Trump's Diplomatic Revolution: Empty Corridors, Hotel Negotiations

The gray, windowless corridors of the Harry S. Truman Building feel more like a catacomb than the nerve center of American diplomacy. By mid-afternoon, an eerie quiet settles over the State Department headquarters, a stark reminder of last year's sweeping cuts that gutted the institution's capacity.

Where once decisions moved through careful interagency processes, policy-planning staff, and regional bureaus, today's foreign policy drops fully formed from a tight circle around President Trump. The traditional step-by-step diplomatic machinery has been replaced by sporadic after-the-fact briefings for America's diplomatic corps.

The Hotel Room Negotiators

Trump's second-term foreign policy team reads like a casting call for unconventional diplomacy. His son-in-law Jared Kushner and real estate executive Steve Witkoff bounce between global capitals, simultaneously working to end the war in Ukraine, cement a Gaza ceasefire, and broker a new deal with Iran.

The scene in Geneva recently captured this new reality perfectly. On the same day, the duo raced from Oman's consulate—where they discussed a nuclear deal with Iranian officials—to the Intercontinental Hotel Geneva for Ukraine war negotiations. Career diplomats learned about these discussions after the fact, if at all.

"Special Envoy Witkoff and Mr. Kushner regularly communicate with President Trump," White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly defended, adding that those who "complain to The Atlantic" aren't looped in because they "can't be trusted not to leak."

Middle Eastern officials describe a pattern: businessmen-turned-diplomats prefer quick wins but often lack the nuanced understanding that traditional brokers possess. It's diplomacy as deal-making, with all the efficiency—and blind spots—that entails.

Rubio's Impossible Job Description

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has become a meme for good reason. For the first time since Henry Kissinger, he serves as both secretary and acting national security adviser. His countless responsibilities shift with each crisis—from Venezuelan regime negotiations to whatever Trump needs handled that day.

Rubio spends more time at the White House than at Foggy Bottom, multiple sources confirm, positioning himself as indispensable to the president. This leaves the State Department's traditional culture—built on the belief that expertise accumulates over years in places like Ankara, Moscow, or Beijing—feeling obsolete.

"No one seems to be in the loop on anything, from policy decisions to personnel," a U.S. official in Asia told me. Career diplomats increasingly view their expertise as a liability, proof of association with what political appointees see as the "deep state."

Foreign Diplomats Navigate the Maze

Washington's foreign diplomatic community faces its own bewilderment. Ambassadors accustomed to regular contact with assistant secretaries report struggling to identify who's actually in the know. One ambassador called a National Security Council contact only to hear the number was out of service.

Embassies now navigate an opaque landscape of special envoys and informal intermediaries. When Donald Trump Jr. posted a photo of himself dining on McDonald's with his father, Elon Musk, and other officials captioned "Make America Healthy Again starts TOMORROW," countless foreign diplomats asked what it all meant.

The inversion is striking: allies increasingly rely less on official State Department meetings and more on back channels, cocktail parties, and—remarkably—journalists. At a recent off-the-record lunch for European officials, the visiting dignitaries pulled out notebooks to jot down reporters' insights rather than sharing their own.

The Lobbyist Gold Rush

Facing frozen official channels, foreign governments are paying premium prices for Trump-connected intermediaries. India retained Jason Miller's SHW Partners. Pakistan hired firms staffed by former Trump Organization executives. Even Japan enlisted GOP lobbying giant Ballard Partners for bilateral relations advice.

The irony is palpable: America's closest allies now pay lobbyists for access to their own ally's decision-making process.

The New Diplomatic Reality

Trump's approach represents a fundamental shift from institutional diplomacy to personality-driven deal-making. During recent bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, and New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, "there were zero career diplomats in the room," a U.S. official noted. "Not just sidelined—literally not present."

This setup fits the administration's broader intent to "marginalize senior career foreign-service folks and create conditions where they either accept irrelevance or retire," the official added.