In his latest article, published today under the headline “Partners in Doomsday,” veteran journalist Seymour Hersh reports that the imminent departure of Wendy Sherman as Deputy Secretary of State—she retires on June 30—has triggered a “near panic” in the State Department “about the person many they fear will be chosen to replace her: Victoria Nuland.”
Hersh points out that the “hawkishness and antipathy for Vladimir Putin” of the current Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs “fit perfectly with the views of President Biden.” But a “person with direct knowledge of the situation” describes Nuland as “running amok among the various bureaus of the State Department while Tony Blinken is on the road.” Blinken is off to China and then to the U.K. “If Sherman has a view about her potential successor, and she must, she’s unlikely to share it,” Hersh concludes.
The accuracy of Hersh’s report can’t be confirmed, although it makes sense that the ruthless, ambitious, and evil Nuland would be chomping at the bit to grab the No. 2 spot at State. Are there other contenders? A May 23 article in Politico quotes an unnamed senior U.S. official who says there are “five or six serious candidates,” among whom three are mentioned most frequently: Deputy National Security Adviser Johnathan Finer, Nuland, and State Department Counselor Derek Chollet. Another senior official told Politico he thinks Nuland will ultimately get the nod “by default, because there may not be another interested candidate who makes it worth Blinken passing her over. And the NSC will be fine with her because she’s a known quantity and dynamic.” https://www.politico.com/newsletters/national-security-daily/2023/05/23/a-sneak-peek-at-the-deputy-secretary-of-state-sweepstakes-00098326
