A U.S. State Department foreign service officer has been fired after being caught on hidden camera admitting to a secret romantic relationship with the daughter of a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) affiliate—a connection he failed to disclose to U.S. security officials, according to statements released Wednesday.
The officer, identified as Daniel Choi, was terminated following an internal review ordered by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and approved by President Donald Trump, the department confirmed.
The decision came after footage surfaced from an O’Keefe Media Group (OMG) undercover investigation in which Choi acknowledged that his girlfriend’s father was “straight-up Communist Party” and that she “could have been a spy.”
“I defied my government for love,” Choi said in the secretly recorded video published by OMG, in which he discussed knowingly concealing the relationship from State Department officials despite being required to report any close personal contact with foreign nationals.
A State Department spokesperson told reporters that, to their knowledge, this is the first time an officer has been terminated under the authority granted by Executive Order 14211, which President Trump signed earlier this year to strengthen accountability within the diplomatic corps.
The order states that “all officers or employees charged with implementing the foreign policy of the United States must, under Article II, do so under the direction and authority of the President,” adding that “failure to faithfully implement the President’s policy is grounds for professional discipline, including separation.”
In a statement announcing the dismissal, the department said:
“The Foreign Service Officer admitted to concealing a romantic relationship with a Chinese national, whom he said on camera ‘could have been a spy.’ He also said that her father was ‘straight-up Communist Party.’ The officer was required to report this contact to Department security officials, but said, ‘I defied my government for love.’ Accordingly, the Secretary recommended that the officer be separated for failing to faithfully implement the President’s foreign policy.”
