Senate Democrats call on Trump to reverse the recall of dozens of ambassadors

Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee sent a letter on Wednesday to President Donald Trump urging him to reverse the decision to recall 29 top career diplomats, saying it could create a “vacuum in U.S. leadership” around the world. 

This was in response to news reported Monday by the Associated Press that 29 career diplomats in ambassadorial and other senior embassy posts were being recalled to Washington, D.C. The list includes ambassadors from Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Central and South America, who reportedly will be offered other assignments in foreign service, if they choose to accept them.  

“We write with urgent concern surrounding the unprecedented decision to recall nearly 30 career U.S. ambassadors,” the senators wrote.

“This vacuum in U.S. leadership poses a significant threat to our national security and unnecessarily risks the safety of U.S. citizens and businesses overseas,” they added. “We ask you to reconsider this decision before it damages America’s credibility and the ability to advance U.S. interests abroad.”

The letter was signed by Senate Foreign Relations ranking member Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and all other Democratic members of the committee.  

All 29 ambassadors had taken up their posts during the Joe Biden administration, according to The Hill. 

The State Department wouldn’t confirm the precise number of recalled ambassadors in a statement to The Hill, but it defended the action as a “standard process in any administration,” noting that an ambassador is “a personal representative of the president and it is the president’s right to ensure that he has individuals in these countries who advance the America First agenda,” the AP reported.