself.
9
And yet even Colin Powell betrayed us when he went on national TV to lie about weapons of mass destruction that lead us into an immoral and illegal war that has devastated the Middle East and more. Why did that man of intelligence, experience and honor feel he had to support that illegal action?
1
Thank you Mr. Friedman. When we see someone in a powerful position perform - or underperform - the way Pompeo has, we need to call it out.
10
Only a minor quibble with this column--in comparing Secretary Pompeo to Congressman Nunes and Senator Graham, you say that they're GOP politicians. As if Secretary Pompeo is not. Lest you forget, he was previously a GOP congressman and is apparently considering running for the Senate from Kansas. Every day he continues to "serve" as Secretary of State he brings dishonor on himself and this county.
16
Right now it seems as though the career diplomats are the only ones holding this government together. The least Mike Pompeo can do is support them.
12
Mr. Friedman, if you were here with me I would stand and applaud you!! But, I will do so nevertheless.
14
@Mort Glazer
Joining you in applause from neighboring Nottingham!
2
Sec. Pompeo had the opportunity to speak up for his diplomats again today but failed to do so. That shows me his character. His low character.
13
The article should mention that Pompeo listened in on the Trump and Zelensky 7/25/2019 call. He was also fully aware of the Giuliani efforts with Ukrainian officials and finally has refused to testify before the impeachment inquiry proceedings. It's obvious he's part of the Trump team and the bribery scheme that was hatched.
23
Tom, thanks for this excellent analysis. I don't knw how Trump's minions hold their heads up. What a disgrace to our country and everything it stands for. I hope we will see an end to this administration soon, as we cannot take another Trump administration.
11
Thomas L Friedman puts into honest words what many of us cannot because we do not have his excellent writing skills, perspective, and so much more. This is why we have a Free Press, and journalists such as Thomas L Friedman to alert us to crummy government leaders such as Mike Pompeo.
13
West Point needs to distance themselves from the Sect State with a public statement. Today the oath all cadets take is a joke if the #1 cadet displays such cowardness and lack of leadership. Otherwise, eliminate the oath as it's meaningless. Shame spreads to the Corp from the WP "leadership" team in Washington.
12
Mike Pompeo has presidential aspirations?
With his singularly unappealing personality, who, outside of himself and his bloated ego, does he imagine will comprise his constituency?
The 25-30% (and falling) of the country that are Trump supporters? Even Trump's supporters will identify him as Trump's boot-licker, not Trump's heir apparent.
11
Spot on! Everyone Trump touches he corrupts.
11
@Robert Antall
Pompeo was a loser long before Trump got near him.
6
@Robert Antall
I think it's more he attracts those who are already morally corrupt, but it amount to the same thing, doesn't it? I suspect we'll be reading for years about the intricate web of corruption woven around Trump; there will be essentially no end to the revelations.
6
Me, money and Trump have replaced Duty, Honor and Country in Pompeo's world. History won't be kind
12
How can anyone object to the abuse and denigration of good people like Ms Yovanovich, then they turn around and use terms like slimy to describe Pompeo?
I think Mr friedman , seeing how the White House lives in the gutter and , celebrate and gloryies in it's use of thuggish and debased bahavior, may have become too comfortable and conversant with such terminology. Wasn't the point to rid the nation and planet of the corruption of this criminal administration-not to imitate it and make it's tactics standard fare among US pols and scribblers?
4
“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, but lose his soul?” — Mark 8:36.
Pompeo and the rest are not even gaining the whole world. Not even Wales!
7
But they did try to buy Greenland.
7
Oh, dear. I hope his craven capitulation to Trump's son-in-law in support of West Bank settlements is not Pompeo's vengeance upon your column of today. Possibly he hasn't the petulance of his boss, but you leave no doubt, he has his morals.
6
Sec. Pompeo is one of the most despicable members of the current GOP. The disgrace and cowardice he brings to this country, as he betrays our diplomats, will be his legacy. Good luck with a presidential run.
11
What's Pompeo getting out of this? Becoming senator from Kansas was floated for a while but that seems too small a job now. President, maybe? He sees himself as attractive to those who dwell on the far right. He's been involved with the Tea Party. He's had working relationships with the Koch brothers. He's connected with conservative Christian groups. And he'd get Trump's endorsement, important to a large group of voters. From what we see, he'd stop at nothing to win that prize.
11
An honor code means nothing. It does nothing to improve a man's character,which is already baked in prior to taking the code. It is a badge of honor if you follow it, but just as easily a shield of deception if you are someone like Pompeo.
9
Thank you, Tom, for saying in print what we all are thinking.
Michael Pompeo has disgraced himself, but not the Academy or the State Dept. Unlike him, the most honorable people have distinguished themselves in both these places. It's my hope that the cadets and diplomats realize we have separated Pompeo from them and that we're thankful for their sacrifice and love of the country.
I can promise them he will be shunned.
7
Anyone remember the book "Blind Ambition," written by John Dean in 1976. Just so obvious about a lot of these higher echelon figures in "service to the public"....it's about them. And now you see many of the career public servants who have served the nation well disparaged by the current administration.
6
Michael Cohen said "everyday when we can to work every employee of the Trump Company knew that our #1 job was to keep Mr. Trump out of trouble". Sounds like the organization changed but the motives are the same because Mr. Trump can't help but get in trouble.
16
@Tom Hartman
He's a mob boss pure and simple. It's not working well as president. and it's destroying the country's present and future.
11
Well written Thomas, and I second your thoughts. One would expect more from anyone who is top of their class- particularly West Point. Unfortunately, Pompeo never expanded on that success at West Point, and became nothing but a partisan opportunistic imp devoted not to his country but to his tribe the GOP. How tragic.
12
“Pompeo’s own future political career.” Now that’s laughable every single person in this administration that aided and abetted this administration will either end up in jail or at the very least have doomed any future political career. But hey this is the GOP of today so his culpable and unethical acts may well be held in high regard by a select few truly deplorable people.
6
Yovanovitch was interested in corruption in Ukraine except two, one involving Biden and the 2016 election meddling by Ukraine officials. These are the two ones Trump was interested. She was not interested to do anything that would have negatively affected Biden. Otherwise, she would have shown some interest in Hunter Biden and Burisma as she was coached by Obama people how to answer questions related to them in her confirmation hearing. Also, she had shown no interest when Ukraine ambassador was writing article in news papers criticizing Trump and Ukrainian minister disparaging Trump in Facebook as testified in the open hearings. Tom's disparagement of Pompeo of won't negate these facts.
3
@Alex E
This is just a repetition of the distortions and lies put forward by the Republicans. The Biden stuff is garbage. She wasn't "coached"; listen again. The "election meddling" stuff is an absurd false equivalence trick. She answered the question about the Ukrainian ambassador's column before being cut off because her answer made obvious sense. This is just you continuing the smear campaign. Trump is a criminal lunatic, Pompeo is complicit, and you're changing the subject with baseless slurs .
14
Mr. Friedman you are spot on. Pompeo has sold his soul for personal gains. He has placed his own desire for advancement above the duties & responsibliites of his office. He represents not the US but a man-child ranting & raving
while tweeting nonsense in the WH. History will ask how could someone who was first in class ar West Point,[ quite an achievement] fall so far? History has the answers for throughout time there have been those who have traded thier integrity and honor for a few pieces of gold. Pompeo will be noted as one such person. Pompeo was a very conservative congressman from a district in Kansas. He campaigns were financed in good part by the Koch brothers. He is in the marrow of his soul an extremely conservative person who has a limited view of the world. How pafthetic that a person who is so desperate for advancement in the public sector sell his soul & pledge fidelity to a moral & ethicaly bankrupt president. I am
not surprised that he did not defend the various State Department personal who have called Trump out on his reckless foreign policy agenda . I am not surprised that he allowed Rudy to run roughshot over the state department. Now it comes out that Trump is "mad" at his State Department. Will he throw Pompeo under the bus?
There is always a price to paid for selling one's soul. Pompeo will eventually pay that price. The US will pay a price for having Pompeo as SOS & Trump as president .
10
Power corrupts.
I can’t prove this, but I imagine when Pompeo looks at his face in a mirror he quietly mutters “President Pompeo”. I also can’t prove this. When Pompeo looks at the political terrain ahead he sees at least a dozen contenders for Trump’s throne with Trump’s base in the Republican Party up for grabs. He will do nothing that sullies his reputation with them. The cost of his stance to the rest of the American nation is immaterial.
Power corrupts.
6
All we need to know is that Secretary Pompeo is a Koch frontman for the Tea Party and the Evangelical community. He has violated his Oath to defend the Constitution. His tenure as Secretary of State has been a disaster and he is a disgrace to his office. It will take years to clean up the mess called the Trump Administration.
21
What goes around comes around.
There's no way Pompeo is not going to get his.
15
Thomas graduated first in his class at J-school in lying about and attacking anyone being a strong example of American leadership.
Thomas could have tried to get his failed party to produce the next Harry Truman or John F. Kennedy - real leaders who built up the U.S. a best they could.
Instead, Thomas understands his role as an attacker of anyone who is getting good things dome for the country so the progressive voters won't see Democrat nominees as that much worse than what they've been seeing.
Oddly, the progressive Left LOVES American Secretaries of State if there is a chance their words can be warped into an attack in the Prime Hate Target of the day, this American President.
They love that kind of Secstate as much as the Russian moneyed class loved Hillary Clinton and her uranium deal. Now THAT is a SecState that the Left can love.
2
@L osservatore Nobody reading your post will overlook the glaringly obvious, namely that you have not uttered one single word in defense of Pompeo's despicable actions, which Friedman has chronicled in a cogent fashion in this piece.
12
Putin cannot believe his luck, how President Trump is deconstructing American interests and foreign policy.
20
The odd phenomenon of generally respected men (almost all are men in this case) losing their moral compass under Trump may be simpler than it looks. Both Barr (as several recent public speeches make clear) and Pompeo are fundamental Christians. That's fine, but not they have a higher loyalty to that view of the world, than loyalty to country. Here's a link about that conflict for Pompeo: https://www.thedailybeast.com/atheists-secular-groups-up-in-arms-over-state-department-boosting-pompeos-christian-leader-speech
8
One of the first rules you learn and responsibilities you accept as a military person in a position of authority is “take care of your people”.
Pompeo knows this. That he chose to not follow that rule or accept that responsibility so he could please Trump tells everyone all we need to know about what kind of man he is. He deserves no respect and certainly no support of anything he tries to do in the future.
Pompeo, Barr, Graham, Nunez - Trump certainly know how to recognize kindred spirits... And to play them.
9
@MW One of the first rules you learn and responsibilities you accept as a military person... is “take care of your people”.
Actually, as someone who has spent some time with the military, I recalli being told on multiple occasions that the first rule is "cover your butt."
3
Morality, Integrity, Ethics : In the new-world-order of D J Trump, these are just simply words. Let's face it, in this new reality the Christian right, the Evangelic crusaders and the moralists; those who are normally the drum majors of righteousness, are now all devotees of Trump. America, we have a problem!
4
Pompeo most likely does not have a moral code. He appears sycophantic around Trump.
6
Now we hear that Pompeo is considering a run for U.S. Senate in Kansas.
Just what we need—another Trump lackey/flunky/lap dog without any ethics or morals to speak of, voting the way Mitch McConnell dictates, while indulging in all the perks a Senate seat provides.
To the dear people of Kansas: You deserve much better than Mike Pompeo.
9
Wow! What a courageous column. The stench coming from the White House must be unbearable.
12
Barr and Pompeo - the two most powerful and influential cabinet members - ignore their ethics and oath to preserve and protect the constitution. Instead, they become lying, lawless Trump enablers and toadies. How shameful, appalling and dangerous.
11
It is a sad time in America when those in Power use their Office to undermine our values. Hang your flags upside down because we are in crisis.
9
Brilliant takedown of the egregious Pompeo. I can't wait to read your essay on someone much worse, AG Barr. Without the rule of law, what have we got?
13
This former military man lost control of one of our premier and storied departments to .....Rudy Giuliani and a couple of Russian punks. For what? A gas deal? Unsubstantiated rumors about the son of one of the president’s rivals?
What was in it for him?
14
Ah, compare Friedman's moral clarity and ability to articulate it to, say, Bret Stephens or Ross Douthat. No comparison possible.
Thanks Mr. Friedman.
And you probably hit the nail on the head: Pompeo imagines he has a political future. Maybe he does. But only as a gas bag on Fox News.
9
Whoever the Democrats choose for their 2020 candidate, they should also consider Yovanovitch for Secretary of State...?
5
"How can Pompeo think he’s got what it takes to make the hard decisions needed to lead a nation as president, and send soldiers to war, when he can’t make a clear-cut easy decision to protect one of his own diplomats from being smeared by people acting outside our system."
It's not rocket science, Tom.
Pompeo think he's got what it takes because he is a Dominionist Christian who believes the US should be an theocracy. And he's helping Trump turn us into exactly that.
6
Ambassador Yovanovitch made me proud of America again. I am so grateful for that. We do have diplomats and patriots and scientists still in government that are working for what is best for America and the world. They are being stifled, oppressed and threatened by this corrupt administration, including Pompeo at the head of the State Department who is an adherent to evangelical religious beliefs and a Trump stooge. Religious beliefs have no place in our government by design. Separation of church and state is essential for our diverse county. We don't want to become like Iran or Saudi Arabia. Pompeo represents religious takeover like Iran except in this instance it is evangelical Christian beliefs that guides him and provides his inspiration. No better than Sharia law.
