WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 The State Department is hitting back at the growing bipartisan criticism of Rex Tillerson\u2019s leadership and accusations he is presiding over a debilitating brain drain of the nation\u2019s diplomatic corps. At the same time, it allowed that a lack of communication with employees about Tillerson\u2019s intent to reorganize the department had contributed to low morale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a letter to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee\u2019s Republican chairman, the department said Tillerson\u2019s reorganization plans aren\u2019t crippling the agency as reports have claimed. Top ranks aren\u2019t being intentionally gutted through attrition, mass retirements and buyouts, it said, and a planned 8 percent reduction of its nearly 75,000 employees had been mandated by the Office of Management and Budget and is proceeding under that order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said there was a need to better communicate plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAdmittedly, the department could do a better job of communicating every single step along the way of the redesign process,\u201d she told reporters. \u201cThere is a morale issue and the department realizes that we need to say more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the letter, which was sent to Sen. Bob Corker late Thursday, the department said there are only 108 fewer foreign service officers now than in 2016. The tally is still 2,000 more than there were in 2008, it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It said a widely cited figure that 60 percent of diplomats at the highest level had left the foreign service since January is a \u201cdistortion\u201d because only six people held the rank known as \u201ccareer ambassador.\u201d Two remain, it said. Since 1980, only from one to seven career ambassadors have ever served at the same time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nevertheless, the letter seems unlikely to stem the criticism of Tillerson. Critics also point to departures of senior and mid-level foreign service officers and a hiring freeze of entry level diplomats that has been relaxed only to take on about 100 new employees in the current budget year. That\u2019s about a third of recent yearly intakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nauert appealed to frustrated diplomats not to leave their careers in frustration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is a morale issue in this building and that\u2019s why I say, you know, folks, hang in there,\u201d she said. \u201cWe have a lot of work to be done. Please don\u2019t give up. Don\u2019t give up on this building. Don\u2019t give up on what America\u2019s doing. Don\u2019t give up on the importance of this job and this career.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Democratic and Republican lawmakers also oppose Tillerson\u2019s proposal to cut the department\u2019s budget by nearly 30 percent, suggesting there will be rancorous exchanges on staffing levels in coming months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The letter, signed by Charles S. Faulkner of the Bureau of Legislative Affairs, follows an intense week of criticism of Tillerson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since taking office, the former Exxon Mobil CEO has been targeted by frequent attacks from Democrats, former diplomats and pundits on the left and the right. In recent days, Corker and a fellow prominent Republican, Arizona Sen. John McCain, joined the chorus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Corker on Tuesday echoed comments of his committee\u2019s top Democrat, Sen. Ben Cardin, who spoke of \u201calarming\u201d reports that America\u2019s diplomatic corps is being decimated by the reorganization. Corker said the concerns were \u201cbipartisan in nature\u201d and lamented that a briefing about the reorganization with State Department officials had been \u201cvery unsatisfactory\u201d and incomplete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A day later, McCain, the Senate Armed Services Committee chairman, wrote a letter with Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen criticizing the department for management decisions \u201cthat threaten to undermine the long-term health and effectiveness of American diplomacy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The entire minority membership of the House Foreign Affairs Committee followed, writing to Tillerson to say they\u2019re \u201cprofoundly concerned about what appears to be the intentional hollowing-out of our senior diplomatic ranks and the entire State Department with no apparent goal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The criticism followed a highly critical missive from the American Foreign Service Association, the union representing U.S. diplomats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Its president, Barbara Stephenson, likened senior staff reductions to a \u201cdecapitation\u201d that would be met with public outcry if it had occurred in the military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe rapid loss of so many senior officers has a serious, immediate and tangible effect on the capacity of the United States to shape world events,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The State Department feels the criticism is unfair. In its letter to Corker, the agency said there are only 20 fewer senior foreign service officers now than there were a year ago (1,048 compared with 1,068). This year\u2019s retirements are five fewer than in 2016, it said. Buyouts to induce early retirement of more than 600 diplomats are consistent with a directive to reduce the federal workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It said reorganization is a work in progress, appealing for patience as officials make the department \u201cmore efficient and effective within a sustainable budget.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA project such as this demands careful execution and we are committed to doing just that and notifying Congress as required,\u201d the State Department said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The State Department is hitting back at the growing bipartisan criticism of Rex Tillerson\u2019s leadership and accusations he is presiding over a debilitating brain drain of the nation\u2019s diplomatic corps.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":26628,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":15,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[106,31,15,33],"tags":[],"coauthors":[456],"class_list":["post-9636","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-brief","category-home","category-management","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"GEP24G25ZBFU7LAZDE67YUC75E","arc_canonical_url":"\/management\/2017\/11\/20\/state-department-defends-reorg-admits-low-morale\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\n