Continuing his pattern of selecting unqualified loyalists for prestigious jobs, President-elect Donald Trump announced on November 20 that he will name former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker as U.S. ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

In a written statement, Trump described Whitaker as “a strong warrior and loyal Patriot, who will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended. Matt will strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability – He will put AMERICA FIRST.”

Whitaker has no foreign policy or diplomatic background. He served as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Iowa during George W. Bush’s presidency, and held several roles in the Justice Department during the Trump administration. For several months after the 2018 general election, Whitaker served (unconstitutionally) as acting U.S. attorney general. The New York Times reported in 2020 that during that period, Whitaker blocked a probe of “a state-owned Turkish bank suspected of violating U.S. sanctions law by funneling billions of dollars of gold and cash to Iran.”

Since leaving the federal government, Whitaker has frequently appeared on cable television and spoken to conservative audiences. He also published a “thin excuse for a book” called Above the Law: The Inside Story of How the Justice Department Tried to Subvert President Trump. He was briefly associated with a law firm and a consulting firm based in Kansas City. Then in 2020, the dark money group Freedom Works paid Whitaker $400,000 in “consulting fees,” apparently to lobby for pardons. Shortly before leaving office, Trump did issue some pardons or commutations sought by Whitaker and others.

Along with other Trump alumni, Whitaker became a founding board member of America First Legal, a group created in April 2021 to fight various Biden administration initiatives. He’s no longer listed on that organization’s website.

The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate is highly likely to confirm Whitaker. Despite his lack of qualifications to be NATO ambassador, he probably won’t make the top ten list of controversial Trump nominees.

Senator Joni Ernst congratulated her “dear friend” in a social media post on her political feed, saying Whitaker “will serve our country well as the ambassador to NATO in Brussels. I look forward to your work to support our partners, deter our adversaries, and restore President Trump’s peace through strength!”

Also on November 20, Ernst’s office released this photo of the senator with Whitaker and Vice President-elect JD Vance, apparently taken inside Trump’s airplane.

Friendship aside, a cushy job in Brussels takes Whitaker out of the picture for Iowa’s U.S. Senate race in 2026. That’s good news for Ernst, who has said she plans to seek a third term. There has been some speculation that Ernst might be vulnerable to a primary challenger from the right, especially if Trump endorsed her rival. Whitaker ran for Senate in 2014; Ernst won that primary by a wide margin, while Whitaker finished fourth of five candidates.

Ernst has been working hard to mend fences with Trump since being snubbed at the Republican National Convention. She campaigned for the former president and GOP Senate candidates around the country this fall, and went with Governor Kim Reynolds to Mar-a-Lago for election night, instead of celebrating with her constituents in Iowa.

Governor Kim Reynolds and Senator Joni Ernst at Trump’s victory party on November 5

Senator Chuck Grassley and Reynolds also posted their congratulations to Whitaker.

UPDATE: Trump said at a February 2024 rally that during his presidency, he had told a NATO member country that if they were not meeting their defense spending targets, he would not defend them against a Russian invasion.

“‘You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?’” Trump recounted saying. “‘No I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay. You gotta pay your bills.’”

Will Weissert reported for the Associated Press on the significance of Whitaker having no national security background.

 Retired Gen. Philip Breedlove, a former supreme allied commander of NATO, called the job of U.S. NATO ambassador “incredibly important” within the U.S. and NATO security framework, given their standing as the direct representative of U.S. presidents in decision-making among the Western military alliance.

“The bottom line is, they are looked to have the credibility of the president when they speak,” Breedlove said. 

U.S. NATO ambassadors often have extensive experience in the military or national security. Trump’s first-term NATO ambassador, former Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, did not, although she had been involved in foreign-policy issues in Congress. 

Breedlove said a security background wasn’t essential to the post, but being seen as having a direct line to the U.S. president was. 

“They need to be seen as actually representing what the president intends. To have the trust and confidence of the president, that’s what’s most important in that position.”

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Full statement released by the Trump/Vance transition team on November 20 (all incorrectly capitalized words were capitalized in the original).

I am pleased to announce that former Acting Attorney General, Matthew G. Whitaker, from the Great State of Iowa, will be the United States Ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Matt is a strong warrior and loyal Patriot, who will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended. Matt will strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability – He will put AMERICA FIRST.

I have full confidence in Matt’s ability to represent the United States with Strength, Integrity, and unwavering Dedication. I look forward to working closely with him as we continue to promote PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, Freedom, and Prosperity around the World.

Matt is also the former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa, and is a graduate of the University of Iowa with a B.A., MBA and J.D., where he played football, and received the Big Ten Medal of Honor.