 More warmongers elevated in the Biden administration. The Biden administration looks set to become even more war-like than it already was, if you can imagine, with virulent Russia hawk Victoria Newland and virulent China hawk Charles Q. Brown now being elevated to lofty positions by the White House. Newland, the wife of Alpha Neo-Con Robert Kagan, has been named Acting Deputy Secretary of State by President Biden, at least until a new Deputy Secretary has been named. This places her at second in command within the State Department, second only to Tony Blinken. In an article about Newland's unique role in souring relations between the U.S. and Russia during her previous tenure in the State Department under Obama, responsible state crafts Connor Eccles writes the following of the latest news, quote, Newland's appointment will be a boon for Russia hawks who want to turn up the heat on the Kremlin, but for those who favor a negotiated end to the conflict in Ukraine, a promotion for the notoriously undiplomatic diplomat will be a bitter pill. A few quick reminders are in order. When Newland was serving in the Obama administration, she had a now infamous leaked call with the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, as the Maidan uprising roiled the country. The pair of American diplomats discussed conversations with opposition leaders and Newland expressed support for putting Arseniy Yatsenyuk into power. Yatsenyuk would become prime minister later that month after Russia friendly former president Viktor Yanukovych fled the country. At one memorable point in the call, Newland said fuck the EU in response to Europe's softer stance on the protests. The controversy surrounding the call and larger implications of U.S. involvement in the ouster of Yanukovych kicked up tensions with Russia and contributed to Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to seize Crimea and support an insurgency in eastern Ukraine. Her handing out food to demonstrators on the ground in Kiev probably didn't help either. Newland, along with State Department sanctions Tsar Daniel Freed, then led the effort to punish Putin through sanctions. Another official at state reportedly asked Freed if the Russians realized that the two hardest line people in the entire United States government are now in a position to go after them, end quote. In a 2015 consortium news article titled The Mess That Newland Made, The late Robert Parry singled out Newland as the primary architect of the 2014 regime change operation in Ukraine, which, as Aaron Mate explained last year, paved the way to the war we're seeing there today. Hopefully her position winds up being temporary. In other news, the Senate Armed Services Committee has voted to confirm Biden's selection of General Charles Q. Brown Jr. as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, replacing Mark Milley. A full Senate vote will now take place on whether to confirm Brown, currently the Air Force Chief of Staff, for the nation's highest military office. Brown is unambiguous about his belief that the U.S. must hasten to militarize against China in the so-called Indo-Pacific to prepare for confrontation between the two powers, calling for more U.S. bases in the region, and increased efforts to arm Taiwan during his hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee earlier this month. Back in May, Moon of Alabama flagged Brown's nomination in an article which also noted that several advocates of military restraint had been resigning from their positions within the administration, including Wendy Sherman, the deputy secretary of state, who Newland has taken over for. It's too soon to draw any firm conclusions, but to see voices of restraint stepping down and proponents of escalation stepping up could be a bad portent of things to come.