20 SEPTEMBER 2023 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL More than 30 of the nominees— mostly career Foreign Service members—had long been ready for a Senate vote but remained blocked by Senators J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who had issued sweeping holds on all State Department nominees. In mid-July, the obstructions prompted Secretary of State Antony Blinken to issue a plea, urging senators to advance the dozens of nominees and decrying the impact of the holds on U.S. national security. The summer saw two high-level positions vacated: Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley stepped down from her role as chief diversity and inclusion officer, and Rick Waters left his role as China coordinator and deputy assistant Secretary of State for China and Taiwan. He had also led the department’s newly created China House policy division. In late June, in an apparent response to congressional criticism of the Biden administration’s approach to East Africa policy, John Godfrey was named special envoy for Sudan. Godfrey had already been serving as ambassador to that country since 2022. Finally, in a largely symbolic move in late July, President Joe Biden named Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns to his Cabinet, elevating one of his closest advisers on national security and foreign policy. In 2021, Burns became the first career diplomat to lead the CIA. New Bill Preserves LE Staff Visas In an effort to preserve the opportunity for long-serving locally employed (LE) staff overseas to obtain Immigrant Visas, Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) introduced S.1887 on June 8. Known as the GRATEFUL (Granting Recognition to Accomplished Talented Employees for Unwavering Loyalty) Act, this bill would revitalize a visa category created in 1952 for LE staff and rename it the Government Employee Immigrant Visa (GIV) program. In practice, the proposed legislation would reallocate visas from an underutilized existing program, redirecting 3,500 visas in FY2024 and 3,000 visas each year after, into the GIV program. This would allow foreign nationals with at least 15 years of exceptional service to the United States to immigrate with their families. As it stands, retiring U.S. government employees abroad face an estimated 14-year wait between qualifying for and receiving a visa amid a backlog of more than 118,000 cases. Years of shifting immigration policy have placed these employees in line for visas alongside others who have no connection to U.S. government service. The GIV program represents a commitment to employees abroad, particularly those who have placed themselves in harm’s way in service of the U.S. mission. It has also received the full endorsement of AFSA, the American Academy of Diplomacy, and the Council of American Ambassadors. As of early August, S.1887 was included in the Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act. If included in the final version, it would become law in late 2023. DoS Afghanistan Report: Not an A+ A long-awaited after-action report on the Afghanistan evacuation published by the State Department on June 30 found that the Biden and Trump administrations did not sufficiently plan for “worst-case scenarios” ahead of the summer 2021 withdrawal. Notable findings from the heavily redacted review are as follows: There was insufficient “senior-level consideration” of worst-case outcomes and the speed at which they could transpire. While U.S. military planning for a possible evacuation operation was underway for some time, the State Department’s Short-Staffed Overseas We know we don’t have enough personnel in [U.S. diplomatic] missions in order to carry out what we expect them to do. We also know that we are regularly reprioritizing where we have to put our resources because of international events and circumstances, and that requires us to take personnel out of missions, and they become very short-staffed. —Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) at an event on May 31 at the Meridian Center for Diplomatic Engagement where he discussed S.3491, proposed legislation to modernize the State Department. Creating a Reserve Corps [Former diplomats] would come back in a heartbeat if they were needed. They will rise to the occasion. I am certain they will. —Senator Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) at an event on May 31 at the Meridian Center for Diplomatic Engagement where he proposed legislation to create a reserve corps. HEARD ON THE HILL JOSH
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