State Department hires testimony coach to prepare for congressional grillings

[Wilikon]

After suffering through a striking number of rough grillings at the hands of Congress, State Department officials have approved a contract worth up to $545,000 to help train themselves for how to brief lawmakers and to testify at hearings.

The contract with Orlando, Florida-based AMTIS, Inc. includes classes entitled “Communicating with Congress: Briefing and Testifying” and pays for one-on-one sessions to hold a mock hearing with questioners playing the role of lawmakers asking hard questions of the would-be witnesses.

Over the last two years, department officials have stumbled through hearings on their handling of the 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi, been berated for failing to be able to lay out a new legal framework for the war on terror and seen one top campaign bundler for President Obama admit he’d never traveled to Argentina — the country he’d been nominated to serve in as U.S. ambassador.

State Department officials did not respond to questions about the contract by deadline on Thursday.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/aug/7/state-department-hires-testimony-coach-to-prepare-/


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A.K.A. How To Master Your Lying Skills For Dummies

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[Ron~Popeil]

How about you handle your responsibilities properly in the first place so you don't need to practice for being grilled in congress? Another waste of tax payer dollars. 

[AdamSmith]

Your tax money at work for escaping responsibility.

[Mobius]

This sounds a lot like a class on only how to give the absolute min amount of information that is being asked of you. I would understand this if this was congress asking a private company or a private citizen questions, but this is really not appropriate when congress is asking questions about a government agency. It is congress's job to oversee these agencies via legislation and the budget, and if they are only getting the absolute min amount of information then they cannot do this effectively.

[wenben]

This sounds a lot like a class on only how to give the absolute min amount of information that is being asked of you. I would understand this if this was congress asking a private company or a private citizen questions, but this is really not appropriate when congress is asking questions about a government agency. It is congress's job to oversee these agencies via legislation and the budget, and if they are only getting the absolute min amount of information then they cannot do this effectively.

Not like congress really care how the money is spend. Many government agencies exists for the sole purpose of having the agency in the congressional district to generate economic activity (aka buying votes).

[Bitsaurus]

Guess we found an area where Congress can make a new federal agency.  The Department of Testimony Coaching and Taking the Fifth. Government is becoming it's own little ecosystem now.  I wonder when the elected officials will start having their own government