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President Trump shared on Monday that he is considering Ric Grenell as the United Nations ambassador and also revealed his plans for his first foreign trip in his second term, which includes visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.
He decided to withdraw the nomination of Rep. Elise Stefanik for the role due to concerns about her seat in upstate New York potentially being lost to Democrats in a special election.
During a press briefing at the Oval Office, Trump mentioned that there have been inquiries about the UN ambassador position from various individuals, naming David Friedman, Ric Grenell, and approximately 30 others as potential candidates.
“Everyone loves that position. That’s a star-making position. And so we’ll see what happens.”
Grenell claimed last week to Newsmax that he was a “hard no” on seeking the job.
“This is not something that I want to do. I’ve got plenty to do,” said Grenell, who served as ambassador to Germany during Trump’s first term, using that post to force the suspension of construction on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea.
Grenell, who currently holds an amorphous portfolio as Trump’s envoy for special missions, is known for aggressively backing Trump and bashing his political enemies.
In Trump’s first term he also brokered a diplomatic deal between Serbia and Kosovo and became America’s first openly gay cabinet-level official as acting director of national intelligence.
Since Trump reclaimed power, Grenell has served as executive director of the Kennedy Center in Washington and as the president’s point person for rebuilding wildfire-ravaged Los Angeles and on negotiating a prisoner release with Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro.
Trump’s upcoming trip to the Middle East could happen as soon as May, he said, and will feature a stop in Saudi Arabia in recognition of “close to $1 trillion” in recent investment pledges by the country in the US. He said Qatar, the UAE and potentially other countries would be included as destinations.