Since taking over in April, Pompeo has lavished attention on diplomats demoralized by the former oil executive’s distant management style, reluctance to consult in-house experts and inability to get personnel choices through President Donald Trump’s White House.
The charm offensive by the former Republican lawmaker and CIA director includes resuming the hiring of diplomats’ family members when posted abroad, cheerleading emails to staff about his travels and a push to replenish the top ranks of U.S. diplomacy, officials said.
The most tangible sign of Pompeo’s effort may be the State Department promotion lists, disclosed internally since Aug. 31 and reviewed by Reuters, which show Pompeo has sharply increased the number of diplomats promoted to three of the top four ranks.
According to a provisional agency document circulated internally on Friday, Pompeo recommended doubling the number of "career ministers" - the second-highest rank in the U.S. foreign service - to eight from four. (tmsnrt.rs/2xcHMTc)
Pompeo also proposed nearly doubling those promoted to the third rank, "minister-counselor," to 68 from 35 the year before.