L'Affaire Khobragade: Unprecedented winter of discontent for India, US
December 27, 2013 10:37 IST
'The diplomat's arrest has led to a major diplomatic spat, the likes of which I have not seen in my nearly three decades of covering the US-India relationship, says Aziz Haniffa.
'The knee-jerk reaction by the powers-that-be in Delhi was myopic to say the least.'
Two of the highest ranking Indian Americans in the Barack Obama administration, Dr
Rajiv Shah, Administrator, US Agency for International Development, and
Islam 'Isi' Siddiqui, Chief Agricultural Negotiator, Office of the US Trade Representatives, were retained by President Obama. Siddiqui resigned last week after five years on the Obama team.
There was the nomination and Senate confirmation of
Srikanth 'Sri' Srinivasan as the new federal judge in the US Court of Appeals in the District of Columbia, the second most powerful court in the US after the Supreme Court.
At the time Sri was being sworn in,
Vijay Iyer was selected as a MacArthur Fellow with the clear acknowledgement that he was a jazz genius.
More historic firsts followed. The nomination and confirmation of
Nisha Desai Biswal as the first Indian-American Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian affairs, the appointment of
Vikram Singh as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for South Asia -- the first high-level Indian-American Pentagon appointee -- and the nomination of Middle East specialist
Puneet Talwar as Assistant Secretary for Politico-Military Affairs, even as he was an integral part of the US negotiations with Iran from his perch at the National Security Council.
President Obama nominated Dr
Vivek Murthy as the new Surgeon General. There was the buzz surrounding the primary challenge by
Ro Khanna to the California Congressional seat held by the iconic Asian-American legislator Mike Honda, with Silicon Valley heavyweights squarely behind Khanna's campaign.
Even before he formally declared, the $700 billion dollar man
Neel Kashkari's gubernatorial interest in California, challenging incumbent Jerry Brown, had the mainstream media abuzz.
Former Iowa state senator
Swati Dandekar also threw her hat into the Congressional ring, with the Democratic establishment squarely behind her run.
GOP Governors
Bobby Jindal and
Nikki Haley, of Louisiana and South Carolina respectively, proved their mettle and also raised funds for each other.
Jindal, in the clearest sign yet that he is seriously considering a bid for the Republican Presidential nomination in 2016, unveiled the formation of his new organisation, America Next, a nonprofit to promote conservative policy ideas.
L'Affaire Khobragade: Unprecedented winter of discontent for India, US - Rediff.com India News