Trump administration launches biggest restructuring plan ‘in decades’ at State Department

The Trump administration began a restructuring plan at the State Department that could close 132 bureaus at the agency, including those created to promote human rights, advance democracy abroad, counter extremism and prevent war crimes, according to an article shared by Secretary of State Marco Rubio himself on Tuesday.

Plans to reorganize the country's top foreign policy agency are outlined in internal documents obtained by The Free Press.

According to the report, the department will eliminate or restructure hundreds of positions in Washington, D.C., news that comes on the heels of several downsizing alerts from the agency. The State Department will reduce its bureaus from 734 to 602, a 17% reduction, the document shows.

Separately, assistant secretaries of state are also being instructed to submit, within 30 days, plans to reduce their American staff in each bureau by 15%, according to a senior Trump administration official. These plans include six major departments that employ thousands of people.

Marco Rubio is at the helm of the agency's biggest restructuring in decades

"Today is the day. Under [President Trump's] leadership and at my direction, we are reversing decades of bloat and bureaucracy at the State Department. These sweeping changes will empower our talented diplomats to put America and Americans first," Rubio wrote on X before posting the eye-opening article in The Free Press.

The State Department also sent a brief letter to Congress on Tuesday informing lawmakers of the changes to be implemented in the department's organizational chart, though it is expected to send a more detailed congressional notification of the actions soon.

Officials say it is the biggest restructuring of the State Department in decades, according to the media outlet.

Marco Rubio is working alongside DOGE, advised by Elon Musk, on the reorganization, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter.

Previous rumors of cuts

The news is not new. Much speculation about the issue had circled the country, and had crept into the media. Most notably, a report published on Sunday in The New York Times focused on the possible closure of overseas offices and the elimination of nearly all of its operations in Africa.

However, planning documents accessed by The Free Press, several of which are marked "SBU" (Sensitive But Unclassified), do not mention these rumors.

The State Department will reportedly eliminate 132 of its bureaus and 700 positions, according to the information reviewed. Those bureaus are wings of the agency in Washington, D.C., that focus on various foreign policy issues and that the Trump administration now considers unnecessary.

The 700 positions are for civil service and foreign service employees, not political appointees.

The State Department is also transferring 137 bureaus to other parts of the agency to consolidate programs.

The programs the State Department is cutting are among those that do not require congressional approval, the State Department's second highest-ranking official emphasized. The agency's top officials will have 30 days to come up with plans on how to implement the changes, per The Free Press.

Which bureaus will the department eliminate?

A major part of the restructuring will involve an office called Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy and Human Rights, also known as the agency's "J programs." This office, according to its website, "leads global diplomatic efforts to promote universal human rights, democratic renewal and human-centered security."

Another office at risk of being eliminated is the Conflict and Stabilization Operations Office (CSO). It received $336 million between 2016 and 2023, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), an independent agency that examines the use of federal funds.

The State Department also has plans to eliminate "Countering Violent Extremism" (CVE) activities in the Office of Counterterrorism, according to the documents. CVE refers to "actions to counter violent extremist efforts to radicalize, recruit, and mobilize their followers toward violence, as well as to address specific factors that facilitate the recruitment and radicalization of violent extremists toward violence," the State Department stated in a 2016 report.

One important way the Trump administration is consolidating programs is by targeting the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which was created in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to administer foreign aid.

Since Trump took office, he has taken steps to cut most USAID contracts (83%) due to concerns that excessive overseas spending will be wasted or not aligned with U.S. interests.