Beatrice Wilkinson Welters Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago: Embassy Paybacks to Big Donors

Beatrice Wilkinson Welters is President Obama's nominee for ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago. No surprise, her husband Anthony Welters, is an executive with UnitedHealthGroup which brought in $200,000-$500,000 in campaign donation for the election and another $100,000 for the Obama crowning inaugural.

American Embassy - Paris

Beatrice Welters donated $4,600 to the Obama campaign in each of the years 2007 and 2008. Her husband, Anthony donated $4,600 in 2008. The Welters' two sons were also $4,600-donors: Bryant, reportedly 19 years old today, donated $4,600 in the second quarter of each of the years 2007 and 2008, when he was an unemployed student, and Andrew, reportedly 17 years old today, an unemployed student, donated $4,600 in the second quarter of 2008

Here are a few of those bringing in over $500,000, now representing the taxpayer in "cream of the crop" cities in foreign countries:

Charles H. Rivkin - Paris, France
Alan Solomont - Madrid, Spain
Louis B. Susman - London, England
Don Beyer - Bern, Switzerland
Nicole Avant - Nassau, Bahamas

Ambassadors with DNC ties:
Philip Murphy - Germany
Anne Slaughter Andrew - Costa Rico

Susan Johnson, president of the American Foreign Service Association says these appointments are "three year rentals:"

Equally disappointing — but perhaps more expected — to career diplomats is that the distribution of assignments shows no sign of changing: The political appointees get the big mansions in big-name countries, while the careerists pack off to Haiti, Zimbabwe, Serbia and other less inviting postings.

Amateurs in these posts - not a good idea in an era of terrorism:

The politicization of the diplomatic corps, which began in the 1960s, is of increasing concern to some foreign policy experts, given the rise of terrorism and the need for greater coordination between the U.S. and foreign governments on national security issues.

Diplomatic posts that may once have largely involved ceremonial appearances now can be focused on issues such as human and drug trafficking, kidnappings, war and intelligence sharing. With that worldview, “We believe America is best served by having career foreign service officers, just as we have career military officers,” Johnson said.

Johnson actually believed that Obama would more open and transparent, as promised:

Johnson said the career diplomatic community had hoped for more than just the status quo from a candidate who campaigned on a vision of transforming Washington into a city less beholden to special interests and wealthy political benefactors.

Read the entire article on Obama ambassadorships.

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Obama Administration to deny Civil Service Jobs to Republicans