If President Obama’s goal in appointing Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State was to neutralize his biggest rival, he has certainly succeeded. Clinton looks a shadow of her former self, and has been the most low-key Secretary of State in recent times. Her immediate predecessors Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell were far more prominent figures on the world stage during their first six months in office. Clinton, in contrast, looks tired, disinterested, and largely going through the motions.

Her flagship speech last week at the Council on Foreign Relations was not only exceedingly dull, but devoid of any clear foreign policy strategy that actually advances the US national interest. Meaningless catchphrases like “multi-partner world”, “new architecture of global cooperation” and “creative partnerships for development” sound like the kind of pointless drivel printed off the presses in Brussels on a daily basis, and are not the hallmark of the most powerful nation on the face of the earth.

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