U.S. Diplomats Draft Dissent Cable

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id="article_d_1" class="home-ad-region-1"></div> <div id="main" data-context="article" class="default default_text_style text_above_photo "> <div class="post-content" data-post-id="1030694" data-premium="no" data-premium-trigger="yes" data-whitelist=""> <article class="article" data-post-id="1030694" data-post-url="https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/08/dissent-cable-live/" data-lfcollectionmeta="eyJ0eXAiOiJqd3QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJ0aXRsZSI6IlUuUy4gRGlwbG9tYXRzIERyYWZ0IERpc3NlbnQgQ2FibGUiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczpcL1wvZm9yZWlnbnBvbGljeS5jb21cLzIwMjFcLzAxXC8wOFwvZGlzc2VudC1jYWJsZS1saXZlXC8iLCJzdHJlYW1fdHlwZSI6ImxpdmVjb21tZW50cyIsImNoZWNrc3VtIjoiMzFkNWVhOGNmMGYwMTgwMGQwYjdhOWM1NmIyNDI1MGEiLCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJmb3JlaWducG9saWN5X3dwXzEwMzA2OTQifQ.sgbmgAMr9y2IkNqeiTUnFrRosSnJu5SWDY9CZxxAhCA" data-lfchecksum="31d5ea8cf0f01800d0b7a9c56b24250a" data-lfarticleid="foreignpolicy_wp_1030694"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/category/news/report/" class="department-name"> <h3 class="department">Report</h3></a> <span class="hed-heading" href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/08/dissent-cable-live/"> <h1 class="hed">U.S. Diplomats Draft Dissent Cable</h1> </span> <h2 class="dek-heading">State Department officials expressed anger at the department’s gag order on messaging as violence wracked Washington.</h2> <div class="meta-data "> <address class="author-list"> <span class="pre">By</span> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/author/robbie-gramer/" rel="author" class="author"> Robbie Gramer</a><span class="separator">,</span> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/author/colum-lynch/" rel="author" class="author"> Colum Lynch</a></address> <span class="separator">|</span> <time pubdate datetime="2021-01-08" title="January 8th, 2021" class="date-time"> January 8, 2021, 10:09 AM</time> </div> <figure class="figure-image "> <span style="padding-bottom:66.666666666667%; " class="image-attachment -ratioscale horizontal-orientation"> <img data-sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" data-srcset="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?quality=90 1500w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=150,100&quality=90 150w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=550,367&quality=90 550w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=768,512&quality=90 768w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=400,267&quality=90 400w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=401,267&quality=90 401w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=800,533&quality=90 800w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=275,183&quality=90 275w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=325,217&quality=90 325w, https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?resize=600,400&quality=90 600w" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?w=800&h=533&quality=90" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" src="/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/08/dissent-cable-live/" alt="U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the White House with President Donald Trump." style="width:auto;" class="image -fit -lazy"> <noscript> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828im_/https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?w=800&h=533&quality=90" alt="U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the White House with President Donald Trump." class="image -fit-3-2"> </noscript> </span> <div class="caption"> U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo looks on as President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the Oval Office of the White House on June 20, 2019. <span class="attribution">Alex Wong/Getty Images</span> </div> </figure> <div class="post-content-main initial-drop-cap shares-position"> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A group of dozens of State Department officials are filing a formal dissent cable directed at Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for the department’s lack of forceful public messaging about the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol building by a pro-Trump mob this week, according to three officials familiar with the matter.