Adam Kredo of the Washington Free Beacon reports on the lucrative nature of diversity, equity, and inclusion work in a top federal government department.
The Biden-Harris State Department’s top DEI officials pull in nearly $200,000 annually in taxpayer-funded salaries, according to financial disclosures, putting them among the highest-paid American diplomats.
Constance Mayer, who served as the acting chief Diversity and Inclusion officer until April of this year, raked in $194,510 annually, according to financial disclosures published by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The State Department’s Special Representative for Racial Justice and Equity, Desiree Cormier Smith, makes $191,900 each year, the disclosures show.
The officials draw far more than the average State Department employee, who makes around $100,000 or less, depending on post and tenure. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the country’s top diplomat, only makes slightly more, pulling in around $221,000 annually, though he is reportedly sitting on a “$10 million fortune” driven by his past work as a corporate consultant.
The financial disclosures provide a window into the Biden-Harris administration’s push to emphasize what critics label “woke” priorities in the federal government. The State Department is leading these efforts internationally, reportedly pumping more than $80 million into a litany of programs meant to advance “racial equity” and prevent “gender and sexuality discrimination” abroad. Blinken formed the department’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion in February 2021, shortly after a White House order instructed the entire federal government to ramp up DEI initiatives.
He also created the racial equity envoy position, which maintains a staff and office. Cormier Smith was appointed to the role in 2022 after working as a senior policy advisor for liberal billionaire George Soros’s Open Society Foundations. Financial disclosures indicate her spouse pulls in more than $230,000 annually at Freddie Mac, the federal mortgage company.
