by Chris Bailey
23 September 2021, Ventura County California
U.S. Special Envoy to Haiti has found a way to declare the United States should have an open border policy, and extricate himself from Haiti with a single act.
Resign his post as US Special Envoy to Haiti.
A twofer. Read his resignation letter here
A quick review of Daniel Foote’s tenure as the eyes and ears of President Biden U.S. in Haiti reveals he is a man who knows how to make an exit.
As ambassador to Zambia, Foote strongly condemned the conviction of two men who had allegedly been convicted for having consensual sex acts. Foote said he was horrified by the verdict and questioned the destination of the humanitarian aid given to Zambia. He was subsequently declared persona non grata and left the country.
Foote was selected to serve as United States Special Envoy for Haiti in the Biden administration on July 22, 2021. The position was created after the assassination of Jovenel Moïse He was a member of President Joe Biden’s delegation to Moïse’s funeral. He isn’t the top United States person in Haiti. Ambassador Michele Sison was sworn in as U.S. Ambassador to Haiti on February 12, 2018. Special Envoys are appointed by the President and don’t necessarily answer to anyone at an Embassy, when their duties are in a foreign country. He is simply President Biden’s representative in Haiti.
Concerning his role in Haiti, Special Envoy Foote didn’t learn from his experience in Zambia. He managed to “seriously upset” the leaders of the Haiti on the same weekend he arrived to attend the funeral of their slain leader, who in essence told him to “butt out”
As the U.S. Ambassador to Haiti was already in place for 3 years before Daniel Foote’s appointment, and a U.S. Marine detachment has been keeping the U.S. Embassy personnel and supply lines secure since the assassination of Jovenel Moïse, there really hasn’t been a role for Foote since Haitian officials rebuffed his guidance. He resigned his position on September 23, 2021, citing what he called the “inhumane” US treatment of Haitians. The State Department could have recalled him once again, but that may have suggested Daniel Foote should take his retirement from U.S. Foreign Service.
Chris Bailey is a reporter-at-large of citizensjournal.us, a business owner, military veteran and longtime resident of Camarillo
Get Citizensjournal.us Headlines free SUBSCRIPTION. Keep us publishing – DONATE
