DOJ says Rubio should have final say over Foreign Service board in latest bid to tighten executive powers

Published August 21, 2026 6:39pm ET



President Donald Trump‘s Secretary of State Marco Rubio should have the final say when U.S. diplomats and other Foreign Service employees appeal their firings or discipline, according to Justice Department legal guidance issued Friday.

The DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel concluded that an independent panel known as the Foreign Service Grievance Board cannot retain final authority to overrule the State Department in those cases. The board will continue to hear employee appeals, but its decisions in favor of an employee will become recommendations subject to either the president or the secretary of state’s final review, according to the opinion.

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