Trump team launches brutal purge of State Department workers

The Trump administration is gutting the State Department, firing more than 1,300 employees on Friday, as part of a large downsizing effort that critics say will kneecap America’s global influence and diplomatic readiness.

According to the Associated Press, a senior State Department official confirmed that pink slips are going out to 1,107 civil service employees and 246 foreign service officers with U.S.-based assignments.

Overall, about 3,000 positions will be cut through layoffs, buyouts, and office closures, CBS News reports. 

The move follows a Supreme Court decision lifting a lower court’s order that had blocked mass federal layoffs, paving the way for widespread cuts across agencies.

“We took a very deliberate step to reorganize the State Department to be more efficient and more focused,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Thursday during a trip to Malaysia. 

Rubio has long called the department “bloated.” In May, the agency informed Congress it planned to eliminate over 3,400 U.S.-based jobs—around 18% of its workforce—and consolidate or close nearly half of its domestic offices. At the time, it said the reorganization would phase out programs focused on democracy and human rights—offices the department called “prone to ideological capture”—and create new units centered on “civil liberties” and “free market principles.”

Employees were notified of the layoffs on Thursday afternoon. Some were instructed to return all department-issued equipment—including laptops, phones, and diplomatic passports—and collect personal belongings before their badges were revoked. An internal email also canceled telework privileges for Friday, according to CBS News.

For now, overseas staffing and embassies are spared, but a senior official told The New York Times that all global programs remain under review.

“No one’s saying that the people … weren’t doing a good job,” one senior official told CBS News. “But at the end of the day, we have to do what’s right for the mission.”

The cuts have sparked swift criticism from Democrats. In a letter last month to Rubio, dozens of House members warned the plan would “leave the U.S. with limited tools to engage as a leader on the world stage during this critical juncture.” 

Even some inside the agency are confused. “It makes absolutely no sense,” one employee told CBS News.

There’s good reason for skepticism. Earlier in Trump’s presidency, rushed firings led to improper terminations and entire offices being gutted. Some workers were later quietly reinstated.

Once notices go out, the department will begin a “transition period of several weeks” to implement the new organizational chart, a State Department employee told reporters.

But behind all the bureaucratic language, critics see something more dangerous: a deliberate weakening of America’s diplomatic strength. And with tensions mounting abroad, it’s a moment many say the U.S. can least afford to be short-staffed.