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The dissent cable, which one person said has been signed by over 70 officials, reflects mounting anger within the department over the administration’s response to the mob that ransacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 with lawmakers still trapped inside. The mob, following a rally in which President Donald Trump doubled down on baseless claims the election was stolen from him, temporarily interrupted President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral certification. Trump later committed to a peaceful transition of power but refused to explicitly concede defeat.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Diplomats who advocate for fair elections and democracy abroad privately said the events that Trump helped instigate this week did untold damage to U.S. stature and prestige on the world stage. They pointed to U.S. adversaries and autocratic rulers, from those in Russia to Zimbabwe, who were trying to use the scenes of violence in Washington to undermine U.S. calls for democratic reforms in their own countries.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As U.S. allies abroad watched with shock and horror as the mob breached the Capitol, the State Department </span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/06/capitol-mob-storming-trump-united-states-allies/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">ordered</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> its embassies not to issue any new statements, social media posts, or public messaging on the development, as </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Foreign Policy </span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;">first reported. Critics within the department said that order left U.S. public diplomacy abroad temporarily marooned during what some American leaders have referred to as one of the darkest chapters in modern American democracy. </span></p> <p>But others said it was simply meant to prevent embassies from issuing pre-prepared posts on other issues given the gravity of the situation in Washington—and stressed it was only a temporary pause. Since then, Pompeo as well as various U.S. ambassadors around the world have issued their own statements condemning the violence and addressing the implications for America’s image on the global stage.</p> <p><i data-stringify-type="italic">To leave FP’s live coverage and read the rest of this article, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/08/trump-capitol-violence-diplomats-dissent-cable-state-department-response-pompeo/">click here</a>. </i></p> <div data-fp-lazy-load-image></div> </div> <section class="bio-no-photo"> <div> <p><strong>Robbie Gramer</strong> is a diplomacy and national security reporter at <em>Foreign Policy</em>. Twitter: <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/http://www.twitter.com/RobbieGramer" target="_blank">@RobbieGramer</a></p> </div> <div class="last-author"> <p><strong>Colum Lynch</strong> is a senior staff writer at <em>Foreign Policy</em>. Twitter: <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/http://www.twitter.com/columlynch" target="_blank">@columlynch</a></p> </div> </section> <div class="the-comments"> <a href="/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/comments_view/?view_post_comments=https%3A%2F%2Fforeignpolicy.com%2F2021%2F01%2F08%2Fdissent-cable-live%2F" style="color:#fff">View<br/>Comments</a> </div> <div class="the-tags"> <span class="title">Tags:</span> </div> <div class="taboola"> <div class="taboola--inner border-top"> <p class="taboola--heading">Trending Now <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/http://www.taboola.com/" class="taboola--subheading" target="_blank">Sponsored Links by Taboola</a></p> <div id="taboola-below-article-thumbs"></div> <div class="taboola--subheading taboola--subheading__right">By Taboola</div> </div> </div> <div class="taboola taboola__fp"> <div class="taboola--inner"> <p class="taboola--heading heading__red">More from Foreign Policy</p> <div id="taboola-below-article-thumbs_fp"></div> <div class="taboola--subheading taboola--subheading__right">By Taboola</div> </div> </div> </article> <div class="sidebar"> <div> <div id="article_d_2" class="channel-sidebar-big-box-ad"></div> <div id="article_m_2" class="channel-sidebar-big-box-ad"></div> <div class="sidebar-list"> <div class="title">Latest</div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/25/central-african-republic-state-of-emergency-humanitarian-crisis/"> <h3 class="hed">Why Did the Central African Republic Declare a State of Emergency?