Maryland's Reed Rubinstein confirmed as State Department adviser in Trump administration

Ben Mause, Baltimore Sun on May 13, 2025

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The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Reed D. Rubinstein of Maryland as the State Department’s senior adviser.

Rubinstein was confirmed in a party-line vote, 52-46. No Democrats supported his nomination. Sens. Cory Booker and Lindsey Graham did not vote.

This will be Rubinstein’s second time serving in Trump’s administration. During Trump’s first term, Rubinstein worked as a senior counselor in the Department of Agriculture, senior adviser of the Treasury Department, and general counsel of the Department of Education.

“The Department must champion core American interests and always put America and American citizens first,” Rubinstein wrote to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “To that end, it has been tasked with defending American sovereignty and protecting the rule of law by enforcing our immigration laws.”

Rubenstein pledged to support the administration’s policies of deporting immigrants and student visa holders “who violate our laws, who preach or call for sectarian violence, for overthrowing or replacing the culture on which our constitutional Republic stands, or who provide advocacy, aid, or support for foreign terrorists such as the bestial perpetrators of the October 7 atrocities,” Rubinstein wrote in a statement to the Foreign Relations Committee.

Both Maryland Democratic senators opposed the nomination.

“The last thing we need as State Department legal adviser is someone who, in addition to having little to no foreign policy experience, has trafficked in conspiracy theories about the previous administration and maligned our teachers,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, told The Sun in a statement.

Sen. Angela Alsobrooks called Rubinstein a conspiracy theorist who “is wholly unqualified to offer sage counsel and do the actual job,” she said in a statement. “At a time when the United States is dealing with multiple international crises, this is a dangerous and unproductive appointment.”

Many of President Donald Trump’s appointees have experienced tense exchanges during the confirmation process. Rubinstein was no different.

During the Foreign Relations committee hearing to consider his nomination, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the committee’s ranking Democrat, asked Rubinstein if he would advise department officials to uphold federal laws should he be confirmed.

Rubinstein was silent for several seconds. Then he repeated the question back to Shaheen.

“It doesn’t seem like a difficult question,” Shaheen said. Rubinstein chuckled before saying he committed to applying the law internally at the department and seeking outside counsel on more complex issues.

“The law is a conversation,” Rubinstein said, adding that it gets into “a grey area” when it comes to separations of powers between the executive and legislative branches. “Often, there isn’t an absolutely clear answer.”

“Well, I will take that as a ‘no,’ actually,” Shaheen responded.

The pair also sparred over one of Rubinstein’s previous social media posts that claimed that President Joe Biden’s administration attempted to overthrow the Israeli government: “Do you really believe that?” Shaheen said.

Rubinstein, who is Jewish, cited a Senate report released regarding activity during President Barack Obama’s administration and emails he had obtained via Freedom of Information requests. Shaheen shot back, saying that she “had heard these conspiracy theories before.”

As senior adviser, Rubinstein will advise Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump on the legality of their policy decisions. He will oversee roughly 300 State Department attorneys and staff.

Rubinstein currently serves as the senior vice president of the America First Legal Foundation. The group was co-founded by Stephen Miller, Trump’s deputy chief of staff. Miller has been integral in developing Trump’s immigration policies and mandates.

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