Orna Blum

Public service is not about comfort. Sometimes courage means choosing principle over protocol — and trusting that the oath still matters.

The statement we issued helped give other embassies confidence to do the same.

We chose to speak plainly — affirming the Constitution, condemning violence, and stating ground truth. Our oath is to the rule of law, not to silence.

After Congress reconvened and certified the vote in the early hours of January 7, our embassy realized we could not wait any longer.

That day, State Department leadership offered no guidance. Embassies were not authorized to affirm the election results or explain events to our partners.

That day, State Department leadership offered no guidance. Embassies were not authorized to affirm the election results or explain events to our partners.

I was Public Affairs Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá. Host governments and journalists urgently asked what was happening in the United States — and whether American democracy would hold.

On January 6, 2021, U.S. diplomats around the world watched in disbelief as a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol and attempted to halt the peaceful transfer of power.

Five years ago today, I was serving overseas as a U.S. diplomat. This is what January 6 looked like from outside the United States. 🧵

Thank you to the NYT for giving me this voice, and for shining a spotlight on the critical work of public diplomacy in our national security. I hope more former federal workers will lend their voices to the public policy discussions.

The Landau Leap Once upon a time, not long ago, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau was a Harvard Law grad and former Scalia clerk who became a D.C. legal bigwig and then ambassador to Mexico. So how did he ...

Why did the Deputy Secretary of State go to meet the Afrikaner immigrants wearing the colors of the apartheid flag?

My latest.

puck.news/the-reinvent...

Coming to screens in Sept:
This is Spinal Tap: The End Continues.

The End Continues might be a punchline, but it’s also a mood—a reminder that nothing really ends & we’re all just improvising our way through the chaos.

Here’s to Nigel Tufnel and turning it up to 11 in the best way.

#foreignservice #publicdiplomacy #newbeginnings #democracy #culture #ontyranny #storytelling #globalvoices

I believe this kind of work — fostering human connection, inspiring creativity, and supporting civil society and independent voices — is more vital than ever. And that’s the path I’m choosing now. I’m excited for the journey ahead. /end 🧵

…Lin-Manuel Miranda weaving joyous and insightful stories that appeal to audiences worldwide
…Wangari Maathai planting trees and mobilizing a grassroots movement for democracy, women’s rights, and environmental stewardship…

…Jazz ambassador Louis Armstrong performing behind the “Iron Curtain
…Author, poet, and playwright Vaclav Havel leading the Velvet Revolution
…Bono singing at Live Aid and influencing world leaders to fight AIDS
…Actress Geena Davis raising awareness of the portrayal of women and girls in media…

But as a public diplomacy practitioner, I also learned the vital importance of fostering people-to-people connections across communities, cultures, and nations. So many inspiring “influencers” did not start in politics:

I was a student of authoritarianism since my college years, and through my work spent decades learning from women and men who had grown up under it. One lesson haunted me: I had been warned by a Bosnian friend in 1997, “Do not think it cannot happen here, in America.”

Simply put, it was a deeply personal decision. I know that Executive Orders are simply instructions to federal employees, and cannot override the Constitution. And I was not willing to obey in advance what I saw as directives undermining our democracy.

Indeed, I served in Democratic and Republican administrations, under five Presidents and 10 Secretaries of State. I worked through many policy shifts, including some I did not support.

So why step away?

Why I Left the State Department 🧵

I have been asked by many why I made the decision, as a Senior Foreign Service Officer, to leave the State Department. After all, now is when we need career nonpartisan experts more than ever.

This was one of my son’s favorite books as a child. @toddparr.bsky.social

Feathered friends aren’t the only ones who eat the birdseed.

and: “…downtown Derry looked only marginally more charming than a dead hooker in a church pew.” LOL

First read of 2025: 11/22/63 by @stephenking.bsky.social Best line so far, in voice of narrator, Jake Epping, a time-traveling English teacher: “…one of the men dropping his cigarette butt onto the sidewalk and then putting it out with a snot-loogie the size of a small mussel…”

Huge gratitude for our neighbors, Mexico and Canada have sent fire fighters and army to help us.

First post. Good morning!

Biden Visits Amazon, Vowing Help to Fight Climate Change The president toured the rainforest and promised Brazil funds for environmental initiatives, even as the incoming Trump administration appears poised to roll them back.

President Biden pledged new financial help to protect the Amazon, the planet’s largest tropical rainforest, during a visit to Brazil on Sunday, making one final push to combat climate change before President-elect Donald Trump returns to power in January.