American cities and states are laboratories of innovation and democracy. In an increasingly globalized world, they also help redefine how we think about U.S. diplomacy.
The COVID-19 pandemic showed that local governments — city, state, county — are at the center of addressing complex global threats that ignore national borders. Our communities face other challenges, from terrorism to climate change, that require innovation and global collaboration. That collaboration that should begin at home.
U.S. Reps. Ted Lieu, Gregory Meeks and Joe Wilson and U.S. Sens. Chris Murphy and John Cornyn introduced legislation to establish a permanent Office of City and State Diplomacy within the State Department. The office would create ties between the State Department and mayors and governors engaged internationally. Congress should pass the City and State Diplomacy Act to strengthen coordination among all levels of government on U.S. foreign policy priorities.
A recent report by the Truman Center recommends ways for the State Department to connect and coordinate with local governments and for local governments to build their capacity for diplomacy. Congressional delegations across the Midwest should support this initiative. Strong international relationships are key to the revival and future growth of Midwestern communities.
A stronger U.S. foreign policy is one that draws on the diverse talents of our nation, including local leaders from a variety of demographic, geographic and socioeconomic backgrounds. To endure, U.S. foreign policy should represent the interests of all Americans. This means it should be built beyond Washington by engaging citizens and their elected officials from Cincinnati and Chicago to Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
Connecting Midwestern urban and rural communities and state and local officials with State Department personnel deepens understanding of U.S. foreign policy by demonstrating how American global leadership benefits American communities. Strategic investments to build our diplomacy from the bottom up increases political, economic and cultural opportunities for communities such as Gary and Albion, Michigan, while decreasing threats to our security.
Mayors and governors already represent their localities in multinational policy networks, international trade forums and cultural exchange programs. Nearly 100 Midwestern mayors are members of the bipartisan Climate Mayors network upholding the Paris climate accord through climate policy. Chicago and Pittsburgh are building and investing in urban resilience as part of the continent-spanning Resilient Cities Network. One of the busiest international crossings in North America, Detroit’s Ambassador Bridge, is in the Midwest. The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative boasts more than 120 cities on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border leveraging freshwater resources for economic renewal. Even smaller communities such as Rockford and Troy, Michigan, are engaging the world by participating in global markets and welcoming immigrant talent. American cities and states are engaging with their counterparts around the world because it adds value to the lives of their populations through trade and investment, job creation, foreign students and international tourism.
In the process, state and local leaders have developed new expertise and shared their own lessons learned with communities overseas experiencing similar challenges. Cities such as Detroit and Indianapolis have a long history of global innovation and economic leadership. Mayors and governors are first responders to national security priorities such as COVID-19, countering violent extremism, building democratic resilience and integrating refugees into their host communities. Midwestern leaders can bring local ingenuity to global issues. It makes sense for the State Department to work alongside city and state officials to clarify the benefits, motives and risks of international exchange and support those efforts. Right now, each municipality is on its own.
Los Angeles, New York, Houston and Atlanta have full-time international affairs staffs. But many Midwestern communities have yet to prioritize a dedicated team or strategy for international engagement. An Office of City and State Diplomacy would strengthen the capacity of city and local governments, large and small, to build their bandwidth and connections, and amplify the benefits for their communities.
People, ideas and goods travel rapidly through interconnected transportation, communication technologies and the global economy. Contemporary security threats disregard national boundaries. Foreign ministries across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas have departments to support subnational diplomacy by assigning personnel to local communities and offering significant funding to boost international engagement and exchange. The federal government must similarly value and support this kind of diplomacy just to keep pace with our global competitors.
Broad bipartisan support for an Office of City and State Diplomacy is preferable to executive action. It would create a permanent, more institutionalized, representative and legitimate office that is appropriately funded — all of which will add to its effectiveness. But if Congress fails to act, the administration must. The potential return on investment for American diplomacy and Midwestern communities is just too high.
If we truly believe that all politics are local, then our foreign policy should be as well.
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ABOUT THE WRITER
Carrie Booth Walling is a security fellow with the Truman National Security Project and served on the Truman Center’s City and State Diplomacy Task Force. Walling is a political science professor and the faculty director of the Gerald R. Ford Institute for Public Service at Albion College.
