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Democrats question Trump admin's State Department layoffs
Led by Bera and Congressmember Johnny Olszewski, the Democrats questioned whether “merit or mission alignment” guided the process.
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Jeffin T. Kaleekal - Thu, 14, May 2026
- 03:50 EDT
- 28
Congressmembers Ami Bera and Pramila Jayapal / Wikimedia commons
Indian American U.S. Congressmember Ami Bera, on May 11, questioned the State Department over its decision to dismiss around 1,350 serving Civil and Foreign Service employees.
In a letter sent to the Department’s Under Secretary of State for Management and Resources, Jason Evans, co-signed by 14 of his Democratic congressional peers, including Congressmember Pramila Jayapal, Bera demanded answers regarding the Department’s rationale for its reduction in force (RIF) process.
Led by Bera and Congressmember Johnny Olszewski, the Democrats questioned whether “merit or mission alignment” guided the process. They also raised concerns over the broader impact the staffing cuts will have on “U.S. diplomacy and national security.”
The letter comes as the State Department finalized layoffs for hundreds of employees who had remained on administrative leave for nearly a year, even as the Department continued working to fill vacant positions and recruit new personnel.
Previously, Democratic Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, had also written to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The Democrats described Rubio’s response to the letter as inadequate and insisted on more clarity.
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In the letter, Bera and his peers highlighted the inconsistent explanations offered by Trump administration officials over the layoffs.
Previously, Deputy Secretary Michael Rigas argued that the firings were based on merit. His position was later contradicted by Assistant Secretary for Administration José Cunningham, who testified that the firings were not based on an individual’s skills or merit, but rather on the positions they held when the RIFs were conducted. This was again contradicted by Under Secretary for Political Affairs Allison Hooker, who attributed the firings to mission alignment and structure.
The letter said, “Two things cannot be true at once. Either the Department was focused on prioritizing merit, in which case you would have allowed employees in eliminated positions to apply for other jobs, or it was based on function, in which case merit would be inconsequential to your explanation.”
It further read, “The persistent flip-flopping showcases that the Administration had no clear plan or strategy when conducting this mission-altering reduction in force.”
The lawmakers requested detailed information from the State Department regarding the criteria used to carry out the RIFs, the role of merit evaluations in the process, and the impact the staffing cuts have had on the Department’s operations and readiness.
“These inconsistent explanations have raised significant concerns regarding the basis and implementation of the RIFs, and their impact on the Department’s workforce and mission readiness,” the Democrats continued in their letter.
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