The Foreign Policy Expertise blog posted on 29 April 2025 a commentary titled "How to Make Rubio's State Department Reform a Success" by Dan Spokojny.
The author argues that to the extent the Rubio reorganization of the State Department focuses on moving some authority from functional bureaus to regional bureaus, it has merit. There has always been some unnecessary tension and overlap between the functional and regional bureaus.
Comment: If done properly, Rubio's reorganization plan could improve operations in the State Department. That remains to be seen. The bigger issue is ensuring an adequate budget and staffing. Moving all the bureaucratic boxes in the State Department will improve nothing if there is an insufficient budget and personnel to carry out the Department's mission.
