PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATION SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 A WORLD WITHOUT USAID
4 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 20 The Aid Transition Alliance: Running Toward a Disaster By Susan Reichle 24 The USAID Community Steps Forward By Chris Milligan 26 Rebuilding After Crisis By Laura Pavlovic 29 Collateral Damage: The Human Cost of Dismantling USAID By Jaime Michelle Oberlander September-October 2026 Volume 103, No. 5 ON THE COVER: Photo by REUTERS/Nathan Howard. Design & photo effects by Caryn Suko Smith, Driven by Design LLC. 34 USAID Coaches Continue Their Mission By Victoria Mitchell Avdiu and Bryn Sakagawa 38 They Left Nothing By John Dunlop 42 USAID Alumni Resources FOCUS A WORLD WITHOUT USAID AFSA
THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 5 RETIREMENT SUPPLEMENT 63 Curiosity Never Retires: Why Lifelong Learning Should Be in Your Future By Elizabeth “Liz” Shelton 45 AFSA, AFGE Team Up to Mark One Year Since RIFs 45 Meet the 2026 AFSA Merit Award Winners 46 State VP Voice— We’re All in This Together 47 USAID VP Voice— A Last Cup of Tea 48 Retiree VP Voice— The Future with AFSA 48 Manage Your AFSA Membership Online 50 A FSA on the Road— Connecting with Students at Northwestern 51 A Profession Worth Defending 52 USAID Memorial Wall Finds Permanent Home at State 52 AFSA Opens Its Doors 53 F AM Changes: What AFSA Members Need to Know 53 A FSA Governing Board Meetings, May 20 and June 20, 2026 54 Donuts with Dink 54 AFSA Names Strategic Writing Award Winner 60 A FSA Marks 30 Years of Chautauqua Partnership 60 M innesota Retirees Recognized for State Tax Exemption Win 61 AFSA Welcomes New USAGM Representative 62 AFSA Bylaw Amendments and Referendum 62 Foreign Service Departures for 2025–2026 AFSA NEWS THE OFFICIAL RECORD OF AFSA PERSPECTIVES 7 President’s Views Into the Great Unknown By John “Dink” Dinkelman 9 Letter from the Editor Enduring Purpose By Shawn Dorman 18 Speaking Out Before We Rebuild, We Need to Reckon By Brendan M. Wheeler DEPARTMENTS 10 Letters 12 Talking Points 68 In Memory 77 Books MARKETPLACE 80 Real Estate 82 Index to Advertisers 83 Classifieds 84 Reflections Learning When to Leave the Group By Brad Swanson 86 Local Lens Niamey, Niger By Kalub Emmons 86 45
$42,000 — recovered this year for one member overcharged on health insurance since 2003 4,600 — legal inquiries answered in the past year—roughly 65 every week 5 — active federal court cases on behalf of 14,000+ Foreign Service members We’ve been doing this work a long time—$6 million recovered for members in the meritorious service increase cases alone, 1,450 colleagues made whole. And if you served at USAID—your agency was taken from you. Your association wasn’t. A MEMBER IMPACT REPORT AFSA. Your career, covered. AFSA Delivers. Renew today at afsa.org/membership Here’s the proof: “We’re an insurance policy. And an inexpensive insurance policy.” —Sharon L. Papp, former AFSA General Counsel Six members had their annuity exceptions rescinded and would be separated in weeks without pensions. AFSA filed grievances. State granted interim relief, and all six are still on the rolls, working toward the retirement they earned. That happened this year. It happens every year. “Like lawyers, soldiers, and doctors, we don’t stop being professionals when we retire.” —Steve Liston, FS alum “After losing my dream job as an FSO with USAID, life felt pretty grim. But AFSA helps me to stay connected to a community and work that I loved.” —AFSA member
THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 7 Into the Great Unknown BY JOHN “DINK” DINKELMAN John “Dink” Dinkelman is the president of the American Foreign Service Association. PRESIDENT’S VIEWS For this edition, I asked that my regular headshot in front of the flag be swapped out for the photo of me sitting outside AFSA headquarters handing out cold water on a particularly hot and steamy July day in Washington, D.C. That was right where I needed to be. I was there to greet passersby and, more importantly, welcome new members of the Foreign Service as they passed by while doing admin tasks during their first week of orientation. It was part of AFSA’s unofficial “summer street campaign.” I was reminded of my five years working in NFATC’s Orientation Division and the scores of outstanding diplomats I met as they passed through FSI and went on to successful careers in the Foreign Service. It was inspiring and heartwarming to meet members of the new class and be reminded that there is, indeed, joy in renewal. One week prior, I stood at the corner of E and 23rd for “Donuts with Dink,” handing out morning treats and greeting Foreign Service, Civil Service, and contractor commuters on their way to the State Department. And in August, there were afternoon popsicles on that same corner. That’s what AFSA is about, being here for you when things get hot. To be honest, being out there on the corner in the heat with open arms to support and work with all of you at this challenging time is what keeps me inspired. While we don’t know where the fall will take us, rest assured that AFSA will be with you with constancy and purpose. We celebrate a Foreign Service that is once again growing, as large A-100 classes (yes, we’re once again allowed to call it A-100) join our ranks; but we do not accept the way that just a few months ago more than 1,300 of our colleagues at State were summarily dumped into the professional trash can. Today’s new hires aren’t even allowed to hear the word “AFSA” uttered in orientation sessions—notwithstanding that joining their professional association/ collective bargaining unit is the single best insurance policy they could ever buy. AFSA membership is an essential part of their professional tool kits, and they’re being proactively prevented from even learning about it. I am convinced that when we look back over these years, the attempted erasure of AFSA from the working lives of Foreign Service members will go down as one of management’s biggest mistakes. Nevertheless, AFSA continues to reach out independently to new employees to welcome them into the profession and to AFSA. And at the same time, we continue to call for the reinstatement of those who were summarily fired (“DOGE’d”) for no reason. We will continue to push for the creation