TAKING A HAMMER TO U.S. FOREIGN RELATIONS
In yesterday’s mail, I received a subscription offer to Foreign Affairs, which is an in-depth magazine focusing on U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Actually, it was a renewal offer, since my old subscription recently lapsed after many years. In normal times, a magazine offer wouldn’t trigger this Facebook post. But these are not normal times.
Working in international affairs for 12 years remains a source of tremendous pride for me. That’s one of many reasons I subscribed to Foreign Affairs over three decades. After I departed that career path, I missed the satisfaction of not just being *where the action is*, but also *making a difference.* Every day was interesting and a few days were even very exciting. The work was meaningful and fascinating people were all around. Indeed, the people we work often become our most valuable resources. That’s true for almost any job.
To give readers some idea of the culture inside the foreign service, let me share a few comparisons. I’ve heard people who work in Hollywood talk about how intimidating the movie and TV culture is, especially for newcomers. Good-looking, talented people are everywhere. I’ve heard the same thing about the music business. No matter how terrific you play or how well you sing, there’s always someone who’s better. Athletics is certainly that way, too. No matter how successful you are, another player is fighting to take away your job.
Working at the highest levels of foreign relations was much the same. It remains the most humbling experience of my lifetime. Everyone, everywhere, all around was impressive, usually with great educations, amazing past experiences, and expertise what was unequalled. When I was stationed in Romania for instance, our staff included FSOs who had witnessed military coups, revolutions, and even met with popes, presidents, and prime ministers. One of my senior colleagues had served at the American Embassy in Saigon near the end of the Vietnam War. Another had been intimately involved in the Uganda–Tanzania War in Africa and even helped to broker peace. Then, there were diplomats assigned to the luxury diplomatic assignments in missions at Paris, Tokyo, and elsewhere. Career FSOs may have previously served 2-4 years in Moscow, Mogadishu, Montevideo, Majuro, and Mexico City. And that’s just a few of the capital cities with M’s. Many spoke multiple languages. I’ll let you use your imagination to ponder what *daily conversations* around the lunch table were like. You can’t possibly fathom how interesting these people and how remarkable the stories were. There were people on the real front lines of American and world history, and they were friends and colleagues I saw everyday. Yes, humbling is the word. I may have thought I knew something about South Africa, but then when you sit across the table from an FSO who met with Nelson Mandela multiple times both in and out of prison, we begin to realize our own limitations of intelligence and understanding from the broadest of perspectives.
I share this short snippet about career diplomats because these remarkable individuals are the architects of our international diplomacy. These are the real experts. Sure, history is filled with miscalculations and many failures. Experts must bear some of that responsibility when things go wrong, and given there are always hotspots and crisis someplace, mistakes are inevitable. After all, we’re just human. Nonetheless, these are the professionals who are best suited to provide future advice and direction. And, these are the writers and authors in every issue of Foreign Affairs, the magazine I have now decided to no longer subscribe to.
Why have I decided against subscribing, or even bothering to read Foreign Affairs? Its simple. The short answer is — the traditional ways and means of international diplomacy are over. Kaput. Finished. And regretfully, I don’t think they’re coming back, at least not in my lifetime.
Evidence supports this pessimism. Since January 2025, America’s career diplomats have been leaving in droves. In just the first two months of the Trump regime, the U.S. State Department lost more than 700 career employees, who all resigned. Many more are about to accept offers to leave. That number is in addition to career diplomats at USAID, USIA, and other federal agencies being gutted or abolished. It’s easy to understand the reasons so many are leaving. Think about the impossible task now–how can a non-partisan career diplomat serve in this toxic, even hostile, environment? Trump’s foreign policy means treaties signed by past presidents are abandoned. Trade agreements get trashed. International commitments become null and void. American foreign policy duckwalks backwards with social media posts that sound like a teenage temper tantrums. Then, there’s the constant barrage of personal insults at other leaders and nations, from crude nicknames to “shit hole countries.” Meanwhile, the US under Trump talks about invading Panama, seizing control of Greenland, and adding Canada as a 51st state–even though 93 percent of Canadians are dead set against it. It’s mass madness. There’s no way to be diplomatic or put a happy face amidst this level of chaos. Overseas, America’s image isn’t just tarnished. In some places, its ruined and could take decades to restore. Worse, all those global concerns are correct: How can any nation trust Trump given his cluster fuck of lies or the United States which elected this buffoon to office? Twice! We’ve become a joke that isn’t funny.
It’s about to get worse. “Little Marco’s” State Department has announced its intention to forgo passing the Foreign Service Officer exam as a requisite for serving overseas. The FSO exam is a strenuous test of knowledge and comprehension. I failed the exam the first two times I took it (the third time was a charm). The FSO exam is a brutally tough screening tool to see who measures up and should be granted the authority to represent the United States at missions abroad. The reason why the FSO exam is being junked is simple: Most Trump-loyalists would NOT be able to pass it. So, the way to pack embassies and consulates overseas and the State Department here at home with MAGA sycophants is to scrap the unbiased testing requirements and direct hire the Trump loyalists. Warning: Get ready to see some real yahoos and imbeciles in the foreign service. You think RFK, Jr. and Krack Patel are nuts, just wait until the MAGA red caps end up writing the cables and re-crafting policy with Trump-colored distortions with 190 countries. It’s going to be a circus of clowns.
Sorry, Foreign Affairs. I am declining your offer. Sharing the expertise of the best minds in international diplomacy is commendable. You were once the voice of reason and sanity. But sadly, it’s no longer relevant. Not in Trump’s America.
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Note: Yes, that’s a rusty hammer laid a top the offer from Foreign Affairs. Pretty much sums up the situation.
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