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Congressional Hearing on the Nomination of the Honorable Wendy R. Sherman of Maryland as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs 419 Dirksen Office Building U.S. Senate Washington, DC 20515 Wednesday Sept 7th, 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

On Wednesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing on the nomination of Wendy R. Sherman for the position of Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs.

Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-PA), chaired the hearing in the absence of Senator John Kerry (D-MA) and noted the wealth of experience Sherman brought to the job and the fact that she would be the first woman to serve in this position if confirmed. The senator also remarked on the wide-sweeping changes in the Middle East, and how the State Department can continue to fulfill its responsibilities while taking into consideration the current fiscal climate. Ranking member Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) voiced similar sentiments regarding the State Department’s capacity to “perform its important national security, economic, consular, and diplomatic missions in a declining resource environment.” In her opening statement, Ambassador Wendy Sherman noted her experience both on Capitol Hill and within the State Department, and called for American foreign policy to “reflect a blend of idealism and realism” and that the State Department must reach out “in the broadest way possible—to governments, opinion leaders, young people, women and girls, the private sector and civil society in all its dimensions” when pursuing America’s interests.

Senator Cardin asked how the Ambassador would go about prioritizing all the various initiatives of the State Department given financial constraints, coupled with the many changes taking place around the world. Sherman responded that this a “holistic approach” was necessary in dealing with the budget, and she also reminded the committee that the American public wrongly assumes that the U.S. government spends 40 percent of its budget on foreign policy when in reality only 1 percent of the budget is spent on foreign policy. She also noted the need to work more closely with U.S. allies such as NATO, as well as building public/private partnerships.

Senator Lugar also the issue of the budget, and the upcoming U.N. vote on Palestinian statehood the State Department’s planned response. This question was echoed by Senator Mike Lee (R-UT). Lugar also asked about an arms request from the Egyptian transitional government for the purchase of Abrahams tanks and whether the State Department deemed the current Egyptian government viable enough to be selling them such weaponry. In response to the upcoming U.N. vote on Palestine, the Ambassador stated while “all of us hope for a two-state solution” it was the steadfast policy of the Obama Administration not to support this vote and were working on viable alternatives to avoid the vote from occurring. Furthermore, she stated that “if confirmed I will do everything possible to see this [vote] does not move forward.” In regards to the arms request from Egypt, Sherman stated that she was unaware of the request but that the U.S. Government has a very clear path for processing arms sales requests and would look further into the issue.

www.pomed.org ! 1611 Connecticut Ave, Suite 300 ! Washington, DC 20009 Senator Menendez (D-NJ) focused on Libya, specifically in regards to the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103. While Menendez said he supported “the opportunity for the Libyans to start anew” he was concerned with how cooperative the National Transitional Council (NTC) would be with American investigators. In this vein, he announced he would be introducing the Pan Am 103 Accountability Act, which would require the Obama administration to certify that the NTC was fully cooperating with American investigators before releasing further funds to the NTC. Sherman responded that “Secretary Clinton knows that this is a serious and important topic to the American people” and that the NTC is also aware that this is an important topic and will attempt to cooperate.

Senator Jim Demint (R-SC) questioned the Ambassador regarding her foreign policy philosophy, stating that he felt American foreign policy was sometimes looked upon as “naïve” and “weak.” Demint also stated that based on the Ambassador’s work with North Korea, he felt she her approach may be based more on “friendliness and appeasement” and wanted clarification. Sherman responded that her philosophy was based on “strength and verification.” She gave the example of North Korea, stating that they tested the North Koreans to see if they could demonstrate an ability to keep their commitments and that “we [the US Government] will not talk for the sake of talk.”

Senators Robert Casey (D-PA) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) both questioned the Ambassador regarding Pakistan and asked what the U.S. Government can do to help improve Pakistan-India relations. Sherman said she was heartened by the several past meetings that took place between both sides and said the State Department could continue to encourage both sides to meet and continue their dialogue. Lastly, Casey brought up the case of the two hikers who were sentenced to eight years in prison in Iran and what the State Department could do to secure their release. Sherman stated that the State Department would continue working with the Swiss Consulate (who represent the U.S. in Iran) to gain consular access to the prisoners and use “every relationship we have to get their release.”

Senator James Risch (R-ID) questioned Sherman in regard to what can be done to stabilize the Sinai and ensure the continued success of the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. She noted that the Egyptian government had re-affirmed its commitment to the Camp David Accords and were currently working with the Israeli government regarding the stabilization of the Sinai. That being said, she said the State Department would “maintain our vigilance” in regards to the Sinai.

Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Chris Coons (D-DE) both questioned Sherman regarding developments in Iran, including whether extra sanctions against Iran would be appropriate and what kind of approach should be taken now that the IAEA has reported increased enrichment activities. Sherman responded that she would need to be briefed first on the situation before making a recommendation, but did state that she felt the current regimen of economic sanctions against Iran “had begun to bite” and half of the battle was to get current sanctions to be thoroughly enforced by all nations. Lastly, Coons asked what could be done regarding the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa and what could be done to diminish Al’Shabab’s influence in Somalia. The Ambassador stated that the State Department was “looking to see what other options there are to bring relief [to areas] outside of Mogadishu” and that that they are “working closely with the UN” as well.

Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) requested information regarding the State Department’s plan should the Iraqi government request American troops stay past the December 2011 deadline, and how the State Department can ensure that the transition is smooth and that American taxpayer money is well spent. Sherman said she would check with the State Department regarding the Iraqi request and said that there were those in the State Department who were focused on the transition and ensuring taxpayer money is well spent and that there is little to no corruption involved.

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