Overview

• On July 25, the U.S. Institute of Peace board reconstituted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth named Darren Beattie as acting president
• Beattie continues to serve as Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs months after Rubio characterized his February appointment as temporary
• Beattie was fired in 2018 for speaking at a white-nationalist conference and later founded Revolver News, where he promoted conspiracy theories and eugenics-style policies
• Institute staff and former president George Moose sued over the board overhaul and mass firings, and a federal appeals court recently lifted a block on the administration’s control pending a full hearing
• Critics including the Anti-Defamation League warn that elevating an official with extremist ties undermines U.S. public-diplomacy credibility abroad