Top Trump Official Shreds Biden's 'Structurally Flawed' State Department

Forbes Breaking News

During a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Wednesday, Undersecretary Of State For Political Affairs Allison Hooker spoke about the Biden administration's State Department.

Transcript

00:00Other members of the committee are reminded that opening statements may be

00:04submitted for the record. We're pleased to have the Undersecretary of State for

00:08Political Affairs, Allison Hooker, before us today. Your full statements will be

00:13made a part of the record and I'll ask that you keep your spoken remarks to

00:16five minutes in order to allow time for member questions. And I now recognize

00:20you, Undersecretary Hooker, for your opening statement. Thank you very much

00:23Chairman. Good morning, Chairman Mast, Ranking Member Meeks, and distinguished

00:29members of the committee. It's an honor to appear before you today as Undersecretary

00:34of State for Political Affairs. Since stepping into this role just over six

00:39weeks ago, I've had the opportunity to accompany Secretary Rubio on three

00:44overseas missions, two of which were in support of President Trump. These early

00:49engagements were not ceremonial. They were urgent, high-level diplomatic efforts

00:54demanding precision, speed, and strategic focus. They reflect the President's clear

01:00directive that our diplomacy be focused, effective, and firmly grounded in America

01:06First principles. The President's bold approach could not be more timely. The

01:12United States faces a global landscape defined by intensifying strategic

01:16competition, destabilizing mass migration, transnational crime, unfair trade practices,

01:23and the challenges of forging durable partnerships in a rapidly shifting world.

01:28Meeting these challenges requires a Department of State that is leaner, sharper, and more responsive.

01:35An institution built not for bureaucracy, but for results. Unfortunately, that is not the

01:42Department we inherited. Let me be clear. As a former civil servant with over two decades

01:49of service, I have deep and abiding respect for the dedication and talent of the Department's

01:54workforce. Foreign service, civil service, locally employed staff, and others. But even the most

02:01skilled workforce cannot thrive within a system that is structurally flawed. For too long, our

02:07organization has been burdened by overlapping mandates, unclear chains of command, and a proliferation

02:14of single-issue offices detached from our broader national priorities. As the Deputy Secretary of

02:21Management and Resources testified before this committee last week, when Secretary Rubio unveiled the

02:27reorganization plan on April 22nd, the Department had more than 1,500 domestic office units. That's an

02:35astonishing figure for an agency whose central mission is to represent American interests overseas.

02:44With this complexity has come a lack of accountability to the President and ultimately to the American

02:50people. When lines of responsibilities blur and decision-making is spread across multiple actors, it becomes hard to

02:58ensure that the Department's work is fully aligned with the priorities of the elected leadership. This undermines

03:05not only efficiency, but also the most essential democratic principle, that our government agencies must be

03:12responsive and accountable to those they serve. Calls for reform are nothing new, but this time reform is not

03:20theoretical. It is happening. Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Rubio, we are executing a

03:27fundamental transformation of the Department, one rooted in achieving operational effectiveness and

03:34institutional accountability. This reorganization was never about individual people or positions. It was

03:42about structure and strategic alignment. And at the heart of this transformation is the

03:47empowerment of our regional bureaus and, through them, our posts overseas. By consolidating policy tools under our

03:55regional bureaus, we are creating single lines of accountability that will allow us to move faster, speak with

04:03greater clarity, and deliver more impactful results. These changes will ensure that our diplomacy is no longer driven by

04:11dozens of different offices with competing priorities and authorities, but by mission-focused core, fully

04:18empowered and aligned with the President's priorities. As part of this effort, we are also taking bold action on

04:26foreign assistance. For too long, development projects have lacked local buy-in, delivered limited impact, or reflected

04:34ideological agendas rather than U.S. strategic interests. In the process, we've alienated partners and created openings for our

04:44competitors to expand their influence. That era is over. As of July 1, ongoing foreign assistance programs of the

04:52United States Agency for International Development have been transitioned to the Department of State. This

04:58historic transition brings us into alignment with how most of our allies operate and enables us to treat foreign

05:05assistance not as a siloed enterprise, but as a core tool of U.S. foreign policy. This does not mean the

05:15United States is stepping back from the world. On the contrary, we remain the largest provider of foreign assistance

05:21globally. But moving forward, every dollar we invest abroad will be treated exactly as that, an investment. An

05:29investment in American security. An investment in American jobs. And an investment in our great nation's

05:36strength. Under President Trump's leadership and with Secretary Rubio's clear direction, we are executing an

05:43America-first foreign policy that is principled, pragmatic, and unapologetically focused on delivering for the

05:49American people. The challenges are immense, but so is our resolve. And now we have an institution designed to meet this

05:58moment. I'm deeply honored to serve in this role and to help drive this transformation forward. I look forward

06:05to working with Congress in our shared mission to safeguard U.S. interests on the global stage. Thank you and I

06:11welcome your questions.

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