9
Such innocence. West Point ethics are amoral like all "American Exceptionalism" ethics--that is, wink, wink. The end justifies the means, might is right ethics. USA history is tainted with anti-democratic policies throughout the world. So, don't be shocked when the modus operandi the US military uses throughout the world is brought home for optimal effect.
6
West Point classmates Pompeo and Esper are the Rosenkranz and Gildenstern of the Trump administration. While not all graduates may feel the way I do, I find both these guys are an embarrassment to the Academy. Esper agrees to go along with spending appropriated DoD money on the worthless border wall while robbing installations of needed infrastructure improvements. Then he acquiesces in letting Trump make a mockery of the military justice system by pardoning service men convicted of serious war crimes. If he had any integrity, he would have resigned. Now Pompeo is defying international law and State Department precedent by giving Israel the OK from the US to build settlements in the West Bank. Give me Bill Taylor any day as an example of Duty, Honor, Country. Not these two guys.
20
Thank you. You voice what so many of us feel and think. Pompeo has no sense of decency. Takes after his boss.
8
Bravo! Thank you so much for this piece.
8
I’m sure that Pompeo and Trump saw this op-Ed today. So did everyone at the State Department.
But just in case they didn’t, Nicole Wallace just covered it on her MSNBC show this afternoon. Wonder what response they are cooking up for dinner tonight?
15
Republican response, soon to be heard in Trump tweets, Hannity and FOX News: Friedman is a “never Trumper” who is angry that Hillary wasn’t elected and is trying to overturn the results of 2016. Maybe throw in a reference to him being jewish.
The same old Roy Cohen tactics - deny, deny, deny, change the facts, then attack the messenger.
1
But how do you really feel?!! Well done. Thanks for a no holds barred, unvarnished assessment of yet another Trump cabinet member turned hand puppet.
15
Pompeo and Trump are birds of a feather. No moral fiber, zero ethics, and rock spider levels of bravery. Pompeo can't get out now and he will most likely go to prison with Trump for treason. His life and that of his family is ruined because of his weakness.
5
unfortunately no on will likely go to prison. W and Cheney didn't.
2
Ouch, Friedman. Harsh but sadly true!
5
West Point's Cadet Honor Code reads simply that
"A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7b-ECiULHc
8
I'm very upset by how awkward the headline for this piece is. Otherwise, hard to get too worked up about such a paint-by-numbers NYT Opinion piece. Friedman assumes that anyone involved with this administration has character worth interrogating - this is a faulty assumption.
What do we know about Pompeo's West Point classmate T. Ulrick Brechbuhl? Is Brechbuhl just as corrupt and in violation of his West Point vows as Pompeo? Brechbuhl has been in the news mentioned around this phone call, as a counsel to Pompeo's office.
1
By writing this column you've redeemed yourself.
3
You need to see Pompeo in the context of his evangelical beliefs. To people like him, and Pence, and other evangelicals who have seen a window of opportunity in this administration, everything, really everything, is subordinate to the Second Coming.
6
Well we all know how Trump selects the best people for positions in his Cabinet and in the government. A Tea Party Republican loyalist with no diplomatic service experience or exposure other than taking part in the "Let's get Hillary"Benghazi investigation, is made Secretary of State. Do you really expect him to understand what diplomats do, let alone support them, rather than the man who made him CIA Director and a future candidate for all sorts of things?
Anyone who gets into bed with Trump has automatically checked whatever leadership and ethical chops they had at the door. In fact, Trump would never select anyone to a prominent post who could lead or call into question Trumps own moral and ethical shortcomings. That was the problem with all of the departed staff and cabinet members, other than those whose ethics were more compromised than his.
5
Mueller and Comey were so worried about how they'd be seen by peers that they stopped short of conducting themselves as they would have done had their concern not been a member of a protected class. The various Boltons, Pompeos and others who've held their noses as they tried to clean up the the boss' mess are more worried about their careers than they are about damage to the country. All of these guys will be fine, no matter how they choose to play it. It is interesting that the courage to act has been shown by those who actually will come out of this with derailed careers.
4
Friedman’s opinion in today’s NY Times is both brilliant and difficult to swallow.
We are in a very bad place when the Secretary of State acts so despicably.
All citizens should be as outraged as are most inside the beltway who have ever worn the uniform. Certainly all those who are proud to say they went to West Point must be really down in the dumps over knowing that one of their own in The Long Gray Line has willingly and silently let one of his own be so sullied.
“I will not lie, cheat or steal nor tolerate those who do” is, I believe the oath all cadets take. Pompeo failed to uphold his oath.
11
Wonder what a woman who graduated from West Point in 1986 would say about the institutional effect of classes on “ethics and leadership...
3
I agree with Friedman's argument, but wish he hadn't resorted to just a list of headlines to bolster his argument. The GOP did this in the impeachment hearings. Headlines will almost always be the most inflammatory part of an article and are often misleading. Dear journalists, go to the extra trouble of actually reading the article and quoting from it, not the headline.
2
West Point college is great and 99.5 percent graduates are brave and patriot, Unfortunately, Pompeo lost his courage and patriotism for his own selfish reason . He does not loose his job of Secretary of State . His love for position and loyalty to Trump made him silly selfish shameless phony and fraud as a person.
4
"So it’s now clear that Pompeo had not taken an oath to defend and protect the Constitution. He took an oath to defend and protect Donald J. Trump and Pompeo’s own future political career — above all else — and that’s exactly what he’s been doing. Shame on him."
Exactly the same could be said of the pathetic Attorney General William Barr.
7
He probably got top grades in reckless attacks that killed most of his men.
2
During the hearing, Ambassador Yovanovitch came across as an honest, dedicated, and competent public servant. However, even while acknowledging a President's prerogative with ambassadorial appointments, she seemed to suggest, several times, that diplomacy is best left in the hands of professionals - she may thus have been out of sync with HQ on a common vision, which would be a valid reason for recall. That said, she deserved to have been treated with grace and greater respect.
1
Neither Kent or Taylor required defending by Pompeo. Yovanovitch is another story. As stated Pompeo is a military man used to following the chain of command. Trump is his boss. Obviously Pompeo was/is following the boss's orders. I do not agree with that order nor would I have probably followed it. Pompeo may or may not have to pay for the consequences of his decision. Time will tell.
The Uniform Code of Military Justice does *not* require a service member to obey an unlawful order. The Air Force teaches that in basic training.
3
Ambassador Taylor was a young LT with one of the most decorated and action tested units in the Army, 101st ABN, in one of the most challenging periods of history, 1960's VietNam. Sec. Pompeo got great grades and served as a garage manager for a tank unit in Germany in the 1980's.
One learned the value of having your brothers back. The other learned the value of stepping on your brothers face.
We honor all our veterans, but it does not mean they each
honor themselves.
14
Mr. Friedman - Informed commentators, yourself included, continue to cover members of the Trump Administration as if they are cowards -- as if they know what is right and honorable, but are somehow in thrall to Trump and his base, and simply lack the courage to do the right thing. I suggest that this is not remotely the case. The members of the administration are steadfastly and relentlessly pursuing an agenda which is not only separate from, but diametrically opposed to, the democratic norms upon which our Constitutional Republic depends. They are consciously working to erode and ultimately destroy Democracy in order to replace it, bit by bit, with a Christian-themed authoritarian Kleptocracy that maintains a pretense of democracy as a smokescreen for its rapacity. In that sense, these men are not cowards, as we traditionally understand the term. Rather, they are strange mix of remorseless cynics and revolutionaries. The Trump project depends on this marriage of convenience between psychopaths and zealots, and it is kept aloft by a hardcore base constituting ten of millions of angry and incurious people who exist in a perpetual state of enragement and enrapture. History has seen such a toxic alliance before, and it has not ended well.
21
Word is that Mike Pompeo is looking towards a Kansas senate seat as his golden parachutem but as a Midwestern expat, I sincerely hope he does not succeed.
Pompeo has been an active player in Trump and Giuliani's "drug deal" to smear Joe Biden, and he should be held accountable for his part in these criminal activities.
More to the point, as far as Kansas voters go, Mike Pompeo is smug, vain, arrogant, and contemptuous of others -- none of these traits reflect Midwestern values, and Kansas voters should reject having this kind of a man represent them.
14
Marie Yovanovitch said more than once I think, that she could accept that the president has the right to fire ambassadors but why did he have to smear her reputation? That's the part that she finds unacceptable. With Trump, it is not only what he does, it's how disgracefully he does it. He is crude, unpolished, undignified, insensitive in everything he touches. Pompeo is just like him but he has a thin layer of manners to cover up his craven character.
12
The one thing Trump has done that’s good is expose corruption and the incredible lengths people will go for money and power.
7
Quibbling is punishable and is as good as lying at West Point. Pompeo has apparently embraced lack of integrity and dishonesty, unlike another West Point grad, Mr. Taylor who testified last week.
8
The underlying problem with this column is the notion that any of the serving military officers or former military officers in the Trump administration have exhibited any more moral or ethical courage than Pompeo. This whole administration is rife with grotesque displays of cowardice, calumny and criminality. Let's stop looking to the military as the shining road out of this catastrophe.
5
I’d respectfully ask you to reconsider your observation. I would offer for your consideration the following current or former military officers who have either resigned in protest, testified before the House Intel Committee, been fired, or been publicly criticized by Trump: Generals Mattis, Kelly, McRaven, McChrystal, Allen, Vogel, LTG McMaster, LTC Vindman, and CPT (R) Taylor (Ambassador to Ukraine). Moreover, this list doesn’t include all of the nameless Officers who have retired/resigned rather than serve for a man that is morally, ethically, intellectually, and socially bankrupt.
3
Wondering what a woman who graduated from West Point in 1986 would say about the institutional effect of “integrity” classes...
Amazing to see how being in the orbit of Trump is so corrupting to formerly upstanding people.
It is the height of nihilistic behavior. Like in a spy movie where the once good guys turn to the other side because after a lifetime of sacrifice betrayed or, of crushed dreams or, in Trump’s case, easy money for little effort and a dash of corrupt, why not get yours? And if it means winding up the rubes, compromising the national interests, why care? There will be so much money to be had and a president or ex president like Trump to protect you, you go for it. With money and power and influence and corrupt state actors around the globe, you’re bound to land somewhere cushy. This can be the only explanation for the current crop of sycophants dog padding around the swamp.
1
What ever happend to: «with great power comes great responsability»
3
I walked into Home Depot yesterday and approached the courtesy desk. A man waiting in front of me wore a West Point baseball style cap. I could tell by the embroidered writing on it that he was a USMA graduate. For a long moment, I almost said to him, "Excuse me, is West Point still proud of its graduate Mike Pompeo, an outright coward and the most disgraceful person ever to serve as Secretary of State?"
5
I'm glad you didn't. Harassing Miller at a sushi place maybe, since he works in the WH, but some poor guy in his hat, all proud of West Point. It certainly does the reputation of the place no favors that this smirking meatloaf was the class valedictorian.
4
@Duncan
You're right and I knew not to at the time, to afford him my respect. Not because I was reluctant to express my views. Instead, I gave the gentleman the benefit of the doubt that he was proud to have graduated from West Point and after he was commissioned, likely served with distinction and honor in service of our country. I thought that he, too, could have been deeply ashamed of Pompeo.
2
I would hope that too -- that some are bothered by this behavior. But it's strange how people protect the institutions they're part of, often against morality and even self protection. Think of the Catholic church and the pedophile priests.
1
I like to call him 'Mike Pompous'. Unfortunately that's not the only one of his many inadequacies. Ambassador Yovanovitch would make a great Secretary of State. Her knowledge and prestige that she would bring to the office would be outstanding.
3
Excellent assessment of Pompeo. Pompeo is part of a throw-back movement that is re-emerging across our country. I struggle to make sense of it - and all I can come up with is that the leaders of (what's left of) the Republican Party must've re-visited their local business card printers - ordering up a whole new batch for themselves with this across the top of each card:
Joint Member of The John Birch Society and the Ku Klux Klan.
6
If anything, Pompeo's military education and 'first-in-class' position work against him. The military trains people to execute orders in the chain of command, not question their legitimacy, and upper class, highly intelligent people are also more likely to do unethical things than lower class folk.
According to a recent study by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, "Higher Social Class Predicts Unethical Behavior."
https://www.pnas.org/content/109/11/4086
In detail, higher social class individuals are more likely (than lower class folk) to:
* exhibit unethical decision-making tendencies (study 3),
* take valued goods from others (study 4),
* lie in a negotiation (study 5),
* cheat to increase their chances of winning a prize (study 6),
* and endorse unethical behavior at work (study 7)
See that last bullet there: "endorse unethical behavior." Which is why we need people like Elizabeth Warren, who was born in the lower class, to be president.
Friedman clings desperately to his self-created mythical world where smart, rich people like him see themselves as the ethical guardians of society (while they sip their Chardonnay). But in fact, the opposite is what is true. Poor people are more fair to one another, something that Friedman would discover if he ever hung out with anyone wearing torn jeans or old boots.
3
I think Yovanovitch would make an excellent Secretary of State under the new Democratic president in 14 months. Maybe she would testify against Trump and Pompeo when the new attorney general prosecutes them for treason and lying to Congress among many other offenses. What goes around comes around...
5
Courage and integrity are decidedly lacking throughout the Trump administration. Let us not forget Vice President Pence's State Dept. aide, Jennifer Williams, who was dismissed by the President as a "Never Trumper" after she called his conversation with President Zelensky "inappropriate." Pence's press secretary called her "a State Department employee."
