SPEAKING OUT

Marie Yovanovitch: The State Department Is ‘in Trouble’

The former ambassador says the department is being “hollowed out” and decisions are coming from the top down without internal discussion.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch said Wednesday that the State Department is “in trouble” and that the department is being “hollowed out,” CNN reports. While speaking at event at Georgetown University, Yovanovitch warned that individuals who “lack policy vision, moral clarity and leadership skills” are leading the department and that the policy process has been replaced with top-down decision-making with “little discussion.” “Vacancies at all levels go unfilled and officers are increasingly wondering whether it is safe to express concerns about policy, even behind closed doors,” she said. The former ambassador called for diplomats to be re-empowered so that they could confront “false assumptions” and impart their expertise. “To be blunt: An amoral, keep-’em-guessing foreign policy that substitutes threats, fear and confusion for trust cannot work over the long haul, especially in our social media-savvy, interconnected world,” she said, noting that allies may turn against the U.S. and toward “partners whose interests might not align well with ours.” Yovanovitch was ousted while the Trump administration was pushing Ukraine to open investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son. She also testified to lawmakers during the House’s impeachment inquiry into President Trump.