The Most Important But Ignored Domestic News Story of 2011: The Resignation of Alan Bersin

NOTE: This is the first of a series of articles on the Department of Homeland Security.

NEW YORK  - DECEMBER 30, 2011 -Today was Alan Bersin's last day of work. Tomorrow he will join the millions of unemployed Americans who will be looking for a new job during 2012. Who is Alan Bersin?  The fact that so few people have heard of Alan Bersin is convincing evidence that the major media outlets  have ignored important negative news stories on the Administration of President Barack Obama.

Bersin, who was appointed as acting Commissioner of Border and Customs Protection through a recess appointment by President Obama, was forced to resign from his job after the U.S. Senate Finance Committee refused to act on his nominationt. When Bersin's resignation was reported by The Hill earlier this month, angry online comments attributed his resignation to political obstruction by the Republicans on the Committee. The real reason for the failure of his appointment was the fact that he had been accused of lying to the Committee in the background forms all nominees are required to submit when seeking a political appointment to an executive branch agency. 

Specifically, Bersin informed the Committee that he and his wife had employed three domestic employees. A due diligence investigation by Committee investigators disclosed that the couple had actually employed ten domestic employees during the relevant reporting period. While Bersin certainly has less reason to remember his domestic employees than former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, it is unusual for someone to not remember seven employees no matter how self absorbed that person may be. Perhaps the reason for Bersin's selective memory was the fact that he and his wife failed to file the I-9 forms - required by Federal law - which verify eligibility for legal employment. Bersin is a Harvard and Yale educated Rhodes Scholar and former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California.  His wife is a sitting San Diego County Superior Court Judge. The issue of his failure to file I-9 forms for employees was raised when he was nominated to be a U.S. Attorney by President Clinton in 1993.

The best defense Bersin could muster during his confirmation hearings was that he had complied with the "Spirit of the Law."  It is not surprising that the senators responsible for consenting to the confirmation of the Administration's proposed Border chief found this explanation less than adequate.

Border enforcement and security is one of the most high profile and important domestic policy issues facing our country as we move into a presidential election year. Yet no major newspaper or broadcast media outlet bothered to conducted an investigation into Bersin's recess appointment and subsequent performance in office. Aside from theSan DiegoReader a few bloggers, conservative and lobbying  industry  websites,  this story barely registered a blip. The best the Washington Post could muster was publishing, on Christmas day, a brief AP story on Bersin's resignation.   

Far from being a silly and unimportant nanny inquisition, the questions raised by Bersin's recess appointment, his performance in office and his testimony before Congress speak volumes about the dysfunction of the Obama administration's brand of governing. It reflects a culture of making high-level appointments based on political utility rather than competency and integrity. It also reflects an arrogant practiceof fighting for and defending incompetent and ethically challenged officials in the face of clear evidence of wrongdoing, a practice that has ground the wheels of competent governing to a halt 

NOTE:  I will be updating this post with more information about Bersin's appointment, as well as his performance in office, so check bookmark the page and check back over the next few days.

Rachel Sterne - NYC's Chief Digital Officer - The Assistant Mayor of Memes?

Photo by Sebastian Kim,  linked from Vogue.com

The current issue of Vogue has an article by Adam Green about Rachel Sterne, who was appointed by Mayor Bloomberg in January to be NYC's first Chief Digital Officer. This is a brand new area of public administration.

Chief Digital Officer is a bit of a misnomer, though. The job title makes her sound like she's a CIO when the job is more of a New Media Officer.  The ease with which the 'hipster cop' meme sped through cyberspace makes me think Ms. Sterne may have had something to do with nurturing the meme along its way and onto the pages of GQ.  If that is true, my hat goes off to her.  The 'hipster cop' meme  changed the focus of the online conversation about the NYPD from police brutality to . . .  I'm sorry, I was distracted by the shiny object.  What were we talking about?