3
Bravo! Thank you Mr. Friedman.
Pompeo is shameless, and he is cruel. I'll never forget how he hounded Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over the tragedy in Benghazi. Shame, shame shame.
Pompeo has stood by while dedicated foreign service officers were trashed by Trump - but worse, what did he do while Trump subverted American foreign policy to his own interests and to those of Rudy and The Side Deal? Lord knows what else has been going on that we aren't aware of (yet.)
What happened with Erdogan that Trump felt it was acceptable to kill our allies and shred the integrity of NATO? And Ukraine is similarly vulnerable, fighting a hot war with Putin even as he withheld aid. To make matters worse Yovanovitch was working in the kind of environment where civil rights and anti-corruption, pro-democracy activists are murdered.
This is unbelievable. These immoral actors must be removed from the American stage and there must be consequences.
10
The lies, corruption, the cowardice, the arrogance of it all. This is the new "Greatness" the Republican Party have bestowed upon all of us?
6
Bravo, Tom, for saying what needed to be said. Pompeo is a disgrace to his office and to his country. One almost reels in disbelief that what you wrote hasn't already been echoed throughout the country. Thank you for speaking the truth to the politicians whose shameful silence is an abomination.
6
Pompeo's shameful and mendacious behavior has me questioning how he became first in his class at West Point.
It is hard to believe that this is new behavior, he seems well practiced.
7
Thank you for clearly stating what many of us think.
3
Pompeo is just the latest example of the fact that when you go all in for Donald Trump, you trade your soul. You forfeit your dignity and any expectation of respect.
Pompeo will transit history's trash chute coupled to Donald J. Trump. His fate is sealed. It is also deserved.
5
Tell it! Thank you.
2
No one could hang their head lower than Pompeo or Barr except Trump. An administration seemingly without shame.
Treason’s definition needs widening.
3
Who could imagine that the previous Secretary of State - an oil executive - would have much more integrity and be more honest than Pompeo?
3
Marie Yovanovitch's intelligent and genuine testimony at last Friday's House Intelligence Committee hearing was a refreshing reminder of what our country holds dear. And, as Friedman points out, Mr. Pompeo will even disgrace the State Department, and Ms. Yovanovitch in particular, by hiding inside the sick, dysfunctional world of President Trump. That's not American.
This fine article is comforting and inspiring in that it clearly sets forward what American values are regarding our diplomatic mission: we support and defend honesty, integrity and service in attempts at maintaining a more peaceful world. Marie Yovanovich was obviously a stellar representative of those ideals.
Both Mr. Pompeo and the president have repeatedly shown themselves to be shallow, uninteresting, empty men whose efforts are bound only to serve themselves.
Hopefully the rest of the world regards the continual hard and honest work of our State Department as representative of the REAL America, and can discern it from the nation that supposedly is represented by Mr. Pompeo and Mr. Trump.
8
No one ever said academic prowess equals an ethical/moral compass.
10
I have wondered how these people sleep at night. Thanks for an excellent column.
10
there´s a lot of counter-stuff.
- In the framework of the official case of the SBU, according to the decision of the Ukrainian court, we found that NABU (kind of FBI) employees officially merge the procedural documents at the US Embassy. They provide them with
suspicion, information about investigative activities, criminal records, including Burisma.
[image: lutsenko yuriy]
Lutsenko: "In our country, any payment to members of the Supervisory Board is legal"
*- Do you mean that the US Embassy had information in advance who would be suspected?*
- The US Embassy received this information from a NABU employee. I don't want to say any more. I have never said this out loud because I thought it was a pleasure for the Kremlin to announce that the US Embassy is trying to
establish total control over Ukraine's law enforcement system.
*- Are you saying now that the embassy wanted to control the GPU? What is your position?*
- My position is that the embassy wanted to control the GPU in the same way as it controlled the activities of NABU.
"Giuliani asked if I wanted to have a phone conversation with Trump"
*- Let's get back to Julian.*
- Remember, it was about 3 million? Even before me, Mr. Shokin started testing prosecutors, and the United States offered $ 3 million in technical assistance to the GPU to develop the tests. Any foreign aid is registered in the Ministry of Economy and Justice in Ukraine.
And these 3 million were registered. The beneficiary was ... and so on ...
1
Wow! Great piece. Thanks ! Tom.
8
Yovanovitch, Taylor, Kent, Vindman, the whIstleblower, and the other dedicated public servants who have provided information and testimony. They are the best of America. Indeed, Jefferson would have been proud - as are millions of living Americans. Thank you all for your courage, honor, and integrity. Thank you for your service in protecting our Nation in the face of unrelenting and mind-bending smears. It will matter. We are so grateful.
16
There is an old military adage about the necessity of taking and keeping the advantage of the high ground.
That is what Brigadier General John Buford did at the Battle of Gettysburg for which he was cited by Lincoln for distinguished and meritorious service and advanced to the rank of Major General on his deathbed.
Mr. Pompeo, who graduated first in his class at West Point, is certainly aware of General Buford’s military prowess and heroism and would have studied Buford’s tactics intensively while he was a cadet.
Something, however, seems to have gone amiss in the interim between then and now.
Having graduated to the high rank of Chief Foreign Policy Toady to President Trump, he appears to have forgotten much-if-not-everything he learned from General Buford
about the crucial importance of maintaining the high ground.
12
They serve at the whim of the President.
That's the same for all Presidents.
There's no reason he should keep an Ambassador that doesn't support him.
1
So why not simply ask her to resign? Why did the cowardly president resort to character smears? Does that not matter to you?
7
In what way did the Ambassador not serve the President? Example please?
6
@Larry Thiel Zeroing right in on the least relevant item? Yes, it may be technically legal for the president to recall an ambassador, but that isn't really the point at all, is it? If it is for corrupt purposes, that should be of interest, shouldn't it? In this case, it's the corrupt purposes that are relevant.
(As it happens, there is no history of presidents dismissing ambassadors on a whim. We haven't reached the decadent imperial presidency envisioned by Barr, yet.)
4
Well, as the song goes: "You gotta have heart, lots and lots and lots of heart". What good does it serve to the US or to Mike Pompeo to have done such outstanding studies and to be left without heart? It's such a shame...
5
Add the fact that Mr Pompeo must never have studied international law—an important subject, one would think, for a Secretary of State—or, if he did, that he slept through class. I refer to his public pronouncement that Israel’s West Bank settlements don’t violate international law. A certain adage comes to mind: it concerns an animal that looks, walks, and sounds like a duck. You may call it a pea hen if you care to, Mr Secretary, but it is, and shall forever remain, a duck.
12
---and now he says the Israeli settlements on the West Bank are legal - under international law. Are they?
3
@Dominick Eustace so now Trump is making himself the arbiter of international law. And the man could barely pass out of college.
1
@Dominick Eustace
No they are not. This is yet another situation by the way in the which an American ally is actually undermined by Trump, because Israel will now become more isolated. It's a bad thing and it works against a long-term peace agreement. Of course for the right wing evangelicals that's all good because they long for "the rapture," with Israel as ground zero.
2
@Sophia Didn't Obama say he would do the same - and did not? And, wasn't he doing the same as earlier administrations?
The thing is that none of these people (Pompeo, Miller, Kushner, etc.) would be anything without Trump. No one else would have them in their organization, and strange as it may seem, Trump is also nothing without these people. This is why in the Trump organization with its "acting members," everyone's on their knees and Trump is on Twitter.
6
Friedman, left the country and went to Israel during the peak of the Vietnam war, while Pompeo, enlisted in the army (albeit long after Vietnam) and served his country as a military officer for several years.
Perhaps the choice of the word 'cowardly' was poorly chosen, especially by Friedman.
Also why the focus on West Point only with no mention of Harvard where Pompeo got his Law degree? Ethics is core to a Law Degree.
In short, Journalist should not let their sympathies or strong opinion degrade their objective writing thus diminishing their argument!
1
@Sam
This is not true. The war ended in 1975… and the draft ended two years earlier. Friedman was 18 when the draft ended.
Also leaving the country doesn't excuse u if your drafted.
1
@Sam
OK he betrayed his Harvard ethics education too.
1
@Sam
Friedman has served us all well by his cutting edge scholarship in the Middle East, which isn't a place for cowards.
1
This excellent article deserves a sequel. Please give us your perspective on William Barr.
10
Can you imagine Mike Pompeo as head of a business? Can you imagine what his relationship would be with his employees?
There are so many shining examples of the self-serving ways of the stars of this administration, from Rick Perry to Rudy; from Wilbur Ross to
5
I appreciate Mr. Friedman's eloquent critique of Pompeo. But I can't help thinking that all of his moral/ethical compass arguments are too late. No one cares, especially Pompeo and Trump. Republicans do not care either. Morals and ethics are for suckers. There is no backstop and the career diplomats defense of patriotic and professional behavior appear quaint in their notion that we have policies that professionals should follow. I wish Mr. Friedman's appeals to historical standards made any difference or shamed people into better behavior, but I doubt it.
9
Pompeo, Barr, DeVos, Perrry, Carson.....I can't think of a more corrupt and incompetent cabinet. It is truly frightening to think these are the folks at the helm of running this country. 2020 can't come soon enough.
12
I wonder it Trump used a trick on Pompeo like Jared Kushner's dad did when he used a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law to gain leverage over him.
Pompeo appears to be acting in a manner that makes it look like Trump has leverage over him.
9
Bravo, Tom!
5
It is telling that the Republicans lacking the most integrity -- William Barr and Mike Pompeo and others -- are those who have decided that they cannot convince the American people that their Christian beliefs are correct, so they will grab power via supporting corruption.
That way never wins. There were those in Nazi Germany who believed they could look the other way at the horrors and lies of Hitler because they could get something that was important to them done.
Maybe if those who proudly call themselves Christians would trust the teachings of Jesus Christ, they would actually promote more of the Christian values they pretend to embrace.
The notion that Barr and Pompeo could embrace dishonesty and corruption in the name of promoting the teachings of Jesus Christ only shames the Church they claim to want to honor.
9
Pompeo either learned nothing or forgot everything of real import from his education at USMA.
7
Right on!
3
Thank you for so eloquently phrasing what America is thinking. We are living in a time where we lack the precise words to adequately express the constant onslaught of norm-breaking, sleazy backroom deals that benefit Trump, his cronies, and of course Russia. ‘Wouldn’t want to irritate Vlad, would we? Pompeo exemplifies this practice along with his evident cowardliness.
Nancy Pelosi famously noted that with Trump, “all roads lead to Russia” and indeed they do. Can America no longer depend on our "president" to not only act within the law, but to uphold America’s most valuable asset, our democratic ideals?
Donald Trump is president in name only. He does not defend the Constitution of the United States and most likely has not even read it.
9
There seems to be any number of Iago's at work in this administration. Iago is one of Shakespeare's most sinister villains, often considered such because of the unique trust that Othello places in him, which he betrays while maintaining his reputation for honesty and dedication.
We Americans and, our diplomats, apparently have misplaced our trust in Secretary Pompeo in this latest version of a Shakespearean tragedy. Villians and villainy abound.
4
Jefferson was famous for condemning rumor-mongering while spreading base rumors himself through surrogates whose connection to him was kept secret. Pompeo is just following in the footsteps of the slaveowner who proclaimed the equality of man, or at least the white male variety.
Mythologizing our nation's founders and leaders is demanded by many citizens as the essence of patriotism and deemed necessary by many wise men, but it prepares the way for Trump, whose ascent demanded and generated such myths.
3
It seems like most of the country has sleepwalked through the last few years, confident in the idea that America's institutions will somehow save America. Few seem to acknowledge the fact that an 'institution' is only as strong as the people responsible for safeguarding it and their will to defend it.
We are in a very scary place and the fact that there appears to be not one single person on the right willing to sacrifice their party loyalty to stand up for decency, honor, integrity or their country is terrifying. The GOP has no leaders, just a bunch of spineless followers.
15
West Point honor code:
A Cadet will not lie, cheat, steal or tolerate those who do.
15
Kudos to Mr. Friedman who must be shaking his head to watch as Pompeo uses his great power to overturn fundamental American foreign policy in the Middle East for the sake of Trump as he courts evangelicals and religious extremists.
What a great lesson for our children in what it means to have a total lack of moral and patriotic leadership, just like his boss.
10
A truly well written column, Mr. Friedman.
Like you, I am absolutely at a loss to understand how such a person as Pompeo could abandon his ethics, presumably taught to him by his teachers at the academy, if not earlier in his life. He comes up ethically sterile. And he is the face of America overseas?
He will live for this for the rest of his days. He will never be sure of what people he works with or for really think about him.
6
I can't believe that so many men would sell their soul for Trump! Men who thought they were honorable.....whose mothers and fathers, I'm sure, taught them right from wrong. Those souls will languish after Trump's gone. They will be empty shells of men. What is it? Money? Power? "Get it while you can" syndrome??? History, if we continue to have a history, will not be nice to these men.
9
@Carol
In the name of vain greed, men tear down all that they are to build a mockery.
Dante: the Inferno
2
It is simple. for the evangelical Pompeo the end justifies the means. Everything else is collateral damage. Including the republic.
8
Pompeo's disappointing behavior is a result of working with a criminal president, who demands complete obedience. My bet is that Pompeo and the GOP senators have sworn secrecy on a special pact.
3
I really hope Kansas takes a long, hard look at Pompeo.
Coming from Idaho I know it's possible to hold conservative values including morality, civility and integrity without allowing others to hide behind them who don't.
