Some State Department officials have complained about the dinners, saying they have little to do with diplomacy and will unduly burden the staff amid a pandemic.
They’ve been criticized by Democrats as a questionable use of taxpayer dollars, upset State Department employees skeptical of their diplomatic value, and postponed for months due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is bringing back the Madison Dinners anyway.
The gatherings are set to resume with a dinner Monday and at least three more during September and October, two State Department officials told POLITICO. Prior to the pandemic causing them to be shelved this past spring, roughly two dozen such dinners had been held since Pompeo became secretary of State in April 2018. Continue reading.