Rubio Hits the Ground Running and Has Bureaucrats Looking for a Place to Hide

Secretary of State Marco Rubio initiated his tenure at Foggy Bottom by sending a department-wide message that informed everyone of what has changed since January 20, or, in the vernacular of my people, "telling them how the cow's going to eat the cabbage."

The lengthy cable was sent shortly after Rubio arrived at his new post in Foggy Bottom and was obtained exclusively by RealClearPolitics. It signals a fundamental shift in foreign policy and a realignment of all diplomatic efforts toward putting American needs first.

Toward this end, President Trump’s new diplomat promised to focus on mass migration, terminate DEI policies within the department, end the “censorship of the American people,” and pursue “energy dominance.”

As this was zinging through embassies across the globe, Rubio met with his counterparts from India, Japan, and Australia to discuss China's strategic ambitions in the Indo-Pacific region.

As they like to say, the BLUF, the bottom-line-up-front, is — 

“Every dollar we spend, every program we fund, and every policy we pursue must be justified with the answer to three simple questions,” Rubio wrote. The questions: Does the action make America safer, stronger, and more prosperous?

What does that mean? Let's look at some of the topic areas.

Top Priority: Stop Aiding and Abetting Illegal Immigration

The first specific agenda item in the cable: stopping illegal immigration and securing the U.S. border. Rubio called tackling this issue, a Trump hallmark, “the most consequential issue of our time” and told his staff the world over that, effective immediately, “this department will no longer undertake any activities that facilitate or encourage it.”

More than 2 million illegal immigrants entered the United States each year on average under former President Biden, a historic surge. In concert with Trump’s executive orders, and lest there be any confusion, Rubio wrote, “The era of mass migration must end.”

The State Department funds some Non-Governmental Organizations that assist illegals in coming to America. Recognizing that behind-the-scenes role is critical to making the end of mass illegal immigration a federal priority and not just a job of the Department of Homeland Security.

DEI is DEAD

President Trump officially shuttered DEI programs across the government and ordered the staff placed on paid administrative leave; see Culling the Herd: Thanks to Trump's EO, DEI Departments are Shuttered, Employees Placed on Leave. But Rubio makes it clear that it will not be resurrected in the near future.

Under the Biden administration, State pursued a litany of internal workforce initiatives and diplomatic actions centered on the promotion of “equity,” as distinct from equality. Those steps followed the implementation of executive orders early into Joe Biden’s presidency instilling diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles into every federal agency. Among the many executive orders President Trump signed last night were orders that reversed Biden’s DEI push (referred to in the parlance of the federal government as diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, or DEIA).

“To fulfill our mission, the State Department must continue to attract and retain the most capable people in federal service,” Rubio wrote today. “That means ending any practice, system, guideline, standard, or any other measure that prioritizes any criteria for selecting, training, evaluating, posting, or promoting our people on any basis other than performance and merit.”

He continued, citing Trump’s executive order “eliminating ‘DEIA’ requirements, programs, and offices throughout the government. The Biden administration had also created specific offices dedicated to DEI work, including those of the special representative for racial equity and justice and the chief diversity and inclusion officer. Trump’s order yesterday eliminated those posts.

“He is the chief executive of our republic elected by the voters of the American people and this order will be faithfully executed and complied with in both letter and spirit,” Rubio wrote. “There is tremendous talent and expertise in this Department — I have seen it firsthand in missions across the globe — and upholding strict meritocracy is essential to securing our nation’s future.”

The part about "this order will be faithfully executed and complied with in both letter and spirit" puts everyone on notice this will not be a case of "let's don't and say we did," and it won't be a nonstop game of whack-a-mole. Hopefully, Rubio will have some enforcers ready to ferret out non-compliance.

Keep US Domestic Politics Out of Foreign Policy

The State Department has been actively involved in the spread of transgenderism and advocacy for mainstreaming homosexuality in numerous countries; see JD Vance Stopped State Department Nominees Because of 'Woke' Policies and That's Supposed to Be Bad – RedState. They've also done profoundly stupid things like the George Floyd mural on the wall of our embassy in Kabul — where the locals thought it was Barack Obama.

Under Rubio, it will be back to diplomacy.

Rubio previously argued while in the Senate that an emphasis on progressive policies at the department had undermined American influence abroad. In a 2023 report co-authored with Florida Rep. Brian Mast, the then-senator highlighted how Biden’s ambassador to France, in line with Blinken’s DEI policies, had “removed paintings of American Founding-era figures and replaced them with pictures of a transgender activist, a violent protester, socialist leaders, and communists in the name of diversity.”

He now has authority over all such posts and practices, and he warned that any counterproductive activities “must, and will, end.” Instead, the new secretary told a diplomatic corps that is still getting to know him that the new administration will return to what he called “the basics of diplomacy.”

“Far too much of America’s diplomacy is focused on pushing political and cultural causes that are divisive at home and deeply unpopular abroad,” he wrote. “This creates unnecessary friction with other nations and obstructs our ability to conduct a pragmatic foreign policy and work cooperatively with other nations to advance our core national interests.”

The State Department has also officially banned flying gay pride and BLM flags at embassies.

The Trump State Department implemented a landmark "One Flag Policy" policy on Monday, barring U.S. outposts at home and abroad from flying any other flag but the Stars and Stripes. The newly issued order, a copy of which was obtained by the Washington Free Beacon, effectively bans American facilities from displaying flags affiliated with left-wing movements, including the pride and Black Lives Matter flags that flew over U.S. government buildings under Biden.

"Starting immediately, only the United States of America flag is authorized to be flown or displayed at U.S. facilities, both domestic and abroad, and featured in U.S. government content," the order states. "The flag of the United States of America united all Americans under the universal principles of justice, liberty, and democracy. These values, which are the bedrock of our great country, are shared by all American citizens, past and present."

Any State Department employee who violates the new policy will "face disciplinary action, including termination of employment or contract, or reassignment to their home agency." The only other flags that will be permitted to fly are the Prisoner of War/Missing in Action (POW/MIA) emblem and the Wrongful Detainees Flag.

Censorship Is Over

Under Biden, censorship efforts, like the Global Engagement Center, flourished. Rubio made it clear that censoring Americans is not the State Department's job.

While Rubio said that the department will remain vigilant and continue to combat “enemy propaganda,” any programs under his jurisdiction that “lead or in any way open the door to censorship of the American people will be terminated.”

Even though the GEC officially died on Christmas Eve (The State Department's Domestic Censorship Group Goes Out of Business at Midnight but the Danger Remains – RedState), the staff was burrowed into other organizations (SHOCKER: State Department Calls Its Banned Censorship Group Something New and Continues With Business – RedState), so the danger remains.

Energy Dominance, Not Climate Change, Is the Priority

Biden had previously dubbed climate change an existential threat and a top priority, directing the State Department to put the issue front and center. Again, Rubio said this was a mistake, writing that “much of American foreign policy has been reoriented around climate policies that weakened America.” The department, he added, “will not ignore threats to our natural environment” but will remain focused instead on the stated mission of the new president: “energy dominance.”

You Execute Foreign Policy, You Don't Make It

Rubio has put a halt to random diplomats attending conferences and saying things that put the US at a disadvantage. If he'd forbidden travel to Davos, I'd have been happier.

Final Word

I've never been a fan of the State Department. I'm not sure it has actively advanced American interests abroad since the Eisenhower administration. Rubio's first act goes a long way toward focusing those who wish to remain employed on American interests. But the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Rubio will face massive pushback from the entrenched leftists who have dominated the place for at least a half-century. It will take diligence and ruthlessness to make these policies stick.