Obama Berlin Speech: US Foreign Service Workers Instructed Not To Attend

**UPDATE 7/25** ThinkProgress now reports that the bar on Foreign Service workers attending Obama's speech in Berlin --through what a diplomat's union called an "unnecessarily narrow interpretation" of the Foreign Affairs Manual-- may be even more partisan than initially reported. Despite railing against Obama for giving a speech outside the country, John McCain himself gave a speech in Ottowa as recently as June of this year, as reported by The Huffington Post's Rachel Weiner yesterday. Now, ThinkProgress reveals that McCain's speech in Canada prompted no such restrictions for the country's Foreign Service workers. In fact:

The event was reportedly organized in part by U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Wilkins, whom President Bush appointed in 2005. But more than that, the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa confirmed to ThinkProgress that Wilkins also attended the event.

Not only did McCain make clear references to and critiques of Obama's policy positions in the speech, but he also referred to his own presidential campaign six times.

***

Although it appears most of Berlin is heading to Obama's speech today, US Foreign Service personnel will be banned from the event. And they are not happy. The American Foreign Service Association, a union of Foreign Service workers are opposing the rule. Read more from The Washington Post. And watch the speech live here.

The U.S. Embassy in Berlin has instructed Foreign Service personnel stationed there not to attend Sen. Barack Obama's public rally today, which the State Department this week labeled a "partisan political activity" prohibited under its regulations for those serving overseas.

Government employees serving in the United States are permitted to attend such events under the Hatch Act, which bars other partisan activity, such as contributing money or working in behalf of a candidate...

...The American Foreign Service Association, the union of the diplomatic corps, objected to the ruling, calling it an "unnecessarily narrow interpretation" of the Foreign Affairs Manual. "The fact that you are working for the U.S. government overseas should not preclude political activity that you could engage in in the United States," one retired senior Foreign Service officer said.

HuffPost blogger Jacob Heilbrunn looks into the political connections around the rule:

Indeed, the administration has a long and tawdry record of trying to browbeat government agencies into submission, whether it's the CIA or the Centers for Disease Control. The State Department is perhaps highest on the list of conservatives and neocons who see it as the center of disloyalty and treachery. But this latest action represents a new low. If it's going to these lengths, the Bush administration must be really worried about Sen. John McCain's prospects.

Comments

[CJCalgirl]

I watched live. A beautiful speech that hit all our concerns as citizens of the world except for maybe Tibet. He was thoughtful, profound, inclusive, and most of all, He Was Correct! Love this man!

[Dantana]

They are definately very afraid, with Obama' s call to end the war and clean up our environmental act, the military industrial complex and big oil are quakeing in their jackboots. The whitehouse is dialing Diebold as we speak!

[readytsf]

Couldn't have said it better myself. The State Department IS the center of disloyalty and treachery. Those cowards have to be forced to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan, and then complain to the media about it. But they're out in force at an Obama rally in Germany...........

[teacake]

Translation: the Neo-con-backed US government prevent US Foreign Service workers to participate in an event that reinforces the ideal of democracy and the good will of mankind.

Bush and his Neo-cons (Cheney et. al) are afraid of Obama destroying what they have been working so hard to build: a fascist government in the US and a "new world order", which means the evil Neo-con-style government would spread throughout the world.

The fact that Bush are stopping Americans from participate in an event that would project a better image of the US tells us that Bush is simply too evil for America. Bush must be removed from public office in a most shameful and disgrace exit possible. By now Bush and Cheney are nothing more than a couple of treasonous criminal and dirtiest war criminals. These scumbags have been instrumental to the evil oil cartels and the Neo-cons. George Orwell is turning in his grave!

[Liberalvalues]

I may be mistaken, but Americans living abroad are their own voting block. They should be able to listen, research and make their own informed decisions. Do you think Mc$ush invoked the Hatch Act when Mc$ame is giving speeches in foreign countries?

[GeoLee]

They must be the oly Americans in Berlin who are not proud of their country today.

[gladys46]

Or discussing/representing U.S. free trade agreements with Colombia!!?

[separatingwheatfromchaff]

Rules are rules you know.Dick thought different when he shot someone while hunting.Didn't stop anyone from treasonous behavior outing CIA agent Valerie Plame.Or torturing people.But to be so petty as to not allow employees to hear a speech by someone that has a brain that functions and gives them hope?They already know the emperors an idiot,he doesn't have to prove it..

[gditty]

Germans cheering & waving Americans flags while the American government prohibits americans from participating..

