TGL 35 | When America Leads, America Can Win - Tom Selinger
TGL 35 | When America Leads, America Can Win - Tom Selinger  
Podcast: WAC Houston
Published On: Thu Sep 10 2026
Description: Ask an American diplomat what he'd tell the next president, and the answer isn't policy — it's relationships. In this episode of The Greater Loop, host Maryanne Maldonado sits down with Tom Selinger, Executive Director of the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training and a 27-year Foreign Service veteran, to trace 250 years of American diplomacy — from Benjamin Franklin's fur-cap debut at the French court to today's era of great power competition. They dig into what made Franklin's diplomacy revolutionary, the 1924 reform that professionalized the Foreign Service, the unseen embassy staff who keep the mission running, and the diplomatic wins and failures that shaped the modern era. Plus: what young Foreign Service officers need to succeed today, and why Selinger insists diplomacy is nothing like a business transaction.Hosted by Maryanne Maldonado | The Greater Loop — A podcast of the World Affairs Council of Greater HoustonSubscribe for global affairs content that connects the world to your world.What's CoveredBenjamin Franklin's unconventional diplomacy in Paris and how he won French support for the RevolutionThe Rogers Act of 1924 and the birth of a professional, nonpartisan Foreign ServiceWhat actually happens inside an embassy — from local staff and medical teams to security specialistsUntold diplomatic successes, including the evacuation of 2,500 Americans from Sierra Leone and James Baker's role in German reunificationA candid look at diplomatic failure: the early US response to the Balkans crisisHow career diplomats balance professional continuity with implementing a new administration's policyThe skills the next generation of diplomats will need — curiosity, flexibility, and resilienceSelinger's advice for the next US president: diplomacy is relationship-building, not a transaction