New U.S. ambassador to Denmark

[dann]

Her predecessor Rufus Gifford was very popular in Denmark, but nobody seems to know what to expect from Trump’s newly nominated ambassador Carla Sands.
What might a Trump-appointed ambassador do differently?

 

[Darat]

One dreads to think, but you're a bunch of socialists so who cares?

 

[Doubt]

Well, google says she is a Trump economic adviser.

She is also a chiropractor.

Seems to be a political reward for support.

Mostly likely she will do very little and leave the work to the professionals, which would be a good thing.

Worst case is she really tries and does one or more very stupid things.

Is it bad that I saw her last name and started thinking that she could be a character in Game of Thrones?

 

[dann]

Is it bad that I saw her last name and started thinking that she could be a character in Game of Thrones?

She used to be an actress in the soap The Bold and the Beautiful ("Glamour" in Danish).

 

[Trebuchet]

Well, google says she is a Trump economic adviser.

She is also a chiropractor.

Seems to be a political reward for support.

Mostly likely she will do very little and leave the work to the professionals, which would be a good thing.

Worst case is she really tries and does one or more very stupid things.

Is it bad that I saw her last name and started thinking that she could be a character in Game of Thrones?

My bold. That's true for nearly all ambassadorial appointments by any president.

 

[KDLarsen]

My bold. That's true for nearly all ambassadorial appointments by any president.

Indeed, her predecessor Rufus Gifford's main contribution to the world of diplomacy was being financial manager of Obama's 2012 campaign.

 

[Craig4]

She knows there's like work and stuff to do as an ambassador right?

 

[fagin]

She's quite hot. I would.

 

[Doubt]

My bold. That's true for nearly all ambassadorial appointments by any president.

No, most are pros. See the wiki attached.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambassadors_of_the_United_States

 

[TragicMonkey]

War with Denmark in how many weeks?

 

[theprestige]

She knows there's like work and stuff to do as an ambassador right?

Is there, though? Appointing big campaign contributors to ambassadorships is a longstanding tradition in American politics. Once the underlying civil service apparatus is in place, there probably isn't that much for the ambassador herself to actually do. You're letting yourself get distracted from the real question.

 

[TragicMonkey]

Is there, though? Appointing big campaign contributors to ambassadorships is a longstanding tradition in American politics. Once the underlying civil service apparatus is in place, there probably isn't that much for the ambassador herself to actually do. You're letting yourself get distracted from the real question.

Indeed: can she use her influence as ambassador to get a fourth season of Dicte made?

 

[Hercules Rockefeller]

War with Denmark in how many weeks?

Meh. Trump will insist that he knows better than his generals, thus Sweden will be bombed.

 

[GodMark2]

Meh. Trump will insist that he knows better than his generals, thus Sweden will be bombed.

That happens every Friday, Saturday, Sunday.... actually every day the bars are open. Especially in winter.

 

[dann]

Is there, though? Appointing big campaign contributors to ambassadorships is a longstanding tradition in American politics. Once the underlying civil service apparatus is in place, there probably isn't that much for the ambassador herself to actually do. You're letting yourself get distracted from the real question.

Well, Rufus Gifford became a reality star on Danish TV during his time in office. I shook hands with this guy, mainly because he mistook me for somebody of importance: He was going to give a speech at my high school where I was standing at the exit, which was also the entrance, poised to leave as soon as he started speaking, so he thought that I was part of the welcoming committee. But if he actually managed to stop the Muhammad cartoons from being reprinted, then he did do one good thing as an ambassador.

 

[dann]

Indeed: can she use her influence as ambassador to get a fourth season of Dicte made?

Probably not. Apparently, you weren't bothered by the accents, unlike some of the critics!

 

[Trebuchet]

No, most are pros. See the wiki attached.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambassadors_of_the_United_States

That's because the political hacks get the "nice" countries that aren't too important and the pros get the rest.

 

[Darat]

My bold. That's true for nearly all ambassadorial appointments by any president.

Many years ago I saw a documentary that covered one such appointment.

 

[Foolmewunz]

Ambassador posts, other than maybe five to ten per country*, are given to moneyed donors and upper crust wannabe campaign sloggers. Obama's appointees were pretty much vetted through the DNC's list of who we owe favors to. This has been going on for hundreds of years. With electronic communication, the ambassador's post is superfluous but it gives the host country someone to invite for ribbon-cutting ceremonies.

*This differs depending on what country you're in. The list of important embassies would be: your closest neighbors, G8 and megapowers, the places you want to do a lot of business with.

All the rest are paid vacations. To the host countries, it's different, particularly in a backwater like Thailand. They actually think the US Ambassador is someone important on the world stage. Plus, he's particularly useful to have someone to rally against when you need to stage a "spontaneous" demonstration.

 

[Arcade22]

Does this thing ever happened in other countries? That is the appointment of donors and other supporters, with little to no experience, to diplomatic postings as a form of political patronage and favoritism?