The cuts would mean drastic decreases in funding for humanitarian assistance, global health and international organizations.
The White House’s Office of Management and Budget has proposed gutting the State Department’s budget by almost 50%, closing a number of overseas diplomatic missions, slashing the number of diplomatic staff, and eliminating funding for nearly all international organizations, including the United Nations, many of its agencies and for NATO headquarters, officials said.
The proposal, which was presented to the State Department last week, remains in a highly preliminary phase and faces significant hurdles before implementation.
“The proposal is not expected to pass muster with either the department’s leadership or Congress, which will ultimately be asked to vote on the entire federal budget in the coming months,” according to sources familiar with the situation.
Officials familiar with the proposal note it must undergo several rounds of review before reaching lawmakers, who have historically amended or rejected White House budget requests. Despite its preliminary nature, the proposal offers insight into the Trump administration’s priorities and aligns with substantial job and funding reductions across federal agencies, including Health and Human Services, the Education Department, and the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Information about the proposed cuts has spread rapidly among diplomatic personnel. Notes from an internal meeting regarding the proposal have circulated in online chat groups among foreign service officers since the weekend, gaining significant attention Monday when the State Department was scheduled to present a separate unrelated reorganization plan to the OMB.