Retired Major General Charles Williams is in charge of Overseas Building Operations (OBO) for the State Department. And he really is in charge. He barred diplomats and Congressmen from entering the embassy being built in Iraq. The State Department refuses to have him grant interviews. His underling on the scene in Iraq, James Golden, was thrown out of Iraq by Ambassador Crocker for incompetence in overseeing the construction of the embassy, but Golden now oversees it from Washington.
One has to question Williams' ability as a construction manager. In August he announced that the embassy in Iraq would open in September. But, as we've seen, there are a few problems there. Now, the sprinkler system has been demonstrated to be faulty and there are questions as to how blast-resistant the building really is.
Williams strives to bring his projects in on time. However, sometimes he cuts corners to do so. In Berlin in order to meet deadlines he built one less floor in the new embassy, which means that one design goal - have all employees in one building - will not be met.
Finally, we have hints of skulduggery with regards to the building of the Iraq embassy.
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