Shultz’s Purge

Al Haig must be pulling his hair out with rage as he watches the mild-mannered, laid-back George Shultz working a total takeover of the State Department—a purge that Haig tried to execute and failed, because his frontal assault exploded in his face. (Haig, by the way, lauds Shultz copiously and, apparently, sincerely for his administrative and foreign-policy skills.) How did Shultz do it? By establishing a trustful two-year relationship with Ronald Reagan that permitted him to go to the President and say, Sir, if I’m going to carry out your policies, I’m going to need the best people available. So I’m asking you to support the changes I’ll be making at the department. To which the President replied, Go ahead.

Shultz’s first change was to replace State Department spokesman John Hughes with NBC correspondent Bernard Kalb, an action that raised eyebrows all over the place. Conservatives saw it as a shot across their bows since Kalb is perceived as a liberal, to the left of his brother Marvin. Shultz appointed Kalb for three reasons: First, Hughes (whom Shultz respects greatly) recommended Kalb; second, Shultz gives a lot of weight to résumés; third, Shultz believes that the best way to win over a constituency (in this case, the press) is to pick one of its own.

JM

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John McLaughlin

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Al Haig must be pulling his hair out with rage as he watches the mild-mannered, laid-back George Shultz working a total takeover of the State Department—a purge that Haig tried to execute and failed, because his frontal assault exploded in his face. (Haig, by the way, lauds Shultz copiously and, apparently, sincerely for his administrative and foreign-policy skills.) How did Shultz do it? By establishing a trustful two-year relationship with Ronald Reagan that permitted him to go to the President and say, Sir, if I’m going to carry out your policies, I’m going to need the best people available. So I’m asking you to support the changes I’ll be making at the department. To which the President replied, Go ahead.

Shultz’s first change was to replace State Department spokesman John Hughes with NBC correspondent Bernard Kalb, an action that raised eyebrows all over the place. Conservatives saw it as a shot across their bows since Kalb is perceived as a liberal, to the left of his brother Marvin. Shultz appointed Kalb for three reasons: First, Hughes (whom Shultz respects greatly) recommended Kalb; second, Shultz gives a lot of weight to résumés; third, Shultz believes that the best way to win over a constituency (in this case, the press) is to pick one of its own.