UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA _________________________________________ ) GUSTAVO GARCIA, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Case No. 1:18-cv-01822 (APM) ) MICHAEL POMPEO, et al., ) ) Defendants. ) _________________________________________ ) MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER I. Plaintiff Gustavo Garcia is a dual citizen of the United States and Mexico who resides in Mexico. Over the course of several years, Plaintiff tried unsuccessfully to obtain employment with the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City. He came close in 2010, when he was conditionally hired for a position at the Embassy but was later denied a security certification, prompting his offer to be rescinded. Since then, Plaintiff has applied for various positions but without success. Plaintiff, on behalf of himself and others similarly situated, now sues the State Department, the Secretary of State, and the Attorney General, bringing a host of claims under Title VII, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the Constitution. This case is before the court on Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss and for Summary Judgment. For the reasons explained below, the court grants in part and denies in part Defendants’ Motion. II. Plaintiff is an attorney who lives and works in Mexico City, Mexico. First Am. Compl., ECF No. 4 [hereinafter FAC], ¶ 44. In January 2010, two Legal Assistant Resident Legal Advisor positions opened at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City in the Department of Justice Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Training, and Assistance. Id. ¶¶ 45–46. Plaintiff applied for the positions. Id. ¶ 47. Plaintiff interviewed for one of the positions and, in April 2010, received a conditional offer of employment. Id. ¶¶ 48–50. Plaintiff was informed that his employment was contingent upon being granted a security clearance or security certification. See Defs.’ Statement of Material Facts, ECF No. 15-2 [hereinafter Statement of Facts], ¶ 1 (stating that Plaintiff’s offer of employment was conditioned on him being granted a security certification); Pl.’s Resp. to Statement of Facts [hereinafter Pl.’s Resp. to Facts], ECF No. 19, ¶ 1 (stating that Plaintiff’s offer was conditioned on him being granted a security clearance). A security certification involves a less rigorous background review than a security clearance. See Defs.’ Mot. to Dismiss and for Summ. J., ECF No. 15 [hereinafter Defs.’ Mot.], Ex. 17, Dep. of Timothy Haley, ECF No. 15-19 [hereinafter Haley Dep.], at 46–51. Shortly thereafter, Plaintiff was notified that his conditional offer of employment was withdrawn because he failed to obtain a security certification or clearance. Statement of Facts ¶ 2; Pl.’s Resp. to Facts ¶ 2. Later that year, the Plaintiff reapplied to the same position when it was reposted but was not selected. FAC ¶¶ 57–59. He also applied for other employment with the U.S. government in late 2010 and 2011 but again was unsuccessful. Id. ¶¶ 60–65. In mid-October 2012, Plaintiff received responsive information from a Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act request he made for records about himself. Id. ¶ 66. According to Plaintiff, “[t]he released records revealed that the [Embassy ...
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