You can laugh at Bill Clinton all you want, but he is the "git er done" man of the hour, paying a visit to North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il and successfully convincing North Korea to free Euna Lee and Laura Ling, the two American journalists arrested in March for illegally crossing the border into North Korea.
Clinton was an unexpected choice, doing what I'll call a "Jimmy Carter" (an ex-president pressed into service to do some quasi-diplomatic work) and sitting down with Kim Jong Il, who, according to an Associated Press report has not met with a prominent leader from the West since allegedly suffering from a stroke a year ago. In fact, Carter might have been a more logical choice, since he himself sat down with Kim Il Sung, Jong Il's father, for similiar, unofficial diplomatic talks in 1994.
The situation of using Clinton reminds me of a slogan used in Clinton's first presidential campaign: buy one, get one free. In that case, it referred to electing Clinton (buy one) and getting the brainpower of Hillary, too (get one free).
It's interesting that this time, roles have been reversed, with Obama appointing Hillary and getting Bill for free. Many politicos squonked about Bill being a detriment when Hillary ran, and I will admit he publicly said some pretty reactive, stupid, off-the-cuff remarks. But maybe, like Carter, he has found his ken as a behind-the-scenes guy smoothing the way with prickly dictators and even closing a few deals.
I'm sure the commentators will express trepitation that he will overextend his power and influence, usurping not only his wife's role as Secretary of State, but of Obama's as well.
And I mean this as no disregard to Clinton (or Albright before her), but despite many Americans thinking that the world is an enlightened a place as we are when it comes to the role and status of women in work and society, it's not. Certainly it's safe to include North Korea into this less-enlightened category.
And while I don't think that anyone should replace Hillary Clinton (or any female in that position) as chief diplomat, perhaps in countries where we know females are treated as third-class citizens, adding to the mix a seasoned (and yes, male) diplomat such as Bill Clinton (or Bill Richardson or John McCain or even Jimmy Carter) makes infinite sense. Especially someone who has a long-standing, positive relationship with a person or country that historically has not been an ally.
Since the journalists' arrest and sentencing Obama, Hillary Clinton, and others in the State Department have issued public apologies to North Korea and asking for the immunity of the arrested journalists. And there were indications that perhaps it wasn't falling on deaf ears.
In July, Ling (through a phone call to her sister Lisa Ling, herself a National Geographic Channel correspondent) reported that she and Lee were never transferred to prison after sentencing, but were rather being held in what was classified as a "guest house". It was speculated that while they were not free per se, their kind of house arrest was preferable and more humane than in transferring them into the North Korean jail system.
I have long said that North Korea is the country to watch, especially with Kim Jong Il at the helm. Not to discount the unrest and atrocities in other parts of the world, but we sometimes tend to forget this little island country that now, suddenly, has nuclear capability and a leader that doesn't always seem to think too rationally. I am hopeful that this is but a small step in a series of other steps to open up diplomatic talks with North Korea.
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