There is a growing target on our Rep. Russ Fulcher's back for 2020 for just this reason (his role in PIZZAGAETZ as an example).
I am encouraged to see a couple of Kansan newspapers directly calling Pompeo out for what he is and what he is not.
4
Is it required of Trump's cabinet members to despise our own diplomats?
2
May we never forget our current contempt for Trump's cabinet members.
When this president falls, and he eventually will, may we remember our outrage and disgust with all of the political hacks that are complicit in his corruption.
Too often the next news cycles washes away our frustration and replaces our memories.
I, for one, will never forget, nor forgive, all of the Trump apologists and sycophants.
7
Beautiful!!
2
Pompeo should have his Army officer sword snapped in half in a ceremony presided over by Taylor and Yovanovich. He is a disgrace to the uniform and the foreign service.
10
Put another checkmark in the correct column of Rick Wilson's book, "Everthing Trump Touches Dies". Looking at you and your reputation Mr. Pompeo.
8
Being first in one's class anywhere isn't any kind of measure of character. One can't achieve that and be utterly stupid, sure, but beyond that it simply shows an ability to tow the line and be the most unimaginative version of successful. Which is what he's likewise done as Secretary of State, according to the Trumpian rulebook (such that it is).
7
By the comments "count", mine has a shot at being # "1776".
I grew up in Valley Forge, PA and learned there was a lot of courage shown there once, without a shot being fired. Now a days, in Washington, there're a lot of people "losing their souls", willingly and doing it with no regrets it seems.
5
Pompeo just gave away the Palestinian land where Israeli settlements are illegally built. Is this supposed to help Netanyahu? Who’s country is the US anyway? Enough is enough!
6
He might have finished at the top of his ethics class as well, but doing that has nothing to do with what's actually inside your heart and your character, apparently. Or maybe he changed.
I wonder what he thinks. Can he really be so proud? We all have disappointments about our lives and our failures, but his must be hellish. If he doesn't feel it or see it now - it's hard to see how. But maybe he will later.
One point though, maybe he never had it in his heart.
The same concept could be applied to the phrase news media always uses about Donald Trump, saying that "the president "believes" this or that. They keep saying he believes this conspiracy theory, or that one, or he believes this thing he is saying or that thing.
I think he knows exactly what he is doing, and that he knows everything he is saying is a lie. He doesn't believe that Hunter Biden is guilty of this or that. He doesn't believe that this or that official is a never Trumper, or that xxx xxx.... He just outright viciously lying and trying his absolute hardest to hurt people, especially if they are vulnerable.
That's what a gangster does, he preys on the weak. He seeks them out and he viciously drains them of every last cent they have, or of whatever he can get from them. That's why he's attacked Ukraine like this.
2
I would also add my voice in thanking Mr. Thomas Friedman for his insight and truthful opinions regarding the state of players in the White House. My father, his brother, and brother in law all served with dignity during the Second World War as career officers. One uncle was a senior career official in both the FBI and the CIA. Therefore, but not just because, it is with deep disappointment, and yes, sorrow, that I look upon the state of affairs as it relates to the current U.S. administration. I need not describe, it is there for all to see, should they wish to face the blatantly honest truth. However, I hang on to hope, that the good citizens of the United States of America will make the appropriate correction at the polls in 2020. Do not rely on impeachment proceedings to correct course. VOTE!
6
Under US code 3331 the US Secretary of State swears: I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.” Friedman rightly points out Pompeo’s failure to support his outstanding staff, but misses his equal failure to uphold this oath and protect the president from being misled about the facts in Ukraine. This is not just about not standing up for his staff, but making sure the president was not misled by schemers with corrupt motives. (Or he should have spoken up publicly if the president refused to listen.) In this betrayal of duty he has failed to protect the country from the effects of this corrupt influence and handed another victory to the ultimate schemers in Russia.
11
Independent Voters do you agree with Pompeo ?
1/ Pompeo initially said he had little knowledge of Trump's call with Zelenskiy since he had not yet read the transcript of the call. It was later confirmed by officials that he himself had been on the call.
2/ In 2013, Pompeo said: "There are scientists who think lots of different things about climate change. There's some who think we're warming, there's some who think we're cooling, there's some who think that the last 16 years have shown a pretty stable climate environment." He stated "climate change is actually good for the Arctic".
3/ Pompeo opposed the Affordable Care Act.
4/ Pompeo has stated that life begins at conception & believes that abortions should be allowed only when necessary to save the life of the mother, with no exceptions for rape.
5/ He opposes same-sex marriage & sponsored bills to let states prevent same-sex couples from marrying.
6/ In 2015 in a talk at a church, Pompeo said that "politics is a never-ending struggle ... until the Rapture."
If you can vote for GOP then you are part of the problem.
23
Thank you for calling out Mr. Pompeo. Something has got to break through to these people. They are not only destroying our democracy, they have destroyed their own integrity and character. It's sad to see Trump's team race to debase themselves to Trump's level. Regarding Mr. Pompeo, this is truly what corruption looks like. I wonder if the honorable young cadet he once was will surface, however briefly, and allow him to understand and own what he has done.
7
Thanks, Tom! Needed to read that: keep taking your vitamins, the Citizenry/Voters of the United States needs your courage!
5
Tom: We are really grateful for writing this excellent column. We salute you. Personal integrity is key to meaning in life. When I see degradation in that since I came to this beautiful land as a graduate student and now a dutiful citizen it pains me and am appalled. I think we still have honorable people like Mr. Taylor, Ms. Ambassador and all who are willing despite considerable hardship & hard ache and to give testimony against Trump and his cronies we maybe able to save this nation. Let us all pray for that and make sure no more GOP and Trump. --JJ
4
John F. Kennedy Jr was the rare public figure who was better looking than most actors. In the Hollywood bio pics that followed his death, JFK Jr was better looking and charming than any thespian who portrayed him. If you exclude Danny De Vito, you can say the same of Mike Pompeo,
Mr. Friedman you did a masterful job stating what I, and many other retired military officers, were thinking. Thank you.
14
Yes, and thank you, Mr. Friedman. We need more mainstream media to have the courage to tell the truth. The only two sides to this story are Right and Wrong.
4
@Michael Not sure there is any more mainstream media other than reuters and the bbc
So true and well said. I think Trump may have been driving the train more than we realize. There may have been two benefits to Trump if he could get Ukraine to basically investigate itself and declare their interference in our election thus clearing Russia of election interference. He could claim this validated his 2016 election. It could also allow him to claim Ukraine had worked against America in our last election and therefore was undeserving of our loyalty and aid. Kind of a smear campaign against Ukraine where Ukraine is tricked into smearing itself. Without aid Ukraine is vulnerable to Russia. Trump already handed Russia Syria and this would assist handing Ukraine over too. This would destabilize Europe and the U.S. I think Trump gets to hide behind the valid concept of his egocentricity, which clouds the larger harm that he is loyal to Putin, not us.
4
It appears the qualities of valor, honesty and courage in the GOP died with John McCain. Now Republicans furtively go about their business, hoping to God their sycophantic actions succeed in keeping their names out of a disparaging Trump tweet. A West Point trained military warrior should have developed a backbone, even if he somehow fanagled his way out of attending ethics classes.
7
@GP
He did lie constantly about Obamacare and pretty much of Obama's record too, unfortunately.
It's just part of the GOP's DNA.
1
Someone needs to send Mikey a copy of "Everything Trump Touches Dies" by Rick Wilson.
He is the worst kind of manager all of us have had or seen, just interested in his own glory, doesnt manage well and doesn't back up his team.
I hope the voters in Kansas are watching closely.
13
Why did Mike Pompeo fail America? I assume that he has put himself first his whole life, and he believed he was on the track to something even better. We now see that his supposed patriotism was a sham. He found himself in a high position where he felt shielded from any failings or crimes, and that underlings lacked courage and would stay silent. Mostly, I assume Pompeo didn't think he would get caught. But he did get caught because the patriots who worked for Pompeo were the real deal, brave and honorable. They put America first. Thank you to all of them. Shame on Pompeo.
17
I wonder if Mike Pompeo seeks fame through self affirmation every time he looks in a mirror? Greatness should be estimated by the means used to acquire it. Mike Pompeo is an opportunist and a poster boy for cronyism. He's not the first and won't be the last to take this road. If it was not for the company & his proximity to President Donald Trump, Mike Pompeo's witt would be greatly at a loss. By not defending Marie Yovanovitch in public illustrates Mr Pompeo's lack of leadership. It is easier to govern others through vice than to prevent being governed by taking a virtuous stance. Mr Friedman make sure you do a write up of whoever hires Mr Pompeo after he's done as a public servant.
4
Now we know why Pompeo was ignoring Trump's corrupt political meddling in the Ukraine and not defending the analysts and diplomats from Twitter attacks. He was pouring over the minutiae of International Law to determine that the illegal settlements are actually legal. International Law is fake!
4
@John Reynolds poring
5
Mike Pompeo must have been a good book learner. Great grades. Looks like he studied Trump's honor code and is doing just as well as a bone spur practicioner.
5
Pompeo, Haley.... vying for the presidency ? One a spineless syncophant and the other a craven opportunist with no values other than self promotion.... I guess they're perfect material for the GOP.
19
The West Point Cadet honor code:
“A Cadet will not lie, cheat, steal or tolerate those who do”
Lord Acton's observation about the effects of political power upon individuals:
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority, still more when you superadd the tendency or the certainty of corruption by authority."
This erosion of personal integrity in the pursuit of power is common among those who seek it. We have seen may individuals who sought to gain power by serving this President only to find themselves feeling used and abused. The price of power under Trump is a painful loss of self respect.
7
Pompeo may have been first in his class in grades, but he was clearly last in ethics, decency and leadership. Like so many of the second and third rate "leaders" surrounding Trump, he seems more interested in his own goals than those of his country. Shame on him.
6
@Barbara To be fair, Barbara, he is part of this Trump Administration. Nobody has been told what the goals of the country are. First things first.
@kenneth Some things are obvious, such as supporting one's employees and being above board on policy.
Thank you!, Mr.Friedman!
Mike Pompeo lacks integrity and courage.
Fortunately, there are still people who do have integrity and courage.
I look forward to more coming forward.
7
"So many in the State Department have now lost all respect for him [Pompeo]."
I suspect that what's going on at State may also surface over at Justice. Something's fishy, and clearly Barr's no Attorney General OF THE UNITED STATES. What Trump touches dies (Isn't that the title of a book?)
5
Just another Thank You and Kudos to Mr. Friedman for this article. Others commenters had said it all to explain why and thank you to them as well.
6
There is an adage that says that you can see a person's true character when they believe no one is watching. It is now on display for all to see. Pompeo's cowardice will be part of his legacy at the State Department. Our military has at least not had to experience this West Pointers' character on the battlefield. He is not the sort I would want watching my back in the trenches.
8
@mike, "Our military has at least not had to experience this West Pointers' character on the battlefield."
Fortunately. And especially a lucky escape for those might have had to serve under him in battle.
1
He must be quite an important and impressive individual of great accomplishments and titles having met you.
2
Someone needs to whisper in Pompeo's ear that he isn't in Kansas anymore.
5
That is calumny against Kansas, a state whose citizens know what honor means and stand up for their friends and neighbors. Pompeo was not born there and is no Kansan.
2
@Judith Sorry 'bout that. Tell the folks there that when he runs for the Senate.
Remember when Rudy Giuliani was "America's Mayor?" Remember when William Barr was considered a public servant of integrity? Now Pompeo. Even people like Mattis and Kelly who finally couldn't take it anymore and left have had their reputations irretrievably sullied. Trump is the kiss of death for any public servant. No wonder he can't fill so many positions in his administration.
13
It is a well-deserved shaming that Pompeo receives from this column, a mere small sample of the disgust that must be felt for him by the thousands of men and women in the military who observe the code of honor that he has dishonored time and time again.
And like all other Americans, I too have been dishonored by this empty, self-serving man who makes every day a mockery of the values by which our nation is sustained and protecting.
If someone of this accomplishment, discipline, and inner strength can fail so miserably, what hope is there for the rest of us when faced by an evil that draws its power from banality, ignorance, and the pursuit of power for its own sake?
You have to look long and hard in our checked history for others who have so dishonored the flag they once served. Pompeo joins an exclusive club that includes Andrew Jackson, Jefferson Davis, and Robert Hanssen.
17
@Barton Palmer; Oliver North. Benedict Arnold. Aaron Burr.
3
something different about all of the posts i have read so far. not a single one is trying to defend Pompeo. guess that's pretty telling.
12
Imagine if the whistleblower had never stood up and legally spotlighted a significant questionable government back door deal? It would have come out in a year or two. Even the tax returns will eventually.
Imagine if Donald Trump had worked on deals to improve average Americans' lives and livelihoods instead of incessant 2020 campaigning deals to get reelected to a job he hates and never wanted?
Imagine the insane irony of a man that campaigned obsessively to get Obama's Birth certificate proof not releasing his highly suspicious tax returns and business P&L books?
Trump is a criminal. But just typically pays fines when caught? He robbed a University—and a Charity? This is insane. The President of the USA is criminal and insane. Maybe seriously ill as well.
16
And imagine if he had, in his inaugural address, tried to unite the country.
@Anne What restful sleep former vice President Biden would be having, too.
