Marco Rubio Overhauls State Dept. to Stop Sharing American Values Abroad
The country’s top diplomat blames changes on an agency “beholden to radical political ideology.”

Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Marco Rubio is closing offices tasked with advancing American values around the world as part of a sweeping overhaul of the State Department.
The Secretary of State said the reorganization was because the U.S diplomatic agency was “beholden to radical political ideology.”
Under President Donald Trump’s direction, Rubio said he was “reversing decades of bloat and bureaucracy at the State Department.
“These sweeping changes will empower our talented diplomats to put America and Americans first,” he added in a statement posted on X.
Today is the day. Under @POTUS’ leadership and at my direction, we are reversing decades of bloat and bureaucracy at the State Department.
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) April 22, 2025
These sweeping changes will empower our talented diplomats to put America and Americans first. pic.twitter.com/CGWz3JrYwu
The State Department also posted a statement on Substack, quoting Rubio as saying: “We will drain the bloated, bureaucratic swamp, empowering the Department from the ground up.”
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The biggest change will be the closure of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, which is charged with spreading American values.
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Rubio claimed the bureau had become “a platform for left-wing activists to wage vendettas against ‘anti-woke’ leaders in nations such as Poland, Hungary, and Brazil, and to transform their hatred of Israel into concrete policies such as arms embargoes.”
The democracy department will be closed together with a department for refugees and migration that Rubio accused of funneling “millions of taxpayer dollars to international organizations and NGOs that facilitated mass migration around the world, including the invasion on our southern border.
“To transfer the remaining functions of USAID to such a monstrosity of bureaus would be to undo DOGE’s work to build a more efficient and accountable government,” he said.

A State Department chart shows the changes announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
State Dept.
A State Department chart appears to show that both departments will be replaced by an office for foreign assistance and humanitarian aid.
An internal fact sheet shows the agency’s offices will be slashed by 17 percent from 734 to 602. More than 700 jobs will disappear in the transition.
“It’s not something where people are being fired today,” said State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce. “They’re not going to be walking out of the building. It’s not that kind of a dynamic. It is a roadmap. It’s a plan.”
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