American Foreign Service Association calls on State Dept to rehire fired feds

• The State Department is opening up applications for its Lateral Entry Pilot Program, which is seeking to hire mid-career employees for the Foreign Service. The American Foreign Service Association said State has more than 2,000 qualified people waiting to be hired. AFSA said that is the number of employees from the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Foreign Service whom State fired in 2025. The association said State should offer these officers a path back at grades that recognize their experience and prior service, without unnecessary entrance exams. AFSA also said Congress can help by passing the PATH to the Foreign Service Act and the Foreign Service Test-Free Reentry Act. -- Jason Miller
• The Pentagon is cutting huge checks for civilians who do well at work. A Pentagon official said more than 90,000 civilians have cashed in on the department's new bonuses so far. Those awards have averaged more than $13,000 per person. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth authorized the money last December to motivate and retain outstanding staff amid massive cuts to the federal workforce. The goal is to reward the Pentagon's top 15% of civilian workers with tips worth 15% to 25% of their base pay. That number is capped at 25,000. -- Rachel Cohen
• The Space Force has activated its special operations component command. “While space capabilities are already integrated into U.S. Special Operations Command missions, this activation institutionalizes how the Space Force organizes, trains, equips and presents forces for the special operations enterprise,” the service said in a statement. Space Force Col. Peter Norsky will lead the new command. The Space Force activated the command on Oct. 7. A formal activation ceremony will take place at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida on Nov. 2. --Anastasia Obis
• The Department of Veterans Affairs is once again sunsetting a collective bargaining agreement. VA has revised internal guidance to say its agreement with the American Federation of Government Employees “no longer applies.” The update comes after a federal appeals court earlier this month stayed an order that had been upholding the contract. AFGE, however, said that because the initial court injunction still stands, VA does not have permission to re-terminate the contract. AFGE represents more than 320,000 VA workers. --Drew Friedman
• The U.S. Postal Service is planning for increased oversight and security for mail-in ballots ahead of the midterm election. USPS said it has used the last five years to implement changes. Board of Governors Chairwoman Amber McReynolds said the new Strategic Government Services Committee will help track operational and performance metrics. The election planning comes as USPS and its partners are investigating an unknown substance sent to election officials. -- Silvia Oakland
• The Federal Chief Information Security Officers Council is gearing up for its second annual cyber exercise. The council will get together in early November to test how they respond to cyber incidents. Mike Duffy, the acting federal CISO, said this year, the focus will be on surviving artificial intelligence-fueled attacks. "All the CISOs at the CISO Council come together with their SOC directors to have a conversation about how the enterprise, the federal enterprise, ensures that we have the capabilities, the processes, the people we need to respond to anything that comes our way." -- Jason Miller
• A federal watchdog is urging defense leaders to work together to define responsible artificial intelligence. The Pentagon created a team to discuss those issues, but staffing shortages have slowed its progress. The Responsible AI Working Council meets infrequently and doesn't have any formal roles or responsibilities. The Government Accountability Office said a charter would make the council more helpful. It also recommends ensuring that the Responsible AI Division has the workforce it needs. The watchdog said Congress can push the Pentagon to strengthen its AI oversight as well. --Rachel Cohen
• The Trump administration has been quietly hiring some political appointees. Agencies have so far onboarded at least 25 Schedule G recruits, with the earliest dating back to last August. The Partnership for Public Service said in a new analysis that there’s been limited transparency and virtually no public information on the appointees. -- Drew Friedman
• The Partnership for Public Service wants to hear from federal employees. The good-government group's annual Public Service Viewpoint Survey is now open. The group said the survey is trying to measure everything from employee morale to personal engagement to satisfaction with jobs, managers and their overall workplace. It says survey results will help Congress, policymakers and the public better understand the current state of the federal workplace. The survey is open until Dec. 4 and is confidential. -- Silvia Oakland
• The Army is expanding its newly established Space Operations Branch as the service looks to grow its space capabilities to support ground operations and counter adversary systems. The service stood up the space branch in June, formalizing the career paths of the Army's growing cadre of space professionals. Earlier this month, more than 600 soldiers reclassified to the new 40D Tactical Space Operations Specialists, establishing the organization’s first permanent enlisted force. Lt. Gen. John Rafferty, commander of Space and Missile Defense Command, said the goal is to have “a couple of thousand dedicated folks within the branch between the enlisted and the officer side.” -- Anastasia Obis

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