Poor Mr. Pompeo, as the entire intellectual community took time out to call him a coward. A fraidy-cat of Trump and his acolytes. Maybe, Pompeo, however, might be distracted because Trump likely decided the Mr. Pompeo hired too many Never-Trump officials and did nothing to control his realm. My guess is that Mr. Pompeo's dream of becoming President (one day) is slipping away as Trump pouts about devastating impeachment testimony from State Department turncoats. For Pompeo, being a coward is better than upsetting Trump, it seems. The heat Mr. Pompeo is now facing is accelerating as Ambassador Yovanovitch is now the hero of the State Department and may very likely be "Secretary of State" with a new, next Administration.
6
Important read. Pompeo should resign, his behavior is shocking. Zero integrity.
13
Pompeo, like others, has won the Roy Cohn award. That is the American award where you sell your soul to a cause in which the award recipient has trampled or was complicit in the trampling of the decency and integrity of another person. The other award requirement is to be a lackey (in this case of Trump). Graham, Jim Jordan, Nunes and others received the award, so Pompeo is in good company. While history looks back on the recipients as cowards, they are generally remorseless.
10
Has America a monopoly on the “American” military ethics you mentioned?
Why always America putting above us(Europe)in ethics etc when it suits you?In other stories(love for NATO for example)you always talk about “western values”.
Are the Military ethics you are so proud of not part of these,our”,western values”or are they only “american”?
2
@kienhuishenk
West Point is sometimes thought of as an American institution. Sorry if that troubles you.
5
I think this is a valid point, that the values Pompeo should have learned have become more broadly “western,” not just “American” in nature, since 1945. But don’t miss the main point as it affects the future of American (specific) leadership because of the semantics. There are a number of cornerstones of American polity, society and culture that are not written down but have sustained us since the founding. In many ways they were part of what made the US the greatest experiment in democracy ever. And it is not overstatement to fear for their future. In this case, Mr. Friedman cites one concept that was uniquely American in the early days of the Republic, and has gradually become a hallmark of global institutions we have lead such as NATO. Namely, that our military and our diplomatic leaders are fully steeped in non-partisan service to the nation and the presumed honor behind our affairs outside of our borders. That the honor of public service is based on allegiance to nation and our shared constitution above all — above politics, class, personal gain or anything else. This concept is in serious jeopardy right now, and Secretary Pompeo’s acts of late help to weaken the legacy of this most American of “ancient traditions”. If craven acts like these aren’t called out, and legions of public servants in diplomacy, military service or even dog catching see self-serving, partisan cowardice as OK as long as it serves your political or economic fortune, then I am afraid we are doomed
1
@kienhuishenk: Good point. In reality, the US has no great claim to any exalted ethical position in the world. And within the US, our military has no claim to an exalted position of honor.
But for various unfortunate reasons, there is a great tendency to idolize our military (although, for most of us, not to the extent of actually joining up). And of course, we idolize ourselves, or various versions of ourselves.
As you might expect, it goes along with a lot of self-hatred etc, too...
Pompeo reminds me of Pontius Pilate, not doing the dirty deed himself, but washing his hands of the matter.
4
Hey, Mr. Friedman finally got something 100% correct!
6
Sorry, Pompeo, Nikki Haley is ahead of you!
6
Yovanovitch for secretary of state!
12
Thank you for writing this article. It make me think seriously about my behavior if I were in this situation. First I must admit that I'm not cut from the same ethical clothe as the whistle blower or these several ambassadors. I think I would have remained quiet. May the Power of their Good save them and may they save our country. My prayer for myself is first, that I won't be tempted as powerfully as Secretary Pompeo (I don't think I have been), and second, that if I am, I will find somehow the courage to speak truth to power in a timely way. Sadly, Pompeo's example to date, if anything, makes that less likely, if not impossible, for millions like me. Personally, I hope to follow our service officers example.
5
When I was about 10 years old, mu father took me to a football game at West Point. We got there early and I got to see quite a bit
of the Grounds.
Later in life, I met Msgr. Robert McCormick who served for 28
years as a Catholic Chaplin at West Point. His first year at the Academy, he was in the room when General Douglas MacArthur
gave his famous "when I cross the great Divide" Speech. MacArthur was speaking about passing from life onto death and how his thoughts at the time would be with the "Corps." Meaning
the Long Grey Line of cadets who have gone through West
Point from its inception.
I'm sure Mike Pompeo is familiar with that speech. It constituted one of the great moments of West Point History.
One cannot help but hope but that someday Mike Pompeo will come to realize that he let the Corps down. He dishonored the
Academy when it was his turn to step up and honorably serve his
Country.
20
Thank you, Mr. Friedman. This deplorable situation brings me to tears and I am so grateful that you wrote this.
17
Pompeo's business and political careers are intertwined with the Koch Brothers which says more about him than anything else.
You presume too much about West Point. USMA produces interchangeable cogs. The military wants officers who follow orders (not officers who question them).
West Point says they produce the officers that win wars. They do not. The officers that win wars are the former civilians that want to get a war over with and go home.
The ideals of West Point are a bit distorted. A cadet does not lie, cheat or steal. Yet you have 'quibbling' which is a way NOT to tell the truth while technically not lying.
Advancement in the military goes to those that 'do the right things' That means following orders. It also means making yourself look good - even if that puts your men at risk. Some officers would get all their men killed for a Silver Star.
8
Pompeo also knows, beyond ethics, military courts have consistently held, that members must obey only legal orders.
More specifically, military courts have further held orders that are "manifestly" or "patently" illegal _must_ be disobeyed.
"Honor. Duty. Country": What does than mean to you, Mr. Pompeo? Does it include looking the other way?
9
@John "What does than mean to you, Mr. Pompeo?"
Than...or that ? Every day !!
“Senior State Adviser: Pompeo’s Silence on Yovanovitch Attacks Absolutely Killed Morale.”
Pompeo’s perfidy could get real people killed. The foreign service engages in very dangerous missions. Any divisions that Putin can exacerbate are big wins in his war to divide and weaken the entire west. Bottom line:
Pompeo, and many others are doing Putin’s work for him, some unknowingly, some with full knowledge.
Support The Foreign Service!
13
How many people now and in the past were running around Washington, DC, trying to preserve their viability to run for president when they had no viability at the start? Mike Pompeo is about as attractive a candidate, West Point not withstanding, as Giuliani was when he made a wild stab at the Republican primaries long ago.
Give Trump this: he instills fear like no other politician one can recall in the last 100 years. LBJ could punish but his reach was generally limited to those in Congress. Nixon seemed to hate almost everyone, so his threats were muted by their universality. Trump and his tigger Tweeter finger have grown men bowing and picking up his garbage to avoid being labeled un-Trumpian.
The national news media, particularly the evening newscasts on the three major networks, fear both Trump and the MAGA hats, bending their stories to include Trump's continual verbal pushback against every charge. This is the obvious reason Trump stopped the daily White House news briefings: he learned quickly that the networks could not ignore a sound bite from him on the White House driveway.
So, folks, tune in tonight for THE TRUMPCAST NEWS on ABC, NBC and CBS. It will be more of what you saw last week and the week before. And more. And more.
4
Amen, and thank you, Mr. Friedman.
My blood boils reading your column -- as it has nearly every day of this misbegotten Trump presidency.
13
Pompeo is a Republican. That’s really all you need to know about his character.
13
Next we need an expose on how Barr has committed ethical violations that mandate disbarment.
17
I just read a posting in another major news outlet that Trump has been angry at Pompeo for NOT keeping his staff in line--meaning, of course that Pompeo hasn't been as loyal to Trump as Trump demands. Trump not only has not been as upset by Pompeo's mere disappearing act as anybody including Mr. Friedman would be but rather is very upset that Pompeo hasn't been actively suppressing his staff's testimony on top of it. Here is how much Trump is so corrupt that he must be removed a.s.a.p.
8
Mr. Friedman , you said everything I want to say in his face about how coward he really is. Thanks!!
12
If Mike is really looking forward to his time of Rapture, he'd better have a good excuse for his behavior here on Earth.
9
The Peter Principle playing out in decency, integrity, love of country, fidelity to duty, and morality.
2
I think there could be other scenarios or reasons as to why Pompeo handled it the way he did. West Point also taught him to obey the top commander and if you dont agree with then to resign. Ambassador Yovanovich could also have done the same. Resign on her own.
That said the US cannot ignore how the corruption in Ukraine and the third world is done all the time. A PM or President has his family and friends gain wealth and deals using their power projection. In many cases other companies use the family member of the leader in power to please or to get favors done for their companies. The leader may not have to even put direct pressure. Such is the case with Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. And the State dept claims that because Joe Biden was in grief with his son Beau therefore the people they did not want to antagonize the VP. Although they knew that it was improper for Hunter Biden to be in the Burishma board. That does not cut it.
That corruption needs to be investigated. But may be Trump should not have asked for it himself. But the RNC or some other means should have put the pressure on it.
Trump is not the one to be complaining about children of politicians using their parent’s influence to enrich themselves.
8
I assume you have no problem with Ivanka getting trademark protection from China while her dad's pres, but somehow find it "corrupt" that Hunter Biden got a job with a foreign company while his dad happened to be VP?
5
@Kris: Ambassador Yovanovich, as far as I've heard, was given no corrupt orders that might have led her to resign. She was beginning to be troubled by the way a hidden policy was being carried out in hidden channels, but she still had reason to feel that she was doing a legitimate job. Once her reputation was smeared, and she was fired for no valid reason, Pompeo does not have that excuse.
Hunter Biden's role on the board of Burisma may have given an appearance of impropriety, but it didn't amount to a major scandal. Certainly not corruption to be dealt with at the presidential level. In fact, there is no evidence of anything actually wrong, although yes, appearances are important. If that was an example of the corruption problem in Ukraine, then they didn't have much of a problem at all.
But when Trump coupled the Bidens directly with his fantasy about Ukrainian involvement in the 2016 US election, he made it clear that it wasn't Ukraine that he was concerned about, it was his own political career. And that's what makes what he did a crime.
...one more corrupt Evangelical!
22
If you vote for a corrupt, racist, criminal president, or if you support a corrupt, racist, criminal president, you are yourself complicit in that corruption, racism, and criminality. Shame on Pence and Pompeo and Mnuchin and Perry and Conway and Spicer and Carson and DeVos and Graham and Jordan and all the others.
12
He can run for president from a prison cell!!
#JusticeForALL
9
Pompeo graduated from the Academy some 34 years ago. There has been a lot of water under the bridge since then. Rising in the ranks of the Republican party undoubtedly requires that you compromise your ethics and morals. To qualify as a trump team member you have to be dirty, be willing to lie, backstab and to throw anyone under the bus as trump sees fit. How much of a poodle Pompeo is remains to be seen. As to Nunez and Graham they will eventually go down with trump, there is no recovery from where they have taken residence.
19
I sometimes wonder if the students of Univ of Kansas or KSU will someday take up chants against Kansas native Pompeo - perhaps with the cadence of Rock Chalk Jayhawk. Now that would be really cool.
Over time, Kansas students may come to realize that keeping Pompeo out of the Senate is far more important to their future than who wins the game.
8
What, exactly, does "Graduating 1st in class at West Point" mean? If it is not translated into community/national service, nothing. And as for Pompeo's political aspirations post (maybe very soon) Trump, you've got to be joking. Everyone who has enabled the cheapening of American democracy and values will be stained forever.
9
Like many others, the stain of his service to trump should follow him the rest of his life; further, every effort should be made to publicly shame him until he retreats from public view.
Never forget.
17
@Michael
Absolutely, and please include Nikki Haley in that. A more self serving person you could not meet cloaked in a Hollywood image.
6
If you worked for a bank, and they sent you to take care of their Paris branch, and after a while called you back,
you wouldn't make a fuss just because you wanted to stay there another few more years...
1
But a bank would have requirements to report suspected ethical violations and would have a formal performance review process.
3
You would if you felt you were fired unjustly.
3
@Larry Please remind us: where on the timeline does this ambassadors reassignment lie?
Re”Mike Pompeo: Last in His Class at West Point in Integrity”
Seriously. How does he sleep at night? Does he dream of the accolades his fellow low lifes might confer upon him, were they capable of giving moral support. Not likely as their amorality would prevent it.
Again, how do these people get to sleep?
8
Your comment that Pompeo wants to run for president and needs Trump and his supporters says it all. The country has already proven that it will accept a man without conscience and morals. Religious zealotry and adherence to extreme right wing ideology trump (pun intended) decency and the rule of law. Winning is everything!
8
Thank you, Thomas Friedman, for this incisive denouncement of Pompeo. He is truly an abomination, but, sadly, he is not alone among those serving in Trump's administration. We can only hope that his cowardice will prevent his achieving his ambitions.
6
It is indeed sobering when those in power sense not the responsibility that comes with it, of the trust that their roles demand. The administration and its President are todays McCarthyites, now being told that they've done enough, and the President is finally being asked .... 'Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?'
(Joseph Welch's memorable comment to Sen.J McCarthy 6/9/54)
4
Pompeo the man?? No, more like Pompeo the mouse who has scurried into a dark crevice, hiding his thoroughly corrupt soul from public view. Biding his time, hoping the news clips move on, and relying on the short attention span of the typical American. Many tragedies of history were enabled by those who said nothing. May Pompeo be censured in the annals of history, as well as the halls of West Point for such unethical behavior.
6
By now it's hard to be surprised or shocked by team Don absence of any ethical scruples.
Immorality and ugliness attracts the same...Take a look at all of them Barr, Pompeo, Giuliani all devoid of any principles just like their Con man trump, all fall in line just like Soviet Politburo.
