WHO'S WHO in the Administration
WHO'S WHO in the Administration If you've noticed how .Reagan has been more defensive than usual at his recent press conferences, the debacle in Lebanon isn't the only reason. The departure of...
...Readers may recall that as early as May, 1981 "Who's Who" singled him out as one of the "emerging powers just below the Baker-MeeseDeaver level...
...when Richard Nixon appointed him Secretary of State, Kissinger still insisted that he retain his post as National Security Advisor...
...In a year, the United States went from being the Moslems' protector to being their hated targets...
...To give you some idea of the extent to which our fiscal house is in disarray, our net deficit as a percent of GNP is now the same as that of Brazil...
...Galbraith has hardly endeared himself to his hosts and the Adminstration would like to get him out of Paris...
...With the possible exception of Secretary of State or Defense, being among the top three or five White House aides is clearly preferable in terms of power and influence with the President—even though the titles won't seem as impressive in the historrbooks...
...Baker and Darman know full well that Meese's financial dealings are just the type of thing to make Senate investigators put in extra hours...
...His hold is still tenuous, and should he leave, a likely successor is Evan Galbraith, now ambassador to France...
...Henry Kissinger certainly knew this...
...To much of the outside world, Meese's nomination seems like a promotion...
...the USIA directorship reportedly is the price Galbraith is demanding for surrendering his embassy...
...The bruising that Ed Meese has been suffering in his confirmation hearings for Attorney General has generated speculation among White House insiders that James Baker and his deputy, Richard Darman, set him up...
...Those in the White House know it's not...
...These happen to be the two fastest growing items in the budget, and first and third, respectively, in overall size...
...But being an embarrassment has its advantages...
...Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger can say "I told you so" on this one, though he was right for the wrong reasons...
...And should James Baker depart, Drew Lewis is a likely successor...
...Such negligence could prove costly over time...
...when a president stops taking the initiative, the press begins to smell blood...
...Were it not for the close relationship of his wife, Mary Jane, with Nancy Reagan, Charles Wick probably would no longer be director of the United States Information Agency...
...Lewis is now spending about half his time working on the Reagan's reelection campaign...
...The move could also damage Meese permanently...
...Meese, though not their intellectual peer, has been the most widely liked of the inner circle, and the nomination removes a powerful antagonist...
...He opposed our policy to protect our interests in Arab oil—not out of passion for a just settlement . As we go to press, the OMB is preparing to publish a budget overview entitled "Major Themes" that contains no discussion of either the defense budget or the net deficit...
...Darman, by the way, was featured in the March 12 issues of both Time and Newsweek for his growing influence with Reagan...
...The departure of David Gergen as assistant to the president for communications—his successor is Mike McManus— has left no one tending to long-range public relations planning...
...Jim Rosebush, Nancy Reagan's chief of staff, is still 11 0 -:'_.g tough, his enemies having temporarily run out of other jobs to offer him...
...The consensus within the White House on Lebanon is similar to that emerging in the press and Congress: Secretary of State George Shultz really screwed up...
...Other changes to watch for in the Reagan White House: Faith Ryan Whittlesley, the assistant for public liaison, is not widely admired by her colleagues, and her new deputy, Frank Donatelli, is apparently being groomed to succeed her...
Vol. 16 • April 1984 • No. 3
