Gay Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell Embarrasses U.S., Himself

Before he was confirmed, senators were concerned Grenell would cause an international incident. It didn't take long for their fears to be realized.

Neal Broverman

Neal Broverman is the Editorial Director, Print of Pride Media, publishers of The Advocate, Out, Out Traveler, and Plus, spending more than 20 years in journalism. He indulges his interest in transportation and urban planning with regular contributions to Los Angeles magazine, and his work has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times and USA Today. He lives in the City of Angels with his husband, children, and their chiweenie.

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Neal Broverman

May 09 2018 2:36 PM EST

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Gay Republican Richard Grenell is not off to a great start as the newly-installed U.S. ambassador to Germany -- a tweet he sent out on Tuesday "offend[ed] his hosts," according