Bmaz sent me Isikoff’s latest, which thankfully does more than report on events from his past as if they were news. It reports the frightening news that Condi’s about to appoint Paul Wolfowitz to an advisory position at State.

Nearly three years after Paul Wolfowitzresigned as deputy Defense secretary and six months after his stormydeparture as president of the World Bank—amid allegations that heimproperly awarded a raise to his girlfriend—he’s in line to return topublic service. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has offered Wolfowitz, a prime architect of the IraqWar, a position as chairman of the International Security AdvisoryBoard, a prestigious State Department panel, according to twodepartment sources who declined to be identified discussing personnelmatters. The 18-member panel, which has access to highly classifiedintelligence, advises Rice on disarmament, nuclear proliferation, WMDissues and other matters. "We think he is well suited and will do anexcellent job," said one senior official.

They don’t yet have Wolfie listed on the website, so maybe there’s some time to embarrass Condi out of putting Wolfie in an advisory position again. I suggest we start an embarrassment campaign by focusing on two issues.

Condi, someone committed a security indiscretion to give Wolfie’s girlfriend a job at State. Are you sure you should repeat the mistake by giving Wolfie more access to classified information?

Remember that when people started complaining that Wolfie was giving Shaha Reza preferential treatment at the World Bank, his "solution" was to set her up at State? Remember Sidney Blumenthal’s description of how unusual Reza’s security clearance process was?

Riza was unhappy about leaving the sinecure at the World Bank. Butin 2006 Wolfowitz made a series of calls to his friends that landed hera job at a new think tank called Foundation for the Future that isfunded by the State Department. She was the sole employee, at least inthe beginning. The World Bank continued to pay her salary, which wasraised by $60,000 to $193,590 annually, more than the $183,500 paid toSecretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and all of it tax-free. Moreover,Wolfowitz got the State Department to agree that the ratings of herperformance would automatically be "outstanding." Wolfowitz insisted onthese terms himself and then misled the World Bank board about what hehad done.

[snip]

Riza, who is not a U.S. citizen, had to receive a security clearancein order to work at the State Department. Who intervened? It is notunusual to have British or French midlevel officers at the departmenton exchange programs, but they receive security clearances based on theclearances they already have with their host governments. Granting aforeign national who is detailed from an international organization asecurity clearance, however, is extraordinary, even unprecedented. Sohow could this clearance have been granted?

State Department officials familiar with the details of this matterconfirmed to me that Shaha Ali Riza was detailed to the StateDepartment and had unescorted access while working for ElizabethCheney. Access to the building requires a national security clearanceor permanent escort by a person with such a clearance. But the StateDepartment has no record of having issued a national security clearanceto Riza.

So, after turning State Department into a scam to allow Wolfowitz to break ethical rules and expose US secrets to a foreign national with no apparent clearance, Condi now wants to use a State advisory board to give Wolfie clearance himself.

Condi, aren’t you a little ashamed at the way Wolfie used your agency the last time?