</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2021-01-25" title="January 25th, 2021" class="date-time"> January 25, 2021, 2:40 PM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/25/biden-has-a-model-for-dealing-with-regional-fears-of-iranian-missiles-and-proxies/"> <h3 class="hed">Biden Has a Model for Dealing With Regional Fears of Iranian Missiles and Proxies</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2021-01-25" title="January 25th, 2021" class="date-time"> January 25, 2021, 2:35 PM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/25/biden-new-election-palestine-abbas-west-bank/"> <h3 class="hed">Among the Unanticipated Outcomes of the U.S. Election: A Palestinian One</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2021-01-25" title="January 25th, 2021" class="date-time"> January 25, 2021, 2:20 PM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/25/india-china-himalayas-conflict-indo-pacific-strategy-united-states/"> <h3 class="hed">India Can’t Say It Wants U.S. Help Against China Out Loud</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2021-01-25" title="January 25th, 2021" class="date-time"> January 25, 2021, 12:32 PM</time> </div> </div> <div class="excerpt-content"> <a class="hed-heading -excerpt" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/25/russia-protests-navalny-arrest-putin-inner-circle/"> <h3 class="hed">With Russia Protesting Navalny’s Arrest, Calls Mount to Target Putin’s Inner Circle</h3> </a> <div class="meta-data -ago"> <time pubdate datetime="2021-01-25" title="January 25th, 2021" class="date-time"> January 25, 2021, 12:22 PM</time> </div> </div> </div> <div class="sidebar-list-more"> <a href="/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/category/latest/">See All Stories</a> </div> </div> <script type="text/javascript"> saveShareCount( 1032350, 'https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/23/clean-green-energy-future/', '', 0 ); 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<span class="powered-by-wpcom--parent"> <div>Powered by <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://wpvip.com/?utm_source=vip_powered_wpcom&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=VIP%20Footer%20Credit&utm_term=foreignpolicy.com" rel="generator nofollow" class="powered-by-wpcom">WordPress.com VIP</a></div> <div>© 2021, The Slate Group</div> </span> </nav> </div> </footer> </div> <script> !function(e,t,n,s,u,a){e.twq||(s=e.twq=function(){s.exe?s.exe.apply(s,arguments):s.queue.push(arguments); },s.version='1.1',s.queue=[],u=t.createElement(n),u.async=!0,u.src='//web.archive.org/web/20210125201828/https://static.ads-twitter.com/uwt.js', a=t.getElementsByTagName(n)[0],a.parentNode.insertBefore(u,a))}(window,document,'script'); // Insert Twitter Pixel ID and Standard Event data below twq('init','nzlz2'); twq('track','PageView'); </script> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/http:\/\/schema.org","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Foreign Policy","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","height":60,"url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/logo.png","width":74}},"@type":"NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2021\/01\/08\/dissent-cable-live\/"},"headline":"U.S. Diplomats Draft Dissent Cable","description":"State Department officials expressed anger at the department\u2019s gag order on messaging as violence wracked Washington.","Articlebody":"<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A group of dozens of State Department officials are filing a formal dissent cable directed at Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for the department\u2019s lack of forceful public messaging about the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol building by a pro-Trump mob this week, according to three officials familiar with the matter.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The dissent cable, which one person said has been signed by over 70 officials, reflects mounting anger within the department over the administration\u2019s response to the mob that ransacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 with lawmakers still trapped inside. The mob, following a rally in which President Donald Trump doubled down on baseless claims the election was stolen from him, temporarily interrupted President-elect Joe Biden\u2019s electoral certification. Trump later committed to a peaceful transition of power but refused to explicitly concede defeat.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Diplomats who advocate for fair elections and democracy abroad privately said the events that Trump helped instigate this week did untold damage to U.S. stature and prestige on the world stage. They pointed to U.S. adversaries and autocratic rulers, from those in Russia to Zimbabwe, who were trying to use the scenes of violence in Washington to undermine U.S. calls for democratic reforms in their own countries.