Professor Richard Rubenstein, a noted scholar of human rights and international and comparative law, and a frequent visitor to Malta writes below of Ambassador Kmiec's success in Malta and Kmiec"s recent volunteering to stand in for the assassinated Chris Stevens in Libya. Quoting the Inspector General, In Professor Rubenstein observes:
"Ambassador Kmiec established new and important strategic priorities shortly after his arrival including enhanced regional security cooperation, the promotion of environmentally sensitive commercial investment, and the resettlement of the irregular migrant populations
"Ambassador Kmiec established new and important strategic priorities shortly after his arrival including enhanced regional security cooperation, the promotion of environmentally sensitive commercial investment, and the resettlement of the irregular migrant populations
"Ambassador Kmiec's unconventional modus operandi has
enabled him to achieve important successes"
Ambassador Kmiec of great significance persuaded Malta to
aid the Afghan effort with civilian training, helped to keep Malta within
the European Union consensus on Iranian sanctions, and reached out to Muslim
populations in creative ways
"Ambassador Kmiec is known and highly regarded by the
Maltese President, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, members of parliament and
other officials and the Maltese public
"Ambassador Kmiec kept a varied representative schedule.
'Ambassador Kmiec has successfully concluded the ratification
of a new double taxation treaty; the security review and renewal of the Visa
waiver program; a customs agreement to act as the Second Line of defense with
new equipment and training to detect enriched substance at the customs
screening house; an agreement for enhanced training for boarding inspection at
the airport
"Ambassador Kmiec is highly respected throughout the
embassy staff’
"Ambassador Kmiec is regarded as forthright, sincere,
honest and with his heart in the right place"
Ambassador Kmiec is understood as really wanting to
improve the bilateral with Malta and to have the in-depth knowledge of the
issues
"Ambassador Kmiec’s profound sense of justice and
environmental sensitivity has shaped his actions as Ambassador."
Oh yes, and don’t forget about his bringing a badly
delayed embassy project to successful conclusion and rescuing his fellow diplomats
on a rented catamaran from the Libyan conflict.
How can this superior record of diplomatic effort and
achievement be distilled into neglect of duty and a forced resignation. It can’t except to the far right, tea
partiers who are still fuming that Kmiec helped Obama
secure the 2008 Catholic vote in four pivotal states. Kmiec’s 2008
book, Can a Catholic Support Him? laid
out the arguments that Catholics clearly could, and did align with Barack Obama, much to the
chagrin of the Republicans.
Kmiec
thinks Obama an honest broker in the Arab-Israeli dispute and someone who has a
nuanced understanding and appreciation for religious freedom. Kmiec took issue
with the narrowness of the HHS religious exemption the President thought okay.
Kmiec saw it as inadequate to handle the conscience needs of his former,
long-time employer, the University of Notre Dame. However, Kmiec has been
admiring of the president's efforts to pursue a social justice agenda which has
long been publicly neglected by the church's pursuit of its singular pro-life agenda,
which Kmiec himself has never abandoned, though like the late Cardinal
Bernardin sees catholic teaching as a seamless garment with capital punishment
and a skewed economic system as offensive as abortion.
Kmiec's
new 2012 book, lift up your hearts (available
on Amazon – nationally and internationally) is a manifesto in support of a theology of
kindness, which Kmiec treasures highly since it was embodied in the beautiful life of his spiritual
counselor, a beloved 94 year old priest who tragically died in a single car wreck
when Kmiec may have lost consciousness from a newly prescribed medication for Parkinsons that he started just days before. The FDA has since found the medication to result in spontaneous black out. It is fair to say Kmiec finds
kindness lacking in today's political discourse. Indeed, the continued false
claim that he was forced to resign because his was neglecting his duties or that
he knew little of the foreign diplomats at his posting is nothing short of
extraordinary insult.
The
President admired the courage of Chris Stevens; he should send Doug Kmiec to
take up Stevens’ work for it is as important for America and Libya not to allow
the thugs to defeat the rule of law as it is to not allow the disgruntled right
wing to purloin a good man’s reputation.