All crooks, liars, mean spirited, empty subservient characters.
We have so far few people who prepared to risk their lives for the truth.
But these few can be a spiritual path for the rest of us.
Let's not give up, we can't afford that.
Instead, in 2020 we will turn out in huge mass to defeat this horrific gang and rebuild our damaged country brick by brick!
7
Unfortunately I can't see the masses going to the polls yet.
How come that Louisiana and Kentucky doesn't make the GOP think twice?
3
To quote Sir Thomas More: "Ah, but for Wales, Richard ..." who was betrayed by a man he refused to offer a government post.
1
This is just another example of many Evangelical “Christians” (like Pompeo) moving their moral compass in the wrong direction in order to fulfill their cruel, Bible cherrypicked, hateful, apocalyptic rapture nonsense. People I once thought of a brainwashed but harmless I now see as delusional and dangerous both to our country and the planet. May God forgive them.
8
Their agenda is clear: Remove the diplomats who stand in their way to obtaining kickbacks from energy contracts awarded to their corrupt cronies like Rick Perry. Promote corrupt prosecutors. Launder money thru the NRA, overpriced real estate and PACs. It all makes perfect sense if you connect the dots and follow the money.
The Trump Organization is a continuing criminal enterprise, and it should be indicted and charged with racketeering under the RICO Act. Trump and his crime family should have all their assets seized and spend the rest of their lives in the penitentiary.
4
@John
I would rather not spend the money keeping them in the pen. Instead let them lose their citizenships and be banned from this country forever.
John Boehner Speaker before Ryan, said it succinctly before he retired - There is no more Republican Party, only a Trump Party. Hang black crepe around the Lincoln portrait in the White House.
4
@hawaiigent It's the same party only in name. The repbulicans became the democrats and vice versa
I expect Mr. Pompeo's relationship with the Koch Brothers says far more about his ethics and morals than anything else. His business and political career both have close dealings with them.
As far as West Point goes.... you have an idealized view of the place. Those coming out of USMA are often far more focused on their own careers than their men. They do what they need to do to get their tickets punched. Many are all too willing to put their men at risk to advance their careers. The Army wants officers who say 'Yes Sir!' and do as ordered. It doesn't want officers saying 'but that isn't right....' or 'that's riskier than it needs to be.....'
Frankly, if Pompeo had graduated in 68 instead of 86 and ended up in Vietnam I expect he'd be one of those officers getting fragged by members of his own platoon.
4
Honor code for West Point Cadets:
“A Cadet will not lie, cheat, steal or tolerate those who do”
Jesus' Sermon on the Mount:
"1: And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
2: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
3: Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4: Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5: Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6: Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7: Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8: Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9: Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10: Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11: Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake."
Lord Acton's observation about political power's effects:
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority, still more when you superadd the tendency or the certainty of corruption by authority."
Mike, your not in Kansas anymore, and it shows. The folks back home know what courage and professionalism look like and they can smell cowardice and back-stabbing a mile away. You, like Trump, now have nowhere to call home. I'm sure Putin can help you find a home.
3
A perfect example of how religion has NOTHING to do with morality
10
Senator John McCain was never number one at the Naval Academy but he stands as a giant of integrity in comparison to Pompeo. What you wrote here is not just about Pompeo, it is also about how important it is for our leaders to protect our institutions. Diplomats like Ambassador Yavanovich are a great gift to this country, they need to be protected and honored. Pompeo clearly put his political future ahead of protecting not just one of his star ambassadors, but protecting the entire State Department.
Waving away ethical considerations, does not advance our nation. If we are appealing to other nations to adhere to the rule of law we need to begin with doing so ourselves. The cadet honor code that Pompeo swore to is meaningless without that adherence to the code through action. I share Tom Friedman's concerns about the Secretary of State. In not protecting his own ambassador one wonders is he up to the task of protecting our nation? Who would ever vote for a person like that?
6
Thank you, Tom Friedman for this excellent piece. I am a retired diplomat and what we all witnessed last week brought many of us to tears. Ambassador Yovanovich showed the leadership qualities we admire and aspire to. And so many of us proudly remember the outstanding leadership and example of General Colin Powell during his service as Secretary of State. I can imagine he also shed tears last week.
8
Tom Friedman, You have written a most important, as well as a fantastic column. You have expressed the horror that so many Americans must feel about the loss of integrity in our government officials. Pompeo has abandoned all sense of honor and duty, and has forgotten his oath to defend the constitution. Others have written more eloquently on this subject, But I wished to add my voice, the voice of an ordinary citizen. I am still hopeful that some Republicans will eventually recognize that saving their job should yield to the molre important, saving our cojuntry.
4
Pompeo is also an attorney, which is a profession that comes with a significant set of ethical duties and responsibilities as well. I don't know if Pompeo is a licensed attorney at the moment, but if he is, he should remember that his ethical duties apply 24/7, not just when he's practicing.
4
He could redeem himself by testifying in the impeachment hearings. He has the chance and I am certain he would be welcome to help clear the air.
5
@Agostino Buy some scuba gear with lots of oxygen because if you hold your breath waiting for that to happen you're going to need it.
3
I agree with the bulk of Friedman's arguments, but I take issue with his statement that an officer will stand up for a junior officer being denigrated by a senior officer. Most officers are primarily concerned with their careers, and will not risk those careers standing up for unfairly treated sub ordinates.
3
@Robert J. Bailey
A senior officer usually follows the chain of command to deal with a soldier or office of lower rank. An officer will obey a senior officer but he's also responsible for protecting an officer under his command from dishonorable behavior from those above him.
Not only was Pompeo indoctrinated to follow ethnical behavior at all times as a cadet but he claims religious beliefs that also demand high ethical behaviors. It would seem that in the pursuit of power, Pompeo has given up all ethical consideration which impeded the pursuit of political power.
3
Most of these comments show a true lack of knowledge or understanding of our professional military class; they are experts in following the three monkey principles= see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil. As a dear friend, who was an outstanding combat commander in Vietnam, said when I asked about officer ERs that everyone understood how the system worked and everyone was the best officer ever seen. Finally I have seen that "truth" is as Ms Conway said is fungible. The military ethos is "go along to get ahead".
4
Amazing the group think and bias here. Yovanovitch may be a career civil servant, but clearly she has her own allegiances and just as clearly those are opposed to the President. You must be credulous in the extreme not to see that. I still struggle with why we needed to hear her "feeling" about her reassignment when those are always a prerogative of the President. Pompeo may be serving an individual whom you dislike and think unethical, but it is self-righteous and myopic to assume he has all the moral failings you attribute to his boss. Just like the Ambassador had no problems serving a difficult boss, so too with Pompeo. Let's all try to be more rational, less self-righteous, and less tribal please.
6
@Jeff
The oath of office for everyone involved is the same.
To support and protect the Constitution. Not one of them is obligated to be loyal to any person who violates that oath nor to obey anyone demanding that they violate that oath. Trump is not a sovereign he is an office holder whose authority is limited by law.
The affinity of Republicans and conservatives to surrender all respect for laws to the whims of authoritarian leadership is rather ironic, since one of the characteristics of authoritarians is following rules.
9
@Jeff Amazingly you said Yovanovitch clearly has her own allegiances.... I don't see any but her devotion to our nation. Do you have any evidence for your accusation? or an attempt to start another conspiracy against our dutiful and honest public servants!
9
@Jeff Be sure to tell that last sentence to Trump. If you think his behavior in bad mouthing (actually a very mild term to describe his vituperative behavior) every single person who has come forward to testify then you are condoning his behavior as much as you seem to condone Pompeo. Pompeo has only served Trump and not this country.
5
It is not the job of Pompeo, or of any Secretary of State, to prevent the President from changing ambassadors. For any reason or for no reason.
On the contrary, the role of the Secretary of State is to help the President appoint whomever the President thinks fit. Because the President was elected on the base of promises and expectations about his external politics, and he is supposed to act on that and be judged by voters.
In particular Trump promised to reduce foreign aid, and to make it dependent on ending corruption, or else it would be taxpayer money thrown away. That is precisely what Trump required in Ukraine.
3
@novoad
Neither the Constitution nor any free and thoughtful person gives any President such absolute authority in our system of government. The Secretary of State can and should oppose orders from any President that are illegal or dishonorable.
A king must be obeyed because of the authority of a sovereign, but never a President.
9
@novoad Actually it is the prerogative of Congress to decide in budgetary concerns about foreign aid not exclusively the will of the president or of the secretary of state and Trump has used withholding aid under executive orders that created further problems in Latin America for which the influx of refugees is the result. You have not educated yourself on the issues of corruption in the wider world enough to judge Ukraine and Trump should look in the mirror every time he speaks about it.
4
Have you listened to the hearings or read any transcripts? Trump was not interested in corruption in Ukraine only dirt on Biden and was willing to discredit an ambassador who the majority agreed did much to fight corruption in Ukraine
3
No question that Pompeo managed to cash in his integrity chips when he became a Trump acolyte. It is hard to reconcile what makes a man turn into a Trump pumpkin but Pompeo has lost any credibility as a manager of State Department and as a competent Secretary of State. He becomes just another Republican victim of Trumpism-willingly, of course, but still, has set himself up as one of the most inept persons ever to head State, or what is left of it.
9
Two quotations from this article:
“What moral code are you operating by that would justify such behavior?’’ and "As for Ambassador Yovanovitch, thank you for your service. You are a credit to our nation and its ideals — everything your boss was not. Hold your head high. Jefferson would have been proud of you."
The morals of Secretary of State Pompeo compared to those of Ambassador Yovanovitch are at opposite ends of the spectrum, and those between Ambassador Yovanovitch and the Occupier of the White House are not even on the same spectrum! Perhaps Ambassador Yovanovitch might like to consider running for the Presidency to bring back some decency to that Office?
10
“Of all the tasks which are set before man in life, the education and management of his character is the most important, and, in order that it should be successfully pursued, it is necessary that he should make a calm and careful survey of his own tendencies, unblinded either by the self-deception which conceals errors and magnifies excellences, or by the indiscriminate pessimism which refuses to recognize his powers for good. He must avoid the fatalism which would persuade him that he has no power over his nature, and he must also clearly recognize that this power is not unlimited.”
-- William Edward Hartpole Lecky, The Map of Life
3
Great overdue column. I am not surprised by Pompeo's shortcomings. If he had been an A student, he probabbly wouldn't have endedup serving Trump. Pompeo is a spineless dupe serving Trump like the other servers.
5
Mr Friedman
One of your best article to date. The US Military Academy failed America by graduating a cadet such as Pompeo who lacked the ethos to become a graduate of this military academy.
Time for the Academy to update the processes to weed out misfits like Mike Pompeo.
10
There is no necessary correlation between high intelligence and moral behavior. Just because someone is smart does not mean they are also moral, and vice versa.
Psychology research indicates there is only a moderate correlation between morality and intelligence. And it matters how morality and moral development are measured. Are you measuring morality by cognitive reasoning, by indications of empathy, by reputation, by behavior in social situations that are "tempting"?
When I first stated graduate school in psychology, much was made of the finding that SS officers in Hitler's Nazi government scored well on IQ tests when their moral behavior was reprehensible or condoning.
At the end of my teaching career decades later, I taught health care ethics to students in medicine, nursing, and the various health professions.
In the 10 years I taught medical students, did research on ethics and health care, and witnessed what goes on in the clinical setting, I would say about 1-2% of the medical students, and very few nursing students behaved in unethical ways (cheated on tests, plagiarized, were mean and disrespectful to others, or went before the judicial board).
By the way, in Gallup's years of asking respondents to rate various professions on honesty and ethics, nurses have topped the list; members of Congress are at the bottom.
https://news.gallup.com/poll/245597/nurses-again-outpace-professions-honesty-ethics.aspx
5
Pompeo's first loyalty is to himself, and his second loyalty is straight upstairs. And that is the sum of all of his loyalty; he knows that if he waivers a millimeter, Trump will throw him under the bus in a New York second.
Trump believes that all loyalty is toward him. He has no concept of loyalty to others. Any loyalty that he appears to show towards anyone else is solely utilitarian (witness his pandering to extreme right-wingers with his exculpation of convicted war criminals), he uses what appears to be loyalty solely for personal gain. Now that his position is threatened, it will be used for protection as well.
Pompeo knows this. As long as he is useful to Trump, Trump will continue to use him, thus appearing to show Pompeo some "loyalty".
Pompeo probably knew this before he signed on to the administration. So I have no sympathy for him.
That there is a whole boatload of similarly cynical "civil servants" in the administration is a horror. I can only hope that some of them end up serving time as a result.
I expect that Trump himself will escape any confinement at all, due to the deference traditionally shown to former Presidents, it being assumed that loss of the position and loss of face is sufficient punishment. Since Trump has shown himself to be shameless, with seemingly an ironclad ability to make up his own reality and believe it, I believe that the deference will be wasted on him. I can only hope that SDNY can fine him into penury.
7
Mentioning ethics in a column about the administration. That's funny.
5
Who cares how he graduated at West Point? Another pathetic, anti-democracy liar doing the bidding of the trump crime family and advancing the cause of their dictatorship. Despicable.
10
I hate to break it to all of you but service academies will chose grades over honesty every time. USAFA has a serial problem with academic dishonesty and wrote a report on it, you can all access it online for verification. Most cadets cheat, and the ones who are caught will cheat again. They will graduate and become officers, so long as they don’t flunk. Flunk a few classes and you are disenrolled. At the end of the day the message is cheat to win, despite all the high talk of honor and duty, and that sign in plain view on the square stating lying and stealing will not be tolerated. What the academy should do is boot cadets the first time they are caught, show them the Air Force believes in its mission statement
If Pompeo lied to get ahead, he likely learned it at the academy. I fear a lax policy on academic dishonesty is going to produce future civil servants with a very broad view of truth.
