Conservative Contractor Leads Push to Overhaul State Department Diplomat Hiring

Contractor Andrew Crapuchettes obtained an almost $1 million contract to recruit the next generation of Foreign Service officers via his RedBalloon and Military Hire websites, promising a values-based, “patriotic” hiring approach. His effort aligns with a 2025 memorandum signed by Donald Trump that instructed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to strip Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility from the State Department’s core principles and to prohibit recruitment based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin.

Rubio has already removed roughly 1,300 State employees, including 246 diplomats, and terminated programs such as the Charles Rangel and Thomas Pickering fellowships that channeled candidates from historically black colleges. The new recruiting channels also post positions for ICE and the Border Patrol, signaling a broader shift toward conservative staffing across federal agencies. Critics note the change contrasts with prior expansions of diplomatic roles to include social-justice advocacy under previous administrations. Whether these reforms will survive future leadership remains uncertain, as personnel policies can be reversed by subsequent presidents.