In addition to distracting the public by making it seem like State Department is Doing Something about transparency – as if its previous failures were ever anything but standard procedure for a furtive Administration that doesn’t like answering questions from the public or Congress – this move is designed to throw Hillary Clinton a little cover by bolstering her political narrative about the “complexity” of her email scandal. Jacobs will also work with other agencies and the private sector on the initiative, Kerry said.
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Kerry said he has tasked Jacobs with “improving our systems for responding to Freedom of Information Act and congressional requests faster and more efficiently”.
The division has been criticized for inefficiency, notably because the clamor over former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s use of a personal e-mail server.
Since 2008, the State Department has seen a three-fold increase in the number of FOIA requests, putting a stress on existing personnel and creating long response times.
Another alarming development for the department came earlier this summer, when a federal judge publicly scolded State attorneys for “dragging their feet” in releasing the emails, as have many members of Congress.
The various requests are now including top former aides to Clinton such as Philippe Reines and Huma Abedin.
“She’s being given this job because of her career, her experience running large organizations and leading change efforts”, Kirby said.
The volume is not just related to the Clinton documents, however.
“Secretary Kerry’s view is that the FOIA process is overwhelming and not properly resourced”. Kirby also noted that Jacobs would not be involved in adjudicating the release of Clinton’s emails and had been appointed to oversee improvements to the department’s overall records preservation and release process.
“This can’t be done with just a band-aid or piecemeal”, a third official said.
John Kirby, a State Department spokesman, said there will be a “small but nimble” staff supporting Jacobs.
Janice Jacobs told the Associated Press she made the $2,700 donation to Clinton’s campaign in June when she was retired and didn’t expect to be recalled to work.
Jacobs will also be responsible for helping the State Department meet targets under a new Presidential executive order for digitally archiving federal government records by 2019 and implement recommendations by the agency’s inspector general.
Jacobs told the Wall Street Journal in an interview that she donated to Clinton’s campaign as a “private citizen” prior to any conversation with the State Department about her new job.
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It was left to John Kirby to explain Wednesday how this clear conflict of interest isn’t what it is.