8
Pompeo can't answer any criticisms from any reporters without stating that they have a partisan agenda. Given what his dept. is embroiled in, that means basically every question is batted away as partisan politics.
I don't know why sites like NPR bother interviewing Trumpites like Pompeo and Barr. They must be Trump's favourites. Any question they don't like its partisanship. Both are avatars of Trump.
7
He fits right in. Drinks diet coke by the gallon and spews lies endlessly. Perfect fit for the Trump 'administration'.
7
Obama named his own ambassadors, as did every president.
Why such a fuss over Yovanovich? You would think it were the end of the world. She is fine, back at the State Department.
She has been changed assignment quite a few times before, according to what she said. Without all the drama...
3
@novoad Your partisan-motivated attempts to gaslight us will not succeed.
12
@novoad Obama never publicly denigrated Ambassadors that he replaced.
4
@DB who is gaslighting whom? Serious amount of fuss over a diplomatic reassignment that happens in every single administrator.
Amen. Sec. Pompeo has failed his country, his party, and himself.
8
One of the lead cheerleaders the Iraq War and WMD is pointing fingers?
How long before Bolton is OpEd writer for NYT and Cheney/Rumsfeld starts working for WP.
2
@Tom
What about Pompeo?
2
Pompeo = Pomposity
8
Everyone around the don claims to be great at something. Maybe, instead of "claiming," they should just go out and do the "being."
5
It is not just "what happens" to people who find themselves in Trump's orbit, it is also what immorality and personality dysfunction are preselected to go into these jobs.
6
Graduating first in one's class at West Point doesn't imbue one with ethics. Please don't ever confuse achievement with character.
15
He clearly knows what is right, but chooses to ignore it.
I do not know what is worst someone like that or someone like Trump who does not know right for wrong.
5
Or it’s as simple as this: “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, but lose his soul?” — Mark 8:36.
Barr, Pompeo, and the GOP have their own "alternative" interpretation of the bible, the constitution, the rule of law, etc, etc
Basically, anything that stands in the way of what Trump wants.
4
Thank you Mr. Friedman for the article.
How about writing an in depth researched piece on Hunter Biden and the blind eye our ambassador placed on the unbelievable gig which George Kent called very troubling.
Is it possible an honest report can be written without sugarcoating it, I daub it.
1
@Jerry Davenport Hunter Biden's position was the result of nepotism, the same as Ivanka and Jared's appointments as senior advisers to the Trump Administration.
7
Not sure what “daub” means here, but anyway...Sure the Hunter Biden thing might be “troubling”- on a minor scale of troubling. On the other hand, using United States government resources for personal political gain is troubling on any troubling scale. And then trying to deny it even happened.
It’s like you’re comparing a flea bite to a crocodile bite. Both are troubling but one has far more consequence than the other. And it’s hard to deny a crocodile bite.
6
Thank goodness Pompeo is a devout born again Christian. Can one even imagine how much more craven his behavior would be if he didn’t have some fear of Judgment Day and an possible eternity spent in a Dante’s Inferno?
5
Pompeo may not believe females belong in formerly all-male jobs in diplomacy, and is too cowardly to admit it.
4
If not already, there needs to be a study done to determine how so many supposedly capable people can grovel at the feet of this despicable president.
7
Secretary of State Clinton testified for 11 hours during the Benghazi investigation. Mike Pompeo has testified for how long?
8
I would ask Mr Freidman to stop using the term Google as an adjective, "so I Googled the phrase" and instead use "Search" or "Internet Seach".
1
As Mr. Friedman highlights in Mike Pompeo's performance, he's a West Point graduate who, from his first day at the Academy and on through his career to current Secretary of State, repeatedly swore oaths to honor, integrity, and and to uphold the Constitution. His endorsement by execution of Trump's total corruption is a demonstration of Pompeo's dishonor of everything he's pledged to uphold.
Perhaps the capstone, as Mr. Friedman’s notes, is Pompeo’s failure to fulfill the actions in execution of his pledge that binds every officer’s simultaneous commitment to both the fulfillment of his mission and to the welfare of his troops. At the State Department he’s been a violator of both. Consider another military academy graduate Sen. John McCain’s example of that fulfillment.
And, that follows another egregious example reflecting not just his selected primacy of his political ambition, but personal cowardice in not either stopping, reversing, or resigning in protest of Trump's shameful ordering the dishonorable retreat in the face of enemy by our troops in Syria. The resulting blood of the slaughters of our trusted and trusting allies, and the resurrection of ISIS is also on his hands.
Pompeo may be the greatest dishonor to the traditions of the U.S. Military and the Academy since another top of his class, graduate, Robert E. Lee, committed a similar treason against his oaths and his country to fight to preserve the immorality of slavery.
9
@Max from Mass Max, please explain why you believe Pompeo would not go along with Trump to defend his former Ambassador when only last year he allied himself with Trump in the President's defense of Mohammed Bin Salman's purported murder of an American-based journalist? Protecting and defending the person identified by the American intelligence community who was responsible for ordering and orchestrating the despicable actions of the Saudi assassination squad is far more egregious than simply allowing the President and his minions to smear and fire a member of his department; isn't it?
@Daniel K. Statnekov
First, there is no greater dishoner than cowardly abandoning your troops, military or civilian, in the face of the enemy. And, while the honor at stake and thus the risk may be less visible, that applies to the most effective leaders in every walk of life. Its at the core of creating the most powerfully effective organizations.
Second, one not-incorrect (notice, I didn't say correct) act does not excuse an incorrect one.
And, you offer that Pompeo "allied himself with Trump." That's just going along. Where's the personal courage in that? That he risks not be invited to one of MSM's debauched displays of wealth and power?
Pompeo, like all others we know of in Trumps government, care only for the next position to which they can claw.
Mattis is the only former cabinet that I believe showed any decency in resigning when he was asked to go against his conscience - and in his case also - his troops.
I have sadly come to the conclusion that Putin has something on our President; likely has to do with Russian Oligarch investments in Trump properties - and is strong enough that our President is preparing to go to Russia on May Day - on top of all of his other bowing to Putin.
This all is more than bribery and obstruction of justice - it seems like treason to me.
12
Thank you so much, Tom, for writing this column! Having spent a number of years studying diplomatic history and reading the memoirs and diaries of both European and American diplomats as part of the research for my PhD dissertation, I was shocked by Secretary of State Pompeo's failure to defend Ambassador Yovanovich, both while she was still in her post and after she had been calumnied by Rudy Giuliani and then fired by the President.
I am hard pressed to think of another example of this kind of behavior by a Secretary of State or Foreign Minister. And for Pompeo to remain silent as Ambassador Yovanovich has been subjected to a smear campaign by Republican members of Congress and Fox News is simply inexcusable. Whatever his performance may have been at West Point, he is now a man without honor, and I am confident that history will judge him harshly.
2919
@jkoot Why is it inexplicable that Pompeo would not go along with Trump to defend his former Ambassador when only last year he allied himself with Trump in the President's defense of Mohammed Bin Salman's purported murder of an American-based journalist? Protecting and defending the person identified by the American intelligence community who was responsible for ordering and orchestrating the despicable actions of the Saudi assassination squad is far more egregious than simply allowing the President and his minions to smear and fire a member of his department; isn't it?
159
My hope and prayer is that he falls on his sword and does not come back to my home state and run for Senator Robert's seat.
121
@jkoot
It depends on who gets to write the history. Robert E. Lee broke the oaths he took as a cadet at West Point and as an officer in the United States Army. He went on to lead men to death in defense of a morally indefensible regime. But in order to avoid opening old wounds, which are badly healed and covered in scar tissue, we skirt the basic issues.
87
Thank you for articulating what many of us have felt in these recent weeks. These brave men and women in the diplomatic corps who serve our country with distinction deserve our total respect. They don't where uniforms, but they, like our noble military, keep us safe and out of harms way. Mr. Pompeo, we deserve and demand better from you.
1496
@Alan S.
Please , good comment but “where”?
Wear would be more like it.
21
@Alan S. How can we "demand better of him," Alan when only last year Pompeo clearly demonstrated his moral position when he allied himself with Trump in the President's defense of Mohammed Bin Salman's purported murder of an American-based journalist? Protecting and defending the person identified by the American intelligence community who was responsible for orchestrating the despicable actions of the Saudi assassination squad is far more egregious than simply allowing the President and his minions to smear and fire a member of his department; isn't it?
39
@Daniel K. Statnekov
It's even worse. We can "demand" anything, but Trump, Pompeo, and their entire coterie of corruptees pay no attention. We have to vote them out of office and also go after the crimes they have surely committed.
Which reminds me: Why is Trump hysterical about the possible release of his tax returns? What is he hiding that is so horrible?
77
What a fantastic column.
At first I felt secure in the knowledge that Pompeo, despite his ultra-conservative credentials, would lead with integrity. His stint at CIA, from what little we know about it, seemed to indicate that he would support the key institutions that serve our nation, not fall into political expediency (though please let us not forget George Tenet's shameful obsequiousness to George W Bush that compromised the CIAs fact finding role in that administration).
But Pompeo's moral failings along with Comey's and Mueller's lackluster performances has really terrified me. At our moment of crisis, when we have a President who is absolutely unfit for the job, we need people with integrity to put their careers and reputations on the line and say, No! Not on my watch!
Today's other article in the Times about average Americans losing their ability to trust the news and sift through reams of disinformation also speaks to this issue: With moral failures like Pompeo as our guides, the country will lose its way. The State department is being destroyed under his watch in the service of his own political expediency. The civic institutions that our polity depends upon our weakening are also across the board because of this.
A sad day for our country that those who should know better, know nothing about the value of moral and professional integrity.
1678
All of this was predestined when the people voted for Trump as president. Yes, it was a technical win, but it was still based on the votes of a huge number of people. Those people put a gun to the head of this country with that vote and they should never be forgiven for that treachery.
130
@Mark MacWilliams Why, Mark, would you feel "secure in the knowledge that Pompeo, despite his ultra-conservative credentials, would lead with integrity" when only last year Pompeo clearly demonstrated his moral position when he allied himself with Trump in the President's defense of Mohammed Bin Salman's purported murder of an American-based journalist? Protecting and defending the person identified by the American intelligence community who was responsible for orchestrating the despicable actions of the Saudi assassination squad is far more egregious than simply allowing the President and his minions to smear and fire a member of his own department; isn't it?
37
@Bobotheclown
Predestined? That Pompeo would be last in his class at West Point if people voted for the DT as president?
5
As a Navy veteran ('65-'69) and a retired federal prosecuting attorney (1995-2010), I add the following.
In joining the military both Pompeo and I swore to, among other things, ". . . defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic . . ." That oath is as important to me today as it was when I raised my right hand in June 1965.
It cannot be denied that Pompeo has willingly brought shame and disgrace upon himself and West Point.
So if he should want to rehabilitate his character some day, I suggest that he try reading the read the resume of of fellow West Pointer, Ambassador William Taylor. By so doing, he will learn what a "real" West Point graduate looks like. Indeed, he will then learn the meaning of "Duty, Honor, and Country."
2366
@Richard
Spot On!!!
54
@Richard
Thank you for your service. As another Navy vet and Naval Academy graduate, I am surprised that we have not seen more made of the West Point Honor Code in connection with Pompeo. The code is very straightforward, and similar to what the Air Force and Naval Academy have also lived with: "A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do." The second part ... tolerate those who do ... would seem impossible while working for Trump. But Pompeo seems to have a hard time, personally, with the first part.
142
As a child, those words resonated with me through “Bugle Notes”, a gift from my older brother, then a plebe at West Point.
39
There is a thread running through the Trump administration that deserves far more scrutiny, and that is the Christian 'true believers' who have sold out to Trump in the belief that he will enable their religious agenda.
Pompeo is an anti-abortion and anti-gay rights partisan. He's pushed pro-Christian policies at State.
Attorney General William Barr is a conservative Catholic who is into some of the more extreme beliefs found in corners of the Church.
Both of them are pre-disposed to authoritarian, patriarchal leadership. They can convince themselves they are serving God by serving Trump - they are answering to a higher morality even as they support a man who is a moral disaster.
Trump defenders are starting to allude to George Soros and his supposed agenda to 'explain' the deep state 'conspiracy' against the president, injecting anti-semitism into the mix.
The evangelical supporters of Trump have shown it was never faith driving driving their movement, just as Tea Party supporters of Trump have shown they never really cared about fiscal responsibility.
You can't understand how people of faith and so-called values support Trump if you can't see how hypocrisy and sanctimony run all through the GOP these days. The "Moral Majority" isn't. "Values Voters" only value power.
There may be an element of cowardice in what Pompeo is doing - but it's all about self-serving when you get right down to it.
2305
@Larry Roth
If Pompeo is a conservative Catholic, he is required to go to confession at least once a year. But with a moral compass like his, I imagine he can't think of much that he needs to confess. Someone should have a little talk with him about that.
80
@Larry Roth
I am a Christian! I have heard it said, and I completely agree that, "Some would like Christ put back into Christmas but I would like Christ put back into Christian." Like you, I "can't understand how people of faith and so-called values support Trump if you can't see how hypocrisy and sanctimony run all through the GOP these days. The "Moral Majority" isn't. "Values Voters" only value power."
