TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday defended the controversial appointment of Darren Beattie as acting undersecretary for public diplomacy and public affairs, despite his inflammatory remarks against Taiwan, women, and minorities.
Rubio declined to respond when asked if he had seen Beattie’s statements on X. He said the focus of Beattie’s role, which traditionally steers the country’s global messaging, would be eliminating censorship in the State Department, per Reuters.
Rubio said, "He's someone who was brought on board because he's strongly committed to ending the censorship programs that were being operated out of the State Department.” Rubio did not clarify what he meant by such censorship programs.
Beattie’s views on China notably clash and contradict those of Rubio, his new boss. Beattie wrote on X in May, “Taiwan will inevitably belong to China, it's only a matter of time.” He said it was “not worth expending any capital to prevent,” adding a deal with China could be made over Taiwan in exchange for concessions on Africa and Antarctica.
"Personnel is policy,” Hudson Institute senior fellow Michael Sobolik told Newsweek. “Based on Darren Beattie's past positions, his appointment at the State Department's public affairs bureau essentially gives the Chinese Communist Party a bullhorn.”
German politician and former EU member Reinhard Butikofer asked, “What weight is Secretary Rubio going to have in US foreign policymaking if he can be forced to accept an appointment like the one of Darren J. Beattie?”
The Washington Post foreign policy columnist Josh Rogin added, “Rubio stood against the Uyghur genocide. His new acting public diplomacy chief is a Uyghur genocide denier. Does Secretary Rubio run his own State Department? It sure doesn't seem like it so far.”
A petition on Change.org called for Rubio to oppose Beattie's appointment, as his statements “have demonstrated a pattern of underestimating and misinterpreting the complexities of the PRC.” “Notably, he has made disparaging remarks about Taiwan and the Uyghur community, reflecting a lack of understanding of Eastern politics,” it added. The authors said Beattie jeopardizes US strategy toward China and risks alienating Taiwan.
Beattie was fired as a speechwriter for Trump during his first term after it was reported that he spoke at a white nationalist conference in 2018. He has a history of disparaging comments against women and minorities, saying “white men must be in charge if you want things to work."
It is unclear whether Beattie will serve permanently, which would require Senate confirmation.