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As U.S. allies abroad watched with shock and horror as the mob breached the Capitol, the State Department <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2021\/01\/06\/capitol-mob-storming-trump-united-states-allies\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ordered<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> its embassies not to issue any new statements, social media posts, or public messaging on the development, as <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Foreign Policy <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">first reported. Critics within the department said that order left U.S. public diplomacy abroad temporarily marooned during what some American leaders have referred to as one of the darkest chapters in modern American democracy.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nBut others said it was simply meant to prevent embassies from issuing pre-prepared posts on other issues given the gravity of the situation in Washington\u2014and stressed it was only a temporary pause. Since then, Pompeo as well as various U.S. ambassadors around the world have issued their own statements condemning the violence and addressing the implications for America\u2019s image on the global stage.\r\n\r\n<i data-stringify-type=\"italic\">To leave FP\u2019s live coverage and read the rest of this article,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2021\/01\/08\/trump-capitol-violence-diplomats-dissent-cable-state-department-response-pompeo\/\">click here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/i>","datePublished":"2021-01-08T10:09:30+00:00","dateModified":"2021-01-12T15:49:53+00:00","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2021\/01\/08\/dissent-cable-live\/","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Robbie Gramer","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/author\/robbie-gramer\/"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Colum Lynch","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/author\/colum-lynch\/"}],"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/GettyImages-1157179629-1.jpg?w=1500","height":1000,"width":1500},"isAccessibleForFree":"False","hasPart":{"@type":"WebPageElement","isAccessibleForFree":"False","cssSelector":".post-content-main"}}</script> <script id="utils-js-js-extra"> var fpUtilsLoc = {"isDev":"","redirectUri":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125201828\/https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/share_redirect\/"}; </script> <script id="FP__scripts__vendor__chartbeat-js-extra"> var chartbeatData = {"category_name":"Report","author_list":"Robbie Gramer, Colum Lynch"}; </script> <script id="FP__scripts__singletons__user__alt_access-js-extra"> var postDataPiano = ["Hidden Post","US Capitol","article"]; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-eJytk9FuwyAMRX9olGRS175M+5SKUi9xQjCznab5+1mq1vclPMEDHI6vuH4pLlJWyOq1hwnEfxMDdtkVShhX9960Jx9EQMULRy+Rsdj+Cn24I7H4bGsXFCkfBnnzNYiwuAXzjRYHDwXOIbmEeZRaDzBMdAeHU+cKQ6JwA94Jv4P5so9B+n+ARC246Afxs2ISnyiGJEocOtiOqRVTJBoRnN2VrT6XwvRYLyFGg2wiDD8z8Hp4uuyb7JmxGU0oVVCijLmrQZo51RHCOK49bPzQNxR9Ea2FkkCtf07s/FwOE+6s+F9J+sB6haD7aGLZmyBlm17MsmDIVBcZkrrX3/2aPtuPtm1Ozfl4Hn4BaBfw2g=="></script> <script src="//web.archive.org/web/20210125201828js_/https://cdn.taboola.com/libtrc/foreignpolicy/loader.js" defer="defer" type="text/javascript"></script> <script id="alerts-cors-js-js-extra"> var myFpAlertsLoc = {"isVIPEnv":"1"}; </script> <script id="FP__scripts__behaviors__article-page-js-extra"> var fpNativeAdData = []; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-eJyl0jFuwzAMBdALVWFdICkyFF16gWbqSsuMTUMSFZFOkduHydK59iRBEB8+vgS/NUQpRsXAJsqkcJZGPJZQJXG8hbfX7h1QlUxBWwSNjavvr1QGaWDYiyTczfoCq62eJryyNIWIKS4JjYZg7IJhrv+w/b5xhFlhvizUbrvzUqJDXMYtysRq4usGQjnXRFkGTFuY6CWtmsdEzZuev5/Mz5dk5HIiV9VWgawhS8+Jtj19lFyl+JwfPysKmnigtipTXVK6LGIbM/19R2wue6aK48P8zB/doeu6w/543M93XQAxJg=="></script> <script src="//web.archive.org/web/20210125201828js_/https://c.jsrdn.com/s/cs.js?p=22420" defer="defer" type="text/javascript"></script> <script id="moat-content-js-extra"> var zMoatADVERTISER = {"moatPassback":"editorial"}; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828js_/https://foreignpolicy.com/_static/??-eJyNjUsOwjAMRC9E6gSJwAZxluAa6ig/xa4Qt8eb7tnNR/MGPsNhb0pNQTeqJPDqk/jd3OiF8evOPlxBNCkjZIHakx6LJcsJ/gMkEVIBmQiCk4fpXblY0pFTkS1NkoPHDcu+Gsn+zFJ90rpUbtY/6j3EEHyM/nLLPx0hRHI="></script> <script src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210125201828js_/https://stats.wp.com/e-202104.js" defer></script> <script> _stq = window._stq || []; _stq.push([ 'view', {v:'ext',j:'1:9.3.1',blog:'162972146',post:'1030694',tz:'-5',srv:'foreignpolicy.com'} ]); _stq.push([ 'clickTrackerInit', '162972146', '1030694' ]); </script>  <script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ window.lightboxjs || function (c) { function g(b, d) { d && (d += (/\?/.test(d) ? 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U.S. Diplomats Draft Dissent Cable – Foreign Policy