State department narcs

Because I anticipate leaving the Army before the end of the year, I've been monitoring the usajobs.gov website, watching what kinds of jobs come up through daily email updates.

Today, I saw something curious. The State Department has "MANY vacancies" in Arlington, Virginia, for Foreign Affairs Officers in both the GS-12 and GS-13 levels.

Foreign Affairs Officer
Department: Department of State
Agency: Department of State - Agency Wide
Number of Job Opportunities & Location(s): MANY vacancies - Arlington, Virginia
Salary: $81,548.00 to $106,012.00 / Per Year
Series and Grade: GS-0130-12

The link will undoubtedly end when the vacancy notice expires, but the full job description gives the following Duty Summary:

The position is located in the Office of Intelligence and Threat Analysis (ITA), Directorate of Threat Investigations and Analysis (TIA), Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS). ITA is responsible for monitoring and assessing threats directed against: U.S. Diplomatic facilities and personnel; U.S. citizens and business interests overseas; the Secretary of State and other high ranking Department officials both in the U.S. and abroad; visiting foreign dignitaries in the U.S. from whom DS has protective responsibility; and foreign diplomatic facilities in the U.S. The incumbent serves as a Foreign Affairs Officer conducting all-source analysis on intelligence regarding threats and trends in the security environment of the assigned region.

So it's a diplomatic security position. These guys are the State Department's equivalent of the military police. Interesting -- given the department's dwindling numbers of diplomats since Rex Tillerson became Secretary, what would require filling "MANY vacancies" in diplomatic security?

Then I read about the leakers. [Source]

Tillerson's replacement, Mike Pompeo, is upset about "unauthorized releases of information," regardless of whether they are classified or not. As State spokeperson Heather Nauert put it, the leaks "can jeopardize ongoing operations and negotiations in which the State Department is involved."

According to the Axios article, "a source familiar also said State Department employees' phones were checked as part of the leak investigation."

Note that this is a marked departure from President Trump's perspective during his campaign. So, what, leaks are bad now?

Needless to say, "a number of State Department officials feel that the crackdown is unwarranted and has been handled in a heavy-handed manner."

Apparently, "they've gotten diplomatic security involved in the leak investigation — the internal security of the State Department — which is bananas," one source added. "These are the people who stand outside diplomats' doors when they sleep overseas."

So there you go. Why is the State Department looking for more diplomatic security people, despite having fewer people to guard?

To narc on leakers.