The NYC CDO position has a lot of potential.  The use of new media by municipal governments  to interact with constituents is still in its infancy.  There are also a lot of challenges since there isn't any money in most municipal budgets to pay for cutting edge initiatives. My wish list for digital communication projects from NYC would include streaming Precinct Community Council Meetings and Community Board meetings live on the Internet with the ability to ask questions during the meeting.  It wouldn't be expensive and could be handled easily by the Precinct's Community Affairs Officer with a couple hours training.

I wish Ms. Sterne the best of luck as NYC's CDO and look forward to seeing what she makes of the new position.

The Meme as News - The "Mystery" of the 'Hipster Cop' - NYTimes Portrays 1st Precinct Censor as the Hipster Andy Griffith of Zuccotti Park.

 

Community Affairs Detective Eric Lee is a real charmer, but I'm not sure I'd call the lanky Bill Gates look-a-like  a "hipster," as The New York Times did last week in a puffy profile that focused on the Detective's wardrobe and his engaging ability to relate with the protestors encamped in Zuccotti park. As the Times described Detective Lee's musings about his impending retirement, "he looked out over Zuccotti Park from a familiar spot on the perimeter and said, 'Maybe I’ll grow my hair long again and join these guys.'

The Times profile was a follow-up on the Internet buzz created by the Gothamist and other blogs fascinated by the fact that Detective Lee doesn't wear black see-through socks and  cheap suits. The Hipster Cop meme flew through the new media sausage grinder appearing in The Atlantic's  Wire, the Huffington Post, The Washington Post, The Daily Beast  NPR and just about every other website that is read by more than two people. "It's my job [] to be the liaison between the precinct and the community we serve," Lee told a writer from GQ.  "I am who I am.  This is how I always dress. . . . Though maybe I'll wear a top hat to work tomorrow." 

Community Affairs Detective Lee is a real smoothie smooth when it comes to fostering community-police relations.  On September 29th I attended the 1st Precinct's Community Council meeting where I had a chance to see the "hipster cop" in action as he rudely informed a member of the public that no photographs could be taken during the meeting,   As  I remember, he was wearing a pink button-down shirt under a dark cardigan sweater that was two sizes too small, making the otherwise lean Detective look a bit chubby. Perhaps that was the reason for the ban on photography.   Detective Lee's behavior at the Community Council meeting was consistent with the video montage put together by Sparrow Media, documenting his overbearing demeanor when dealing with protestors.

I first noticed Detective Lee when he shouted at a citizen who was about to take a picture with his phone.  "Hey, buddy! Yeah, you! No photos," the "hipster cop" commanded in a  deep voice, punctuated by a Brooklyn  accent, that resonated with the confidence of someone who had been asserting his authority over other people for the past two decades. His entire demeanor was that  of an aggressive, but poorly disguised undercover narc . 

When the offending citizen asked him who he was, he identified himself as Community Affairs Detective Lee.  Detective Lee was asked what police regulation prohibited the taking of photographs during a public Community Council meeting, which is described as a "public forum" on the  Council's website. Detective Lee responded, in true hipster style, "it''s my regulation, that's all you need to know." Somehow, that is exactly the kind of response I would have expected from an NYPD Community Affairs Officer. 

What I didn't expect to see was a gushing GQ fashion spread and  an "aw shucks," warm and cuddly New York Times profile on this guy, making him out to be the hipster Andy Griffith of Zuccotti Park.

The online phenomenon of the "Hipster Cop" demonstrates the danger of new media treating memes as news, other than being newsworthy as a meme.  Memes can travel faster than a European virus through an indigenous population.  It often takes time for the reality to catch up to the memery, and by then the footprint of the original meme has already left an indelible impression on the cyber landscape.

The only "mystery" about the "hipster cop" is why the reporters from the NYC  dailies don't know who the Precinct Community Affairs Officers are and why they don't attend Precinct Community Council meetings.  The only solace I can find in this revolting new media love-fest is that Detective Lee's colleagues are probably making his life miserable with constant ribbing over all the attention being given to the "hipster cop."