Top State Department official in charge of redesign leaving after 3 months


Just three months after he joined the State Department, charged with restructuring it, Maliz Beams has resigned, an official told Bloomberg on Monday.
Beams, counselor to the State Department, was brought in by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who wanted a complete overhaul of the department; critics, including some who work for the State Department, say this effort is one of the reasons it has been so difficult for top positions to be filled.
Beams plans on going back home to Boston and will be replaced by Tillerson's deputy chief of staff, Christine Ciccone, the official told Bloomberg. The official also said Tillerson is expected to ask Congress to fast-track approval of nominees for undersecretary for management and legal adviser.
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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