BERGER RESURFACES
Fresh from being fined $50k for stealing and then destroying classified documents from the National Archives, Sandy Stickyfingers Berger has popped up again, and guess what--China is involved. Color me surprised:
The Brookings Institution today launched its new China Initiative, which is intended to explore the dynamics of China's transformation and emergence as a political and economic power and the implications for the United States, China, the East Asian region, and the world.The Initiative was established through the generosity of Brookings Chairman John L. Thornton, and will be directed by Senior Fellow Jeffrey A. Bader, who previously served as ambassador and a senior official at the State Department, National Security Council, and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
"The rise of China and its impact on the world is the most important geo-political event of the twenty-first century," said Thornton, who is a professor of global leadership at Tsinghua University in Beijing. "With today's launch, Brookings is now poised to establish itself as a key destination for both Chinese and American policy-makers seeking to understand China's critically important role in today's world."
Umhm. Chinese policy-makers are going to go to Brookings to understand Chinese policy? I don't think so. It's more likely that Brookings is providing a place for liberal (since Brookings is liberal) Democrat policy-makers to cozy up to Chinese policy-makers and vice versa. Which is where Berger fits in:
The China Initiative began its public work today with a series of panel discussions on China's emergence. Panelists included Donald Evans, former secretary of commerce; Samuel Berger, former national security advisor; Carla Hills, former U.S. trade representative; Kishore Mahbubani, former permanent secretary for the Singapore Foreign Ministry; Fred Hu, chairman of Goldman Sachs China; and J. Stapleton Roy, former U.S. ambassador to China.
It's a fitting role for the felon. Prior to joining the Clinton administration as National Security Advisor, Berger was a lobbyist on China's dime.