Floridians urge Biden to pick former Congressman Robert Wexler as U.S. ambassador to Israel
Sun Sentinel 4 hrs ago Anthony Man, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
From Tel Aviv to Washington, D.C., political insiders have been speculating for months who President Joe Biden would pick as U.S. ambassador to Israel and the speculation has extended to Florida.
The high-profile and sensitive post is even more important given the current heightened hostilities between Israel and the Palestinians.
One possible pick for ambassador: former South Florida Congressman Robert Wexler, who was one of Israel’s most prominent supporters during his time in the House.
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A federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., has begun issuing subpoenas in a criminal investigation into the nomination of San Diego developer Douglas F. Manchester as ambassador to the Bahamas by former President Donald Trump.
The case appears to focus on the Republican National Committee and its two senior leaders, and possibly members of Congress.
Manchester, a well-known contributor to the Republican Party and to GOP elected officials and candidates, was nominated to become the U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas in May 2017, just months into the Trump administration.
But the nomination stalled in the U.S. Senate, prompting Trump to re-nominate Manchester to the post early in 2018. That nomination also was held up from Senate approval. Manchester withdrew his nomination in October 2019, saying that he was removing his name from consideration due to threats to his family.
The lack of hard data is a point of confusion for lawmakers and advocates.
An official with the American Foreign Service Association said that the organization sought data in June 2020 from the State Department broken down by gender, ethnicity and other criteria to evaluate whether certain groups were suffering disproportionately, but only received some general information.
CNN reported that it had obtained a sensitive-but-unclassified 2018 letter to House lawmakers that said restrictions had affected 166 employees in 2015, 168 in 2016 and 307 in 2017.
Lieu, during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing in March, pressed Blinken to provide data, including a breakdown of those restricted by race and ethnicity, but has yet to receive any response.
May 8, 2021 Share
President Joe Biden is facing a fresh challenge to his oft-repeated commitment to diversity in his administration: assembling a diplomatic corps that gives a nod to key political allies and donors while staying true to a campaign pledge to appoint ambassadors who look like America.
More than three months into his administration, Biden has put forward just 11 ambassador nominations and has more than 80 such slots to fill around the globe. Administration officials this week signaled that Biden is ready to ramp up ambassador nominations as the president prepares for foreign travel and turns greater attention to global efforts to fight the coronavirus.