Barack Obama has nominated Christopher Hill to serve as the United States Ambassador to Iraq. The post had first been offered — by Jones, Clinton, and Biden — to General Anthony Zinni, but the offer was subsequently withdrawn in embarrassing fashion at what many assumed to be the insistence of Richard Holbrooke, Hill’s mentor and ally inside the administration. Now Senators McCain and Graham have objected to Hill taking on this assignment in light of his lack of “experience in the Middle East and in working closely with the U.S. military in counterinsurgency or counterterrorism operations,” as well as the “controversial legacy Mr. Hill left in his North Korea diplomacy.” To say that Hill’s efforts in North Korea were controversial is something of an understatement. He managed to alienate America’s key allies, Japan and South Korea, while simultaneously making no progress on North Korea’s nuclear program despite four years of negotiations. And despite pressure from Secretary Rice, Hill was also unable to secure any kind of written commitment from the North Korean’s for verifying the dismantling of its nuclear program. But don’t blame Hill for any of this. According to David Sanger’s new book The Inheritance, Hill points the finger at the Bush administration:
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