A Slatest column by Jack Shafer demands that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton resign because of a Wikileaks report that cables "under her name" went out asking U.S. diplomats to spy on their counterparts overseas. Shafer is repeating a demand of Wikileaks' founder, Julian Assange.

Simply put, what do Slate and Jack Shafer (and Julian Assange) really know about the State Department? Are they aware that virtually every State cable not about a very specific item goes out under the Secretary of State's name? In other words, the likelihood that Hillary Clinton sees, let alone approves, any given cable of the hundreds or thousands sent daily is next to nil.

The reason for this procedure, I guess, is to make sure that whatever someone sends out from Foggy Bottom has the full force of the Department behind it. But, the custom does lead to preposterous conclusions like Shafer's. If Secretary Clinton did organize a spying expedition, the leaks would, indeed, be embarrassing. But it is highly doubtful that she would have the time, let alone the interest.

Secretary Clinton, to the surprise perhaps of former critics, has done an impressively professional job at State. Let's leave it at that. As for the news that U.S. embassies spy on other embassies, pass me my smelling salts; I'm so shocked. Next thing, we'll have foreign diplomats spying on us! You think?