169
@Larry Roth A further note: excerpt from a speech Barr just gave:
"As Catholics, we are committed to the Judeo-Christian values that have made this country great, and we know that the first thing we have to do to promote this renewal is to ensure that we are putting our principles into practice in our own personal lives. We cannot have a moral Renaissance unless we succeed in passing to the next generation our faith and values in full vigor. … If ever there was a need for a resurgence of Catholic education, and more generally religiously affiliated schools, it is today."
This is on the website of the Department of Justice. Theocracy anyone? https://www.justice.gov/opa/speech/attorney-general-william-p-barr-delivers-remarks-law-school-and-de-nicola-center-ethics
180
I grew up reading JFK's Profiles in Courage. This generation can look forward to Profiles in Cowardice --featuring many of our top leaders starting with Pompeo. Those who have been testifying truthfully to the facts that Trump is working feverishly to suppress, are heroes and deserve their own chapter in an update of JFK's book.
1278
@Woodtrain50 You are right. The only 'courage' shown by any Republicans during the last three years has been as they walk out the door. Flake, Corker, Sanford - suddenly they regained their moral compassess deciding not to run for reelection. Profiles In Courage In Retirement.
84
@Woodtrain50
I have been thinking the same thing. Profiles in Cowardice would be too long because of all the ones who are showing the lack of courage.
I didn't know that Pompeo was planning on running for President. I guess he would be willing to pardon the "chosen one". If Trump is God's "chosen one", I think God is getting a little old and senile. What would Jesus say about that?
Does God have a sense of humor? He doesn't seem to have kindness in mind for the world right now?
22
@Ronny Venable
Actually, just walking out the door with a big pension allows them to avoid the responsibility to try to balance the "ship of state!"
32
Just about every great president has had major and substantial flaws. Jimmy Carter was moral beyond belief and he simply was not a good president. But he did sacrifice himself by appointing Paul Volcker at the Fed to fight mushrooming inflation even though his advisers told him that would cost him re-election.
JFK had the Bay of Pigs and may have encouraged the Soviets to think they could take advantage of him making the Cuban missile crisis. He cheated on Jackie.
Democrats love Bill Clinton yet he shares many foibles in common with Trump except if you are a Democrat you think Trump is much worse-even though he isn't. Bill and his wife conspired to fight against women who challenged him.
Jefferson..had slaves was bankrupt- a personal life in shambles and a great man. Truly great man.
So get over it. yes presidents can be moral leaders. But they may not be. And it is more of problem today with a prying press.
John Adams was a near perfect president and man but even he backed the alien and sedition act.
No one is perfect. Presidents look out for their own interests and always have.
It is better that they are good presidents than good men. We need good presidents. You can't have everything.
I understand Trump's undesirable side(s). I don't like his antics. But I am still happier that he got elected than Hillary. And I am worried about the the next batch of Democrat candidates. Socialism.. Really? Trump is preferable to that -and I don't like him.
1
@robert brusca Lots of words that mean nothing except that you love Trump. The rest of it is nonsense.
6
@robert brusca Actually, somebody posted this yesterday. and the day before. and the day before that.
Okay. For you this whole story is about Mrs Clinton.
We're beginning to get the message.
3
@robert brusca Clinton was a smart president who, if nothing else, ran a government that balanced a budget. Trump is a self-interested man whose primary interest is his own enrichment. There is no way in which Trump's administration can be said to be responsibly running the government. We have chaos in the executive branch and soaring deficits. There is nothing that is happening under Trump which seems responsible, well thought out, or sustainable in the long term. He is neither a good president nor a good man.
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Secretary Pompeo would not know ethics if it slapped him in the face. He is as morally bankrupt as any other person who caters to Trump's needs. What I am trying to understand is the end game for people like him, Graham, Nunes, and Mulvaney? I believe they want to continue a career in politics but they are probably pariahs to mainstream republicans...if there are any left.
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He did follow the West Point motto: Duty, Honor, Country.
So, like his boss, Putin's Trump, he put Country last.
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This column is spot on. Thank you, Mr. Friedman.
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Friedman points to the "pamdemic" which is rife throughout the entire Trump administration when he descibes Pompeo as essentially without a moral center, much less a compass. He, Pompeo, is ethically bereft, but so is the entire Administration, led and "inspired" by the leader of it all, Trump...the most ethically and morally lacking Chief Executive (POTUS) I can remember...and I can remember all the way back to Truman, BTW.
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I join Mr Friedman in despising Pompeo, but I can't go along with the hero-worship of West Point. I was in the Army (late 60's to early 70's), and I don't remember any sense that our officers were noted for honor or decency. If you had one on your side, that was great, but as a group, they were self-serving, ready to sacrifice anything for their own careers. There may be good examples, just like in any category of people, but they should be treated as exceptional individuals. I guess I can see the rhetorical point of holding up the honor of West Point, to make Pompeo look bad, but realistically, no...
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@John Bergstrom Somehow I must have missed the "hero-worship of West Point" part of this story.
All I read was that the guy went to West Point and got good grades. After that, he was on his own and seems to have lost his moral compass.
That, plus the fact that only a few of your officers were actually West Point graduates.
Pompeo has laid waste to the USMA’s Honor Code. His obtuse indifference to Trump’s abuse of Amb. Yovanovitch demonstrates no less than cowardice.
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I offer a "defense" for Pompeo.
This is real life and not in a academy setting as West Point. I am now working for Putin's trump who lies all the time and it becomes my Duty to lie with him. For those who might ask "what about Duty, Honor, Country", well I first fulfill my Duty to lie along with my boss, I left my Honor inside the gates of West Point where I did not lie when I was there. And like my boss, Putin's Hump, I keep Country the last.
Sad!
The Republican's decision to inflate the size of government beyond previously seen in history demonstrates that they are no longer conservatives, but rather power hungry money grubbing racists.
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Nothing more needs to be added, since this line says it all about Pompeo as a so-called leader: "You look out for your soldiers, you don’t leave your wounded on the battlefield and you certainly don’t stand mute when you know a junior officer is being railroaded by a more senior commander, if not outright shot in her back."
Thanks for saying it, Tom Friedman.
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" Mike Pompeo : last in his class at West Point in integrity " screams the heading of this article. Any reader believing in the fairness of the New York Times ( I used to be one of them) would think that West Point grades its students on integrity ( it makes sense) and that Pompeo was the last in his class ( the heading says so). But if you read the article you find out that Pompeo " must have flunked all his courses on ethics and leadership"). Did he or is it wishful thinking?"
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@MS The shortcoming isn't the NYT's. You miss the point. Military officers are supposed to embody the values they are taught at West Point. Officers are supposed to adhere to a code of honor. They are supposed to lead by example. Pompeo may have finished first in his class (through hard study, participation, etc.), but he didn't internalize West Point's lessons, or has dishonorably decided to ignore them for the sake of selfish ends.
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@Aaron the he headings should have been "_"Mike Pompeo: a dishonor to West Point ".
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These people need to be removed from power now!
How can he possibly look himself in the eye, or his wife, children and attend church....I do not know. Shameful.
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If his church is one that subscribes to the belief that Trump was anointed by God to this position, then Pompeo and Barr have high standing in their churches. Sad.
I'm not so sure Jefferson would have been proud of a woman defying a male superior. Jefferson did some great things, but don't forget he was a slave owner for his entire life, and used at least one of those slaves for his sexual pleasure. He also allowed his own children, by her, to be put into slavery. Americans should start paying attention to the entire story, warts and all.
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Apparently Trump saw someone no one else did - a spineless, craven traitor who would throw the Constitution and the rule of law under the bus in a heartbeat. Perfect fit for the Trump administration. He hires only the best...
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Hot off the Presses!! Apparently there may be a falling out!!??
I’m a second generation from that school on the Hudson. Yes, we are taught we must always stand up for our men. It is so sad to see this coward still standing. He has turned his back on all we believe. Here’s a note I sent to Mike in early December last year. When he began his demonstration of being a ‘yes man’ to the President.
“10 Dec 2018 Dear Mike____
In the Cadet Prayer at the United States Military Academy, we promise we will "take the harder right over the easier wrong". Do you still remember that prayer? Do you ever get on your knees and ask our creator for guidance? Do you understand what "Duty, Honor, Country" means??? And do you know the words to our Alma Mater - 'we sons of today, we salute you, you sons of an earlier day.....' Eisenhower and MacArthur and so many more are looking down on you with tears of disgust in their eyes. My Pop is up there with them with tears in his eyes.
RCB Jr USMA 1961 son of RCB USMA 1935”
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Amazing that some one first in his class at West Point would go to the extent he has to assist a President who repeatedly obtained deferments from military service during Vietnam on the basis of "bone spurs", for which any medical records---if they existed--are no longer available---having been unceremoniously taken out of Trump's long time physician's office shortly after his inauguration at his direction.
One of the best columns, thank you!
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Thank you. Too many have traded their souls. Here in Massachusetts we often hear, "Do your job." Apparently Mr. Pompeo thinks other things are more important.
As Madame speaker stated earlier "All roads lead to Putin." I can't imagine what they have promised Trump or what they holding over his head to make him betray your country in the manner that he is.
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We are proud of her and all govt employees who do the right thing every day. We loath those like Pompeo who have no ethics. Has he no shame?
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Thomas Jefferson? A better man than Pompeo and Trump?
And how about Trump/Pompeo's outrageous betrayal of the Kurds, our allies in the war on ISIS. Now they are being executed by another dictator, Erdogan. What signal do you think that sends to America's allies? What shame they bring to our name
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The headline gets it exactly right,and that is why he will be nominated as the (after Trump) Republican presidential nominee. Edgar Allen Poe couldn't have done justice to the perversity of the current Republican Party: the bigger the liar and cheat,the better.
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Pompeo wants to run for president? The arrogance of these people is remarkable.
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Short of one resorting to obscenity and vulgarities, which Friedman does not, I don't think I've ever seen a more critical column.
And every word of it richly deserved by Mike Pompeo.
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Cadets at The USMA at West Point promise not to, “lie, chest or steal, or tolerate others who do.”
Given Mr Trump’s constant and egregious lies throughout his presidency, Mr Pompeo has been violating that cadet oath for several years.
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November 18, 2019
Oh yes, the honorable Pompeo is well instructed by America's - if not to say the world's 'chosen one - President Trump - Being put in straight jacket of America's Statecraft -by our expected impeachable Chief Exec is not a behavior that is understood in the doctrine of the management of politics albeit at state or national matters. Strangely to say we are fortunate to have Pompeo's State service - but - yet the same but - having to deal the deal with Trump's chaos has given the cowardly and self serving execution by this Sec State and we all know the yelling of you're fired obsession of DJT and so goes a hiatus for Washington's leadership while the impeachment inquiry show goes on and on and then we best follow the New York Times coverage towards our recovery plan ahead by the 2020 election opportunities......
Nailed it again, Mr. Friedman. Thank you.
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Pompeo, Barr, Graham, Nunes. Mcconnell, all worship the devil in our midst, trump, to their lasting detriment. All will be vilified throughout history including trump himself as the most destructive forces our country ever witnessed.
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Ironic, is it not, that so many in the Trump orbit profess themselves devout Christians--Barr, Pence and Pompeo prime examples--but are revealed as lacking any moral compass?
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Apparently the most important lesson Pompeo learned at West Point was to blindly follow the orders of the commander-in-chief.
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How refreshing it is, Tom Friedman, to see someone called out on his behavior without resorting to name calling that has become de rigueur with the person who calls himself our president. Yes, Pompeo is a disgrace as so many in this administration are for their toadying behavior.
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Generally speaking... anyone that legitamately graduates first in their class at West Point... goes on to become a 4 star and sit on the joint chiefs at some point in their career.
The fact that Pompeo's path was much different.. suggests that he is, and always has been, a fake.. someone who is able to game a system for personal benefit.
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In my humble opinion, this is your finest piece, Mr. Friedman. Thank you.
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President Trump is someone we saw coming and did nothing about. His behavior before becoming president was disgusting, and it has continued the same way. This behavior, his psychological profile stunningly amoral, is being reinforced by so many appointed and elected representatives. Tom Friedman's article on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is yet another Profile in Cowardice that is apparent to us all. The quicker the Congress and Senate fulfill their responsibilities to rid us of this high crime president, the quicker we can sweep his minions, like Pompeo, out and fling the windows open and start breathing clean air again.
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Volunteering for the military does not make you a good person.
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Thank you for this column, Mr. Friedman.
Yes. Yes!
Like everyone else in this completely shameful administration, this man has GOT to go.
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What branch of the American military did you serve in Thomas Friedman ?
And when and where did you serve?
While you and the New York Times were leading the cheers for the alleged 'war on terror' that has led to disasters and failures in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Egypt, Bahrain, Pakistan, Somalia, Nigeria, Gaza, West Bank and beyond.
Since 9/11/01 a mere 0.75% of Americans have volunteered to wear the military uniform of any American armed force. And they have been ground to emotional, mental and physical dust by repeated deployments in ethnic sectarian foreign civil wars that have no military solution.
Too many veterans have become homeless depressed alcoholics and drug addicts who are going to prison and killing themselves in despair.
While the rest of us pretend to be brave honorable patriots by rising to sing the national anthem and saluting the flag at sporting events.
Mike Pompeo was nominated to his position by our Electoral College President without the advice and consent of the House of Representatives.
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@Blackmamba
That's all well and good, and responds not at all to anything Friedman says.
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