The Foreign Service Journal, April 2018

18 APRIL 2018 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Don’t Downgrade Diplomacy This administration has routinely denigrated the respon- sibilities of our diplomatic and development corps and deemed them low priorities for American foreign policy. … Of 163 total Senate-confirmed positions to the State Department and USAID, the Trump administration has failed to fulfill its duties to nominate individuals for 65 of those positions. This problem is further compounded by the poor management, dangerous political guidance and arbitrary hiring freeze at the State Department, which has prompted an alarming exodus of seasoned diplomats from the government, weakening our ability to promote our interests. If we do not have voices present to speak, no nation can listen to us, and America’s diplomatic and development institutions and critical personnel cannot become an afterthought to the Trump administration. We cannot continue to allow the pulpits where we preach American values to remain vacant. President Trump must understand American leadership can only occur if American leaders are present on the international stage. Prioritizing dip- lomatic nominations only when there are sudden crises is not a strategy and not in the national security interest of the United States. —Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a March 11 statement. We Will Act Again on the Budget A strong, bipartisan coalition in Congress has already acted once to stop deep cuts to the State Department and Agency for International Development that would have undermined our national security. This year, we will act again. As I’ve said, diplomacy helps keep America strong and our troops out of combat. Our country faces urgent threats from North Korea, Iran and terrorists around the world. Programs that are vital to our national interests should be prioritized. —Representative Ed Royce (R-Calif.), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, in a Feb. 12 statement on President Trump’s proposed FY 2019 international affairs budget. An Irreplaceable Component I firmly believe that strong investments in diplomatic and development programs are an irreplaceable component of our national security. In fact, our most senior military commanders have told us this “soft power” helps prevent the need for military intervention and facilitates operational success when military action is necessary. That is why I am once again disappointed by the severe cuts proposed in the president’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget for the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs. … We will certainly review this budget proposal, but ultimately Congress has the respon- sibility to equip our leaders with both the authority and resources needed to advance our national security interests. —Representative Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) in a Feb. 12 press statement on President Trump’s proposed budget for FY 2019. Frontline Civilians Every day, diplomats work to advance the interests of the United States often at embas- sies and consulates in the most dangerous pockets of the world. They risk their lives to be our nation’s frontline civilians, and are faced with having to adapt to changing technologies that often come with security risks—including location-tracking consumer devices that reveal movements around the world. That’s why we introduced the Protecting Diplomats from Surveillance Through Consumer Devices Act, which requires the State Department to account for these devices in the security policies of U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide. As lawmakers, we have a moral responsibility to take all necessary steps to ensure these brave diplomats and development workers have the protections they deserve. —Representative Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), from a Feb. 12 press release. Heard on the Hill JOSH