The changing of the guard in Washington goes beyond just a new Congress. Yesterday, new Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Thomas Nides was sworn in, and expects to get to work right away in two critical areas. First, he will continue work on projects begun by his predecessor, Jack Lew, related to civilian assistance and resources for Afghanistan and Pakistan. He will also take the lead in implementation of the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR) as State Department policy planning chief Anne-Marie Slaughter returns to Princeton University at the end of this month. Nides was most recently the Chief Operating Officer of Morgan Stanley and previously managed the 2000 vice presidential campaign of Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT).

Must Reads

USGLC in the News

Smart power is critical to US military success (Lt. General Donald L. Kerrick, Daily Caller)

The United States lost an exceptional public servant last month with the passing of Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, and I lost a friend and mentor. I came to know Holbrooke during the negotiations that ended the war in Bosnia and brought a diplomatic solution to a war-torn people. As a military man and former deputy national security advisor, I know what it takes to win not just battles but wars, and I firmly believe that investing in diplomacy and development will pay off in the end. And I’m not alone in this.

Who’s In the News

Senator Patrick Leahy: The folly of trading an updated budget for a ‘robo budget’ (The Hill)

Last week, Republican members who had pledged to support the fiscal year 2011 Omnibus Appropriations Bill changed their minds and chose instead to walk in lockstep with the House and Senate Republican leaders who believe that freezing spending at the fiscal year 2010 level is good politics. The senators who profess to care about the security of this country, but refuse to put their money where their mouths are, bear responsibility for the consequences.

Smart Power

Obama to increase engagement with Africa in 2011 (Associated Press)

President Barack Obama is quietly but strategically stepping up his outreach to Africa, using this year to increase his engagement with a continent that is personally meaningful to him and important to U.S. interests.

Politics/Foreign Policy

Opinion: The Big (Military) Taboo (Nicholas Kristof, New York Times)

Let me be clear: I’m a believer in a robust military, which is essential for backing up diplomacy. But the implication is that we need a balanced tool chest of diplomatic and military tools alike. Instead, we have a billionaire military and a pauper diplomacy. The U.S. military now has more people in its marching bands than the State Department has in its foreign service — and that’s preposterous.

Afghanistan Tribe Makes Peace Pact (Maria Abi-Habib, Wall Street Journal)

Tribal leaders from one of Afghanistan’s most volatile districts made a pact with the Afghan government and coalition forces, promising to halt insurgent attacks, turn in homemade explosives and expel foreign militants in exchange for international aid.

A Year Later, Haiti Struggles Back (Deborah Sontag, New York Times)

In 2010, Daphne Joseph, a slim, shy teenager, took a pounding from life. She watched with horror as her mother’s mangled body was carted off in a wheelbarrow after the Jan. 12 earthquake. She fell in with a ragtag group of orphans taken under the wing of a well-meaning but ill-equipped community group. She left them unwillingly when a self-proclaimed relative took her away to use her as a servant.