Speechwriter fired in first Trump term for attending white nationalists rally handed State Department job
Speechwriter fired in first Trump term for attending white nationalists rally handed State Department job
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Former speechwriter will serve as the acting under secretary for public diplomacy, one of the top ten positions in the State Department. The Trump administration is reportedly expected to tap a conservative media figure and former speechwriter, who was fired for attending a conference with ties to white nationalists in 2018, for one of the top jobs within the State Department. At the time, Beattie defended his appearance at the conference claiming he said “nothing objectionable”.
![[Revolver’s website sells t-shirts which claim that Jan 6 was an “FBI setup to frame Trump supporters as insurrectionists.”]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/09/21/Capitol_Riot_Fugitive_Arrested_44643.jpg)
The under secretary for public diplomacy leads the State Department’s efforts to “expand and strengthen the relationships between the people of the United States and citizens of other countries”, according to the State Department’s website. It is one of the top ten jobs within the department. The Independent has asked the White House for comment. Beattie was already serving in a senior position at the State Department, according to ABC News. But serving as under secretary for public diplomacy elevates his position and power within the department.
After being fired as a speechwriter in 2018, Beattie worked for former representative Matt Gaetz. The Anti-Defamation League called his appointment at the time “outrageous” because his position would require him to preserve Holocaust memorials in Europe after he was affiliated with white nationalists by speaking at the conference in 2016. After the January 6 attack on the Capitol, Beattie promoted debunked claims that the government planted FBI agents in the crowd to incite others to storm the Capitol.
He even appeared on Donald Trump Jr’s podcast, where he repeated claims that the FBI knows who’s behind the pipe bombs left at DNC and RNC offices on Jan 6, but won’t release the information as it is “profoundly embarrassing to the government and to the narrative that the Biden regime wanted to promote.”. Revolver’s website still sells two shirts that read “It’s OK to deny 2020.” Another shirt says Jan 6 was an “FBI setup to frame Trump supporters as insurrectionists,” according to ABC.