Is something wrong with this statement?

[blaqntelligence]

Tragically wrong.....I was about to post the same sentiment until I read yours.

[ProgressiveChange]

Very appropriate. If America is to be protrayed as the bastion of liberty and democracy, barring Foreign Service workers from politicla events makes sense. They are supposed to be impartial and neutral in the political process ... like Bush's attorneys general, Supreme Court appointees, and thousands of others, who have played it so straight over the last 7.5 miserable years. Transparency in political expression is a threat to the nation ... like terrorism, mortgage bankers, drunk Wall Street investors, and whiners.

Up is down, down is up, left is wrong, right is right. These simple realities will help all of us better understand the vocabulary of our government.

[MarkInEugene]

Preventing Americans from going to a rally for their candidate! This is right up there with the Siegelman affair, subverting elections, signing statements that undermine congressional authority, swift-boating Vietnam veterans, gerrymandering, outing secret service employees, writing prejudice into the constitution, wiretapping the nation, trashing habeas corpus, and spending $750 million taxpayer dollars a day on a war based on lies.

This is a typical Republican dirty tricks game to manipulate and abuse the people however they want. This is exactly how they have learned to get what they want. This Administration will forego ethics, statesmanship and fair play to manipulate whoever and whatever they want to whenever they want to!

U n b e l i e v a b l e And T o t a l l y un-American !

[MelDel7365]

Figures...

Case and Point - THIS kind of thing is precisely why we need to elect Obama...no more Republican games.

[ThankGodforAtheists]

Well, rules are rules.....and we ALL know that rules NEVER violate our constitutional freedoms. Right?

[springsm]

yes, but couldnt they just declare that they didn't believe in THAT rule and continue to the party?

[Oilygarch]

.
Excuse me, but, your papers don't appear to be in order...

GUARRDS!!!

*LOL*.

[buddhistMonkey]

More petulance from the Most Hated President in History. Europe and the rest of the world at large all hate George Bush so much that the only way he'd ever get the sort of turnout that Obama is seeing today is if the throngs were all protestors. Even then, there are more people who love Barack Obama then there are those who hate George Bush (although the two groups overlap quite a bit).

Poor George. Only now, at the end, does he see how a REAL American President should be received worldwide, and the stark contrast with his own failed legacy is driving him into deep despair and rage. Throughout most of the world, Obama is literally ten times more popular than our impotent president, and the only thing Bush can think to do about it is to impose petty State Department rules out of spite.

[geobushono]

.and I hope we get back to the point where the President can wade into a crowd back here at home, not just in Germany.

[FarOutFish]

“The most hated President in history”

Perhaps a little history study will show you most Presidents are hated by much of the population. My nomination is President Andrew Johnson.

[jackinhack]

Makes you proud to be an American in the service of your country.

Once we throw these clowns out, maybe every AMerican will have rights again.

[mikie63]

I really didn't think we had gone so far from our freedoms. It seems to be a rather weird coincidence that this rule by our supposed government should have taken place in the country where Nazis ruled a while back. No, the repugnants are not real Nazis, they're just pretending, right?????

[andvoodoo2]

They are doing a very good job at "pretending".

[FarOutFish]

The official name of the NAZI party was Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP) — “National Socialist German Workers’ Party”. Are you implying George Bush is a Socialist or even worse a Communist? Both parties were of the left. It was during World War Two in an effort to garner support for the Soviet Union the two were depected as polar opposites. The reality is they, along with Italy’s Facists, were brothers in tyrany.

[FanaticRealist]

The only thing they have done a good job at in the last eight years!

Protecting the US from the worst terrorist attack in history? FAILED
Aiding the city and citizens of New Orleans in the wake of Katrina? FAILED
Protecting millions of investors and savers from corporate fraudsters like Enron? FAILED
Protecting the US financial system from the sub-prime scandal? FAILED
Protecting the environment? FAILED
Ensuring that taxpayers are protected from corrupt no-bid government contracts? FAILED

I could go on…but what's the point?

[TexasMike]

The neocons put forth that rag of legislation called the Hatch Act and then have the nerve to start vetting ALL government departments, applying a republican litmus test. They are like an infestation. How can these people speak of being Americans when they actually do not believe in or adhere to the Constitution? We can only hope that as soon as the neocon dinosaurs finally get thrown back into their tarpit, senior bureaucrats can start firing all those brilliant Oral Roberts University geniuses.

[VoiceOmmAfar]

And why is it that we call political criminals neocons? Oh, to legitimize them. Sorry, then, it's fine.