of hiring preferences for those who want to return to service. To that end, AFSA was honored to stand in solidarity with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 1534 for our “Missing Badge” press conference and exhibit on Capitol Hill—demonstrating that we are stronger together (see page 45). I am especially grateful to AFGE leadership and to the seven members of Congress who spoke, as well as to my fellow RIFed colleagues who joined in commemorating the one-year anniversary of the twin catastrophes for American diplomacy—the demise of USAID and the State RIFs of July 11, 2025. We’ll continue to find ways to work with our Civil Service counterparts. For far too long the Civil Service and Foreign Service have functioned in two separate worlds. This ends now. We must fight this battle together. It cannot be won alone. We are not done. We will carry on. Finally, I thank the AFSA members who voted to approve all the proposals put forward in the July referendum. The overwhelmingly positive results at the ballot box sent a clear message of support that will allow AFSA to continue to steam ahead in advocating for the Foreign Service workforce and fight for our collective bargaining rights as outlined in the spirit, and letter, of the Foreign Service Act of 1980. Rest assured, folks. As we head into the great unknown, AFSA will be here for you. We’re not going anywhere. n AFSA
8 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL www.sfiprogram.org SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY INITIATIVE SFI-01268 Certified Sourcing Editor in Chief, Director of Publications Shawn Dorman: dorman@afsa.org Deputy Editor Donna Gorman: gorman@afsa.org Senior Editor Susan Brady Maitra: maitra@afsa.org Managing Editor Kathryn Owens: owens@afsa.org Associate Editor Mark Parkhomenko: parkhomenko@afsa.org Business Development Manager— Advertising and Circulation Molly Long: long@afsa.org Art Director Caryn Suko Smith Editorial Board Lynette Behnke, Co-Chair Hon. Jennifer Z. Galt, Co-Chair hannah draper, Gov. Bd. Liaison Kelly Adams-Smith Ben East Mathew Hagengruber Steven Hendrix Katherine Ntiamoah Peter Reams Lisa Nuch Venbrux THE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS The Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), 2101 E Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is published bimonthly by the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), a private, nonprofit organization. Material appearing herein represents the opinions of the writers and does not necessarily represent the views of the Journal, the Editorial Board, or AFSA. Writer queries and submissions are invited, preferably by email. The Journal is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos, or illustrations. Advertising inquiries are invited. All advertising is subject to the publisher’s approval. AFSA reserves the right to reject advertising that is not in keeping with its standards and objectives. The appearance of advertisements herein does not imply endorsement of goods or services offered. Opinions expressed in advertisements are the views of the advertisers and do not necessarily represent AFSA views or policy. Journal subscription: AFSA member–$20, included in annual dues; student–$30; others–$50; Single issue–$4.50. For foreign surface mail, add $18 per year; foreign airmail, $36 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and at additional mailing offices. Indexed by the Public Affairs Information Services (PAIS). Email: journal@afsa.org Phone: (202) 338-4045 Fax: (202) 338-8244 Web: www.afsa.org/fsj Address Changes: member@afsa.org © American Foreign Service Association, 2026 PRINTED IN THE USA Postmaster: Send address changes to AFSA, Attn: Address Change 2101 E Street NW Washington DC 20037-2990 GOVERNING BOARD President John Dinkelman: dinkelman@afsa.org Secretary Sue Saarnio: saarnio@afsa.org Treasurer John K. Naland: naland@afsa.org State Vice President Rohit Nepal: nepal@afsa.org USAID Vice President Randy Chester: chester@afsa.org FCS Vice President Jay Carreiro: jay.carreiro@afsa.org FAS Vice President Vacant Retiree Vice President Hon. John O’Keefe: okeefe@afsa.org Full-Time State Representative Vacant State Representatives hannah draper: draper@afsa.org Donald Emerick: emerick@afsa.org Connor Ferry-Smith: ferry-smith@afsa. org Christina Higgins: higgins@afsa.org Stephanie Straface: straface@afsa.org USAID Representative Austan Mogharabi: mogharabi@afsa.org FCS Alternate Representative Joshua Burke: burke@afsa.org FAS Alternate Representative Vacant USAGM Representative Mariama D. Crandall: crandall@afsa.org APHIS Representative Joe Ragole: ragole@afsa.org Retiree Representatives Hon. Michael Kirby: kirby@afsa.org Julie Nutter: nutter@afsa.org STAFF Executive Director Ásgeir Sigfússon: sigfusson@afsa.org Executive Assistant to the President Jahari Fraser: fraser@afsa.org Office Coordinator Therese Thomas: therese@afsa.org PROFESSIONAL POLICY ISSUES AND ADVOCACY Director of Professional Policy Issues Lisa Heller: heller@afsa.org Director of Advocacy Kim Sullivan: sullivan@afsa.org Advocacy and Policy Manager Sean O’Gorman: ogorman@afsa.org FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION Director, HR and Operations Cory Nishi: cnishi@afsa.org Controller Kalpna Srimal: srimal@afsa.org Member Accounts Specialist Ana Lopez: lopez@afsa.org IT and Infrastructure Coordinator Aleksandar “Pav” Pavlovich: pavlovich@afsa.org COMMUNICATIONS AND OUTREACH Director of Communications and Outreach Nikki Gamer: gamer@afsa.org Deputy Director of Communications and Outreach Nadja Ruzica: ruzica@afsa.org Online Communications Manager Jeff Lau: lau@afsa.org Communications and Marketing Manager Hannah Harari: harari@afsa.org MEMBERSHIP Director, Programs and Member Engagement Christine Miele: miele@afsa.org Membership Operations Coordinator Mouna Koubaa: koubaa@afsa.org Counselor for Retirees and Alumni Brian Himmelsteib: himmelsteib@afsa.org Manager, Membership and Events Glenn Stanton: stanton@afsa.org Program Coordinator Indigo Stegner: stegner@afsa.org OFFICE OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL General Counsel Raeka Safai: safai@afsa.org Deputy General Counsel Neera Parikh: parikh@afsa.org Senior Staff Attorney Zlatana Badrich: badrich@afsa.org Labor Management Coordinator Patrick Bradley: bradley@afsa.org Senior Grievance Counselor Heather Townsend: townsend@afsa.org Grievance Counselors Ed White: white@afsa.org Brian Himmelsteib: himmelsteib@afsa.org Attorney Adviser Erin Kate Brady: brady@afsa.org Labor Management Counselor Colleen Fallon-Lenaghan: colleen@afsa.org FOREIGN SERVICE CONTACTS www.afsa.org
THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 9 Shawn Dorman is the editor of The Foreign Service Journal. LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Enduring Purpose BY SHAWN DORMAN The receipts are starting to come in on the dismantling of USAID. A year since the September 2, 2025, deadline for all USAID operations to be transferred to State or shut down, we are taking stock. Beginning with the January 20, 2025, Executive Order 14169, “Reevaluating and Realigning the United States Foreign Aid,” and Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s stop-work order on all foreign assistance worldwide four days later, the “realignment” of USAID functions to the State Department in the name of efficiency and savings has proven to be neither, the results mostly tragic. In February 2025, AFSA joined a lawsuit against the illegal firings of USAID employees and freezing of programs. That lawsuit is still in play. On February 27, 2025, my colleagues and I stood in front of the Ronald Reagan Building, the newly shuttered headquarters of USAID, seeing the USAID sign over the door covered in black garbage bags and the letters on the wall pried off, holding up ❤️USAID signs to clap out the dedicated USAID public servants who were each given just 15 minutes to clear out their offices. For me, that was when the reality of the dismantling of USAID hit home. The trauma to the workforce was deliberate, the losses very real. An entire sector was being erased before our eyes. It felt close, personal, and tragic. And it was a window into the administration’s broader effort to vilify public service. The story of the DOGE-led tearing apart of the U.S. government agency tasked with running global humanitarian assistance for the past 65 years is one of profound loss of lives and livelihoods that will go down in history as the first, and perhaps worst, endeavor of the Trump II administration. The July 2026 report from the Government Accountability Office, the August report from State’s Office of the Inspector General, along with crucial findings from The Lancet and others, bring the receipts. To date, there has been almost no accountability for the losses, while the administration’s “Trade over Aid” replacement framework remains unclear. (We invited the leadership of State’s Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response to write on the role of this new division, announced in March, but they declined.) When we considered what cover image could possibly capture the essence of the dismantling of USAID and a world without USAID, the powerful photo of AFSA’s USAID VP Randy Chester comforting one of the thousands of USAID employees being displaced came immediately to mind. As part of AFSA’s Service Disrupted campaign, the FSJ has published dozens of personal accounts from those affected. Today, a year since the last round of staff dismissals, we look to the community and we see that while the trauma is still fresh, they have not given up on the mission or one another. In this edition, we hear from some of those who gave so much to USAID on what’s next and how they are working to ensure humanitarian assistance work continues and the expertise of those displaced is not lost. Find articles from Susan Reichle, now working with the Aid Transition Alliance, Chris Milligan with the USAID Alumni Association, Laura Pavlovic with Our USAID Community, and Victoria Mitchell Avdiu and Bryn Sakagawa with AID Coaching. Jaime Oberlander shares her groundbreaking survey of the USAID workforce, and John Dunlop tells of his harrowing escape from the DR Congo and later return to post to shut down the USAID mission there. In Speaking Out, Brendan Wheeler calls for a reckoning before rebuilding. Also check out the resource list for USAID alumni that includes new and long-established organizations supporting former USAID staff and humanitarian assistance work more broadly. The DOGE chainsaw was as brutal and destructive as its “Wall of Receipts” was deceitful. Yet it could not destroy the spirit and resolve of those who served. We hope to honor them all in some small way through this edition. Write us at journal@afsa.org. n
10 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL LETTERS A Disturbing Picture Congratulations on the extraordinary, excellent July-August edition. As this edition brought into sharp focus the state of our foreign affairs institutions at the sesquicentennial, a disturbing picture emerged of a loss of expertise and nonpartisan professionalism. Kelly Adams-Smith’s piece on the National Security Council, signaling a failure to staff and utilize effectively this traditionally important tool for coordination of coherent, informed policy and leadership is particularly alarming. Steve Adams-Smith’s piece raises concern that the distortion or derailing of a merit-based Foreign Service recruitment and selection process could have long-term consequences including politicization of State’s ranks. It is a sad time in our country’s history, in the administration of our government, in the protection of our constitutional rights and democracy. You have done a remarkable job assembling outstanding articles that reflect on the challenges and impacts of all this on our foreign policy. Kudos. Nancy Cohen FSO, retired Asheville, North Carolina Down Memory Lane with a Diplobrat I can’t thank you enough for your kindness in sending me the piece I wrote at the age of 15 that appeared in the November 1955 FSJ (“A Service Teenager Reflects,” https://bit.ly/Emmerson-article) and was included (for how long?) among the welcome-to-the-Foreign-Service documents that FSOs and their families received upon joining the Foreign Service. I guess the logic was that if they knew that FSO John K. Emmerson’s kid had such an enjoyable time as an itinerant diplobrat, maybe their kids would too. I was in Beirut in 1955, and I remember how pleased I was that the FSJ chose to publish what I had to say. I hope that my written enthusiasm for the life of an American diplobrat may have relieved some of the worries that newly recruited FSO families would naturally have had as to whether their children would reject, resent, or possibly even outright hate leading such a peripatetic life. Back then it was every two years: a new country, a new school, and often a new language. Based on my experience my answer was: Don’t worry, it’ll be fun! Full steam ahead! Today, as I work on my own memoir, the memories flood back. My teenage enthusiasm has, of course, been tempered over the seven decades since I wrote that FSJ piece. But I hope my book, if it is ever finished and somehow published, will help to maintain the relish for life that I expressed in those FSJ reflections. Don Emmerson Palo Alto, California Moving the Goalposts At present, members of the U.S. Foreign Service who retire with more than five but fewer than 20 years of service receive 1.7 percent per year credit toward their pensions if they serve until the last day of the month in which they reach the mandatory retirement age of 65. FSOs who retire with more than five but fewer than 20 years of service before that mandatory retirement date receive only 1 percent per year credit toward their pensions. Bills under consideration by Congress—the Foreign Service Age Integration and Reform (FAIR) Act (S. 4002) and its House companion (H.R. 9087)— would increase the State Department’s mandatory retirement age from 65 to 67 to align with Social Security’s Full Retirement Age (FRA). The option to retire later may be attractive for many, and AFSA’s support for that is understandable. There is, however, a cohort of FS members—some already in their 60s— who joined the Foreign Service as midcareer professionals, knowing they would not accrue 20 years of service but who planned to retire at the current mandatory retirement age of 65 with an earned annuity calculated at 1.7 percent per year. As of this writing, the legislation under discussion (which may or may not pass this session) contains no annuity protection of the 1.7 percent for this group. But the fix to avoid a 41.2 percent pension reduction for these officers need not be complicated: a clause grandfathering the 1.7 percent for this cohort or a prohibition against State Department changes to the relevant implementing regulations in the Foreign Affairs Manual should be spelled out in the legislation. Moving the goalposts while the ball is in play—especially for those who are
THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 11 nearing the goal line under the prior set of rules—is not acceptable. It would be a betrayal of the regulatory pledges on which FS members have relied for career, financial, and personal planning. Advocates should encourage their representatives to make this adjustment to the bills. Anonymous FSO n SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS about this month’s issue. Submit letters to the editor: journal@afsa.org
12 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL TALKING POINTS Bill to Protect Diplomatic Workforce O n July 16, Rep. Ami Bera, MD (D-Calif.), ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific, introduced the Protecting America’s Diplomatic Workforce Act, legislation intended to shield employees at the State Department and other foreign affairs agencies from unjustified reductions in force (RIFs). This bill is one of many introduced in recent weeks that support the work and careers of the Foreign Service. The legislation comes one year after more than 1,350 Civil and Foreign Service employees were terminated from the department, dismissals Bera said lacked adequate transparency and justification. The bill would require that future workforce reductions be based on merit, subject to congressional oversight, and evaluated for their effect on U.S. diplomatic presence. AFSA President John Dinkelman said the legislation would restore transparency and fairness to the Foreign Service RIF process, reverse changes made unilaterally by the administration in 2025, codify long-standing RIF procedures, restore worldwide competition, and eliminate the practice of treating individual offices as separate competitive areas. The bill would apply to the State Department, USAID, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, the Peace Corps, the Foreign Agricultural Service, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, the Foreign Commercial Service, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, and the U.S. Agency for Global Media and its networks. Original co-sponsors are Representatives Johnny Olszewski (D-Md.), Sarah McBride (D-Del.), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), and Mike Quigley (D-Ill.). The House bill follows companion legislation introduced in the Senate on July 1, 2025, by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), along with Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.). That bill would require agencies to justify any RIF affecting more than 50 employees, base FSO RIF decisions primarily on performance and prior selection board rankings, close loopholes that shorten required notice periods, and mandate 30 days’ advance notice to Congress before making changes to the Foreign Affairs Manual. AFSA has endorsed the Senate legislation. New Commission to Chart Future of U.S. Foreign Assistance The Rockefeller Foundation and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation announced on July 14 the launch of the Commission on the Future of Foreign Assistance, a bipartisan, 10-member body tasked with developing a blueprint for a more effective and accountable U.S. foreign aid system, to be released in 2027. The commission is co-chaired by former South Carolina Governor David Beasley (R) and former Maryland Senator Ben Cardin (D) and includes former members of Congress and senior officials from both parties. The American Enterprise Institute and the Brookings Institution will support its research. The launch comes one year after USAID’s closure amid new polling commissioned by Rockefeller showing that eight in 10 Americans favor reforming, rather than eliminating, foreign assistance. Digital Exploitation in New Africa Agreements Following the dismantling of USAID in 2025, the State Department has pursued a series of bilateral health agreements with African nations that condition U.S. assistance on access to health data, biological specimens, or mineral resources. U.S. officials describe this as part of an “America First” global health When J.F.K. argued for USAID, he was arguing that assistance abroad, first and foremost, was also assistance to the United States itself. One of the direct benefits to the United States was eradicating polio in the world, eradicating outbreaks. We were the driver of eradicating smallpox. ... This was rooted in the Marshall Plan: the idea that, instead of pillaging the world around us as other nations were defeated in war or weakened, we would invest—invest in their liberty, invest in their economic capacity, invest in their survival. —Atul Gawande, in a July 12 “New Yorker Radio Hour” interview with David Remnick, “The Human Cost of DOGE’s War on USAID.” Contemporary Quote
THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 13 Talking Points offers a snapshot of recent developments affecting the Foreign Service. The items in this edition were finalized for publication on July 31, 2026. strategy, but one Ugandan lawyer told ProPublica it’s “the essence of digital colonialism.” More than a dozen African countries have signed memoranda of understanding since late 2025, including Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda, though full agreement terms have largely not been made public. Zambia and Zimbabwe have pushed back on proposed terms. Zambia objected to conditions tied to access to its critical mineral reserves in exchange for HIV funding through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), while Zimbabwe withdrew from talks after the United States sought epidemiological data and biological samples without offering reciprocal access to resulting vaccines or treatments. Data privacy experts who reviewed several agreements said the terms lack standard safeguards limiting data use and retention, raising the risk that anonymized health records could later be exposed or reidentified. Kenya’s agreement, the first signed, has drawn a domestic lawsuit alleging it violates citizens’ data privacy rights; a Kenyan court has allowed implementation to proceed while the case continues. The State Department has said all data sharing complies with recipient countries’ laws and involves no personally identifiable information. Red Scare Redux Secretary of State Marco Rubio convened officials from more than 60 countries at the department on July 16 for a ministerial focused on what the administration describes as a resurgence of far-left political violence worldwide. The “Ministerial on the Resurgence of Political Terrorism” extends the administration’s push to apply counterterrorism tools to left-wing movements, particularly antifa, the decentralized far-left movement that was designated a domestic terrorist organization in 2025. Rubio pressed for coordinated international intelligence-sharing, describing the threat as transnational, and said additional foreign terrorist organization designations are forthcoming. The department already designated four European groups as foreign terrorist organizations in November 2025. Eleven Democratic lawmakers, in a letter sent to Rubio ahead of the summit, questioned whether the initiative’s focus on left-wing groups risked sweeping in lawful protest activity and political opponents, and called for a threat assessment they characterized as less politically driven. A department official said the ministerial’s scope reflected where officials assess the threat to be most acute. The Deep End State By Brian Aggeler
14 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Thomas Renard, director of The Hague–based International Centre for Counter-Terrorism, told Al Jazeera: “What we are seeing now in the United States is that counterterrorism has been completely politicized.” He added: “The United States, with this summit and with its strategy, is creating, actually, a blind spot about far-right terrorist threats, as that threat is strongly anchored and rooted in the United States.” A related 100-page report released by the department on July 20, “Cuba: The Capital of 21st Century Communism,” alleges that a decades-long Cuban influence campaign has infiltrated the U.S. government and fueled domestic unrest, citing the Black Panthers, the Weather Underground, and antifa as products of a Cuban-built revolutionary network. Secretary Rubio, who has long advocated for the ouster of Cuba’s communist government, said its “sprawling intelligence and ideological network helped to build the far left” in the United States and the wider hemisphere. The report’s characterization of the threat has been described by critics as far more dire than assessments historically offered by U.S. intelligence officials and diplomats, and its release has revived speculation about the Trump administration’s plans in relation to Cuba. USAID Closure Has Cost Hundreds of Thousands of Lives A June 4 interim staff analysis from Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Democrats found that the Trump administration’s shutdown of USAID led to widespread humanitarian and economic harm both abroad and at home. Citing research from Boston University, the report estimated that 600,000 people—two-thirds of them children— died in the year following USAID’s closure as a result of halted foreign assistance. The analysis also pointed to a worsening Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, a resurgence of HIV and malaria in countries that had previously curbed the diseases, and a rollback in global maternal and reproductive health care. The report further found that the retreat of U.S. humanitarian assistance has allowed Russia and the People’s Republic of China to expand their influence in regions once served by USAID, and that thousands of Americans lost jobs as a result of the agency’s closure. State Moves Against ICC Secretary of State Marco Rubio on July 13 announced a State Department effort to press other nations to reject the The Price of Patronage 50 Years Ago The State Department is bulging with highly trained professionals who are retiring prematurely because the posts they should be filling are occupied by beneficiaries of the political payoff system. —Clayton Fritchey in “A Chance to Stop the Embassy ‘Auction’” in the September 1976 edition of the FSJ.
THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 15 Podcast of the Month: It Was Never a Job The appearance of a particular site or podcast is for information only and does not constitute an endorsement. F ormer USAID Foreign Service Officer Chris Saenger has launched a new podcast, “It Was Never a Job,” featuring former USAID FSOs telling their stories. Ranging from harrowing to humorous, the stories collectively convey a theme of pride in service on behalf of the United States alongside gratitude for the communities where that work took place. Saenger served as a USAID FSO from 2009 to 2025, with postings in Ecuador, Iraq, Colombia, and Germany, where he worked with the agency’s Middle East Regional Platform. He also served on the Jordan desk in Washington, D.C., and led the agency’s Ukraine Unit. USAID alumni and family members with stories to share can record a voice memo and email it to contact@ itwasneverajob.com, or submit a written message through the contact form at https://itwasneverajob.com. Saenger asks that contributors mention their first name and USAID assignments when sharing a story, as recordings may be featured in future episodes. authority of the International Criminal Court (ICC) over U.S. personnel, which he called a threat to U.S. sovereignty. In a public video message, Rubio said the court had strayed from prosecuting only the gravest offenses to something more radical, and the administration would not permit it to threaten U.S. personnel. A State Department official told Reuters the administration is weighing a range of options, including travel bans, visa revocations, and expanded sanctions against the court and affiliated organizations. Nations that host a U.S. military presence, partner with U.S. law enforcement, or otherwise rely on U.S. assistance are being asked to reject the ICC’s claimed authority to prosecute Americans, the official said, and countries that decline to do so while continuing to rely on U.S. assistance should expect increased scrutiny. The department said no diplomatic option will be off-limits in the campaign to dismantle the “threat” posed by the ICC. The United States has never been a member of the ICC, which was established in 2002 to prosecute genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The United States has since taken other steps to insulate itself from ICC jurisdiction, including negotiating more than 100 bilateral immunity agreements with member states and adopting the 2002 American Servicemembers’ Protection Act. The current campaign follows earlier sanctions imposed by the administration on the ICC’s chief prosecutor and eight judges. Three of those judges sued the administration in June, arguing the sanctions were unlawful. The European Union has rejected the U.S. characterization of the ICC as a threat to U.S. sovereignty and called attacks on the court and its personnel unacceptable.
16 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Real Heroes The men and women in the State Department under your charge and direction are real heroes. They’re serving in some very dangerous places, very much like our military. Diplomacy can be a dangerous calling. Thank you very much for showing up and representing our country and our values in some of the most difficult places. So, to those who serve in the State Department, you have my gratitude and admiration. —Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), speaking to Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the Senate Appropriations hearing, “A Review of the President’s Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Request for the Department of State,” on June 3. Ambassador Vacancies The fact is, it’s not the Foreign Relations Committee in the Senate that is holding up [ambassadorial] nominees. It’s the fact that the nominees are not being submitted to us, and that those nominees who start to go through the process often aren’t willing to comply with the ethics requirements that require that they divest of their outside holdings. Right now, the United States has more than 100 vacant ambassador posts. … China’s filling that vacuum, and you just sent over 20 nominees, of whom only four are career people. So, the problem is not in the Congress. ... The problem is in the administration. And I hope that you will begin to take up that slack by appointing more career ambassadors. —Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), in the Senate Appropriations hearing on June 3. Diplomatic Dismantling Mr. Secretary, America cannot win the future by trying to relive the past. And your department is Exhibit A. We’ve seen the systematic dismantling of America’s diplomatic corps. Over 100 ambassador posts sit vacant around the world. Thirteen hundred career professionals, people with decades of expertise in energy, counterterrorism, and nuclear nonproliferation, have been fired. Efforts to ensure U.S. diplomats represent the diversity of America have been squandered. While China increases its diplomatic presence globally, we have cut ours to the bone. America cannot win the future by retreating and ceding the field. —Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), in the House Foreign Affairs Committee FY27 State Department budget hearing on June 3. JOSH Heard on the Hill State Issues Worldwide Caution over Iran The State Department issued a worldwide caution for U.S. citizens on July 21, warning that “heightened tensions in the Middle East” as a result of the Iran War could pose risks to U.S. citizens both in the region and beyond. The alert comes as the conflict over control of the Strait of Hormuz continues. The advisory urged Americans in the Middle East to remain vigilant and prepare for flight cancellations, airspace closures, and other travel disruptions. Americans outside the region were advised to reconsider travel to and through the Middle East, and the department noted that U.S. diplomatic facilities elsewhere in the world have also been targeted, with Iran and its supporters potentially threatening American interests globally. When hostilities with Iran broke out in February, most U.S. diplomats and their family members were evacuated from Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, leaving only emergency staff at posts in the region. Months later, hundreds from the Foreign Service community remain in limbo, working remotely with no clear timeline for when or whether they will return to post. Per diem and temporary housing support for evacuated employees are set to expire in August. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said the extended vacancies at U.S. embassies in the Gulf, most of which currently lack a Senate-confirmed ambassador, leave the United States without critical on-the-ground perspective at a consequential moment. n This issue of Talking Points was compiled by Mark Parkhomenko.
18 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL SPEAKING OUT Brendan Wheeler served 17 years as a USAID Foreign Service officer in Washington, D.C., Addis Ababa, Cairo, Amman, Tunis (Libya), and Kigali. Before joining the Foreign Service, he worked on Capitol Hill and served with the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad and the U.S. Embassy Regional Embassy Office in Kirkuk. A year ago, my 17-year career in the U.S. Foreign Service ended when the United States closed USAID. Since then, many former colleagues have penned poignant memorials to the agency and their careers. Others have made serious attempts to imagine what comes next for U.S. foreign assistance, including a thoughtful “Open Letter on the Future of Foreign Assistance” signed by 72 former senior development diplomats and humanitarians. That letter brought me to my keyboard. Instead of eulogizing my career, I want to mark this unfortunate anniversary by sharing my thoughts on how the United States can make foreign assistance even more powerful—if we are thoughtful and patient enough to see it through. What Went Wrong The Open Letter’s 10 recommendations endeavor to answer the question of how we should rebuild. What emerges is an approach to the next generation of development that is indistinguishable from USAID’s approach. But reaching that conclusion now, as comforting as it may be, overlooks an important question: Why was USAID so easy to dismantle? We all watched in disbelief as USAID was closed with striking speed and almost no resistance. At posts around the world, consoling words were offered as careers and commitments were shattered, and the United States became less capable in the world right before our eyes. When it mattered most, the agency had too thin a constituency among Americans and in Congress to defend itself effectively. Would it be wise to recreate such a vulnerable entity? Carl von Clausewitz described strategic strength as a trinity: government support, popular will, and institutional capability. USAID had the third element—a talented corps of professionals who did inspiring work tackling the world’s hardest problems. At some point during its more than 60 years, it lost the other two. An institution in that condition is not ready to be rebuilt. It is ready to be examined. Understanding why USAID’s trinity was so out of balance should be the point of departure for any effort to rethink the agency and U.S. foreign assistance more broadly. Tell the Story—the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly What would an examination look like? We saw one in 1975. Launched in response to blockbuster reports of abuses at agencies including the CIA and FBI, the Church Committee conducted a sustained, sweeping public investigation into U.S. intelligence operations—the good, the bad, and the ugly. It was a painful process, but the work laid the foundation for reforms and oversight that made those agencies more effective and better understood by Americans. In its final weeks, USAID faced a sustained campaign of misrepresentation that provided the rhetorical cover for what came next. The agency, now prostrate, is ripe for the Church Committee treatment. Not a memorial. Not a defense. An honest, clinical reckoning that exposes weaknesses and strengths by telling Americans the full story. Do that, and two things will happen: First, Americans will come away immensely proud of the generations of good they financed across the world since President John F. Kennedy founded USAID in 1961, and second, they will agree that the United States must continue to invest in the stability of Before We Rebuild, We Need to Reckon BY BRENDAN M. WHEELER Understanding why USAID’s trinity was so out of balance should be the point of departure for any effort to rethink the agency and U.S. foreign assistance more broadly.
THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 19 its partner countries—and support the reforms needed to do it even more effectively. The Open Letter assumes that conclusion. A Church Committee–style reckoning would earn it. The reckoning should not stop at USAID’s door. The Church Committee did not limit itself to one agency—it examined the CIA, FBI, NSA, and others—because the problems cut across the whole enterprise. USAID may have been the most visible instrument of U.S. foreign assistance but was never the only one. Any serious review should be as sweeping as U.S. foreign assistance itself. Then Reform. Seriously. Sustained congressional investigations. Sweeping reforms of complex bureaucracies. Too difficult? History suggests otherwise. In 1986, after operational failures in Iran and Grenada became too obvious to ignore, Congress passed the GoldwaterNichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act, fundamentally reforming the Defense Department and its approach to warfighting. Congress willed those reforms into existence following bruising, divisive, but ultimately clarifying hearings that leveled clear-eyed scrutiny on the entire military enterprise. Goldwater-Nichols forced genuine interoperability across the armed services through structural changes and incentives, not sloganeering. The U.S. foreign assistance community would benefit from the same unsentimental congressional scrutiny toward the same result: real integration with diplomacy and defense to maximize effectiveness in support of U.S. foreign and national security policy— not a re-creation of the “three legs of the stool” formulation that became a substitute for genuine integration. and in a way that brings Americans along and keeps members of Congress invested. A process styled after the Church Committee or Goldwater-Nichols would find them. We’ve Been Here Before The United States has always been— and will continue to be—an activist power that seeks to shape the international environment in ways that serve its interests. Gunboats and bombs have their limits when a country’s support is better and more economically achieved through sustained U.S. investment in its health, education, governance, and economic development. USAID had a model for doing this, and the United States invested in this model for decades. Despite the results delivered, too few Americans and members of Congress ever understood the work well enough to defend it. If the United States wants to reimagine USAID, it must first resist comforting assumptions and thoughtfully challenge every orthodoxy about the agency. It must choose a patient, rigorous examination of USAID’s record, and tell the whole story of what the United States has supported through USAID. True public understanding of that record—the good, the bad, and the ugly—must be the foundation of what comes next. Without it, whatever the United States builds next will be just as vulnerable as what we lost. n Speaking Out is the Journal’s opinion forum, a place for lively discussion of issues affecting the U.S. Foreign Service and American diplomacy. The views expressed are those of the author; their publication here does not imply endorsement by the American Foreign Service Association. Responses are welcome; send them to journal@afsa.org. The Open Letter points in the right direction by calling to “eliminate barriers to a whole-of-government approach.” Goldwater-Nichols shows us how to get there. Limits of Leaders’ Wisdom If the United States chooses to subject USAID to similar scrutiny and explore reorganizing the broader foreign assistance enterprise, careful thought must be given to how and whose experiences inform those processes. The former USAID leaders who signed the Open Letter are not wrong about what U.S. foreign assistance can do. Their service should be honored. Their recommendations contain real wisdom that should be expanded on and studied. But any wisdom earned within a system has its limits when that system collapses and needs to be reimagined. For decades, USAID leaders directed thousands of USAID employees across dozens of countries. They programmed tens of billions of dollars annually through hundreds of U.S. and international organizations whose reach extended deeply into the U.S. economy— into the health care, research, and agriculture sectors, among others. Collectively, this work effectively advanced U.S. interests against the world’s most complex challenges: war, disease, famine, poverty, genocide, and others. That was a winning hand. But playing a winning hand to a losing outcome demands an honest accounting of what went wrong. Despite all of USAID’s accumulated achievements, agency leaders failed to build a durable constituency that could defend the work. There may be other development thinkers with valuable perspectives to consider and other business models that would do the work better—
When the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) attacked USAID, they perhaps thought the thousands of development and humanitarian professionals would wither away. But that’s not who we are. We were trained that when you see a disaster, you run toward it, not away. You help people in need, not just in the short term, but as they rebuild. So when USAID missions went dark, our work did not. When the attacks on USAID began in January 2025 with dedicated public servants being locked out of their computers and stop-work orders halting all USAID assistance, the development community mobilized. As a former USAID Foreign Service officer and acting assistant administrator of the bureau that oversaw USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), I realized right away that we were trying to respond to a disaster without an “ops center,” like USAID once had and State still does, that serves as the nerve center critical to coordinating a response. In the following days, four USAID Foreign Service officers— Ambassador Erin McKee, Alicia Dinerstein, Jeanne Briggs, and I—mobilized donations for Stand Up for AID and established the Aid Transition Alliance (AidTA). We named our small volunteer team “Point Four”—a nod to history for those who knew that President Harry Truman’s Point Four initiative was the precursor to USAID and that the Administrator’s conference When DOGE struck in January 2025, USAID officers mobilized, providing peer support, challenging misinformation, and rescuing the agency’s knowledge infrastructure for the future. BY SUSAN REICHLE Susan Reichle is a retired USAID Foreign Service officer and former president and CEO of the International Youth Foundation, co-founder of the Aid Transition Alliance (AidTA), chair of the board of the Coalition of Racial and Ethnic Equity in Development (CREED), and member of the American Academy of Diplomacy, National Security Leaders for America, and the Modernizing Foreign Assistance Network. THE AID TRANSITION ALLIANCE RUNNING TOWARD A DISASTER 20 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL FOCUS A WORLD WITHOUT
room was named Point Four. USAID’s first innovation counselor, Maura O’Neill, was instrumental in helping mobilize funds from members of Forward Global for our work. Requests from media poured in, and a team of former USAID communications experts gathered data, prepared us for interviews, and knocked down the relentless misinformation that tried to define USAID as a “criminal organization” full of “radical lunatics.” A LinkedIn group of more than 2,000 former USAID staff members came together to rescue data, websites, and other public documents before they disappeared. Mental health professionals mobilized to provide pro bono webinars and counseling services to the thousands who had suddenly lost not only their jobs, but their calling. We organized rallies and joined with AFSA for “clap outs” to honor our colleagues who were given just 15 minutes to pack up their offices and carry a lifetime of memories into the streets. A New Type of Service During those early days in 2025, a new type of service was born: community service to support the USAID staff and partners who had dedicated their professional lives to improving and saving the lives of others. As a USAID FSO who retired in 2017, I was free to jump in to help, but many of the emerging grassroots leaders who leapt into action to support colleagues had themselves just lost their jobs. Instead of retreating, they organized and created an array of “pop-up” groups to fight back and serve the development community across the globe. Many of these initiatives continue today, because just like in the disasters we responded to overseas, communities need support not just during the immediate crisis, but in rebuilding as well. We were fortunate to quickly secure the fiscal sponsorship of Forward Global, enabling us to raise funds to support AidTA’s efforts to provide counseling services, peer support, and data management. Donations by former USAID Administrators helped jump-start this initiative, along with funding from the Packard and Rockefeller foundations, which will end in 2026. Every three months our Point Four team assesses whether the alliance’s support is still needed, and each time we have found the need is still high. These results encourage us to continue our pro bono work as we raise funds for the broader AidTA efforts. For example, more than 2,200 practitioners are connected and actively contributing to rescuing six decades of USAID’s data and information, vital operational knowledge that might otherwise be lost—including contributions from former staff, Foreign Service Nationals, implementing partners, researchers, and technical specialists from across the development world. So far, our USAID Knowledge Rescue initiative has recovered more than 270,000 digital files of nonclassified documents, and 100 structured interviews of recently departed USAID staff were completed and transcribed, surfacing insights and lessons for the future of foreign assistance. This work resulted in the July 1 launch of the Development Knowledge Commons, which provides public access to records taken down when USAID was dismantled. USAID’s knowledge infrastructure wasn’t the only thing requiring immediate attention. Former USAID staff and partners needed urgent psychological support to weather the loss not only of their employment and livelihoods, but their life’s mission as international development professionals. On June 30, 2025, the last day for the majority of USAID staff, AidTA and USAID Administrators organized a global celebration of USAID service. The daylong THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2026 21 In February 2025, when terminated USAID professionals were given 15 minutes to pack up their offices and leave, former colleagues, members of the U.S. Foreign Service, advocates of foreign development and disaster assistance, and the foreign affairs community gathered outside the Ronald Reagan Building to honor their service. AID TRANSITION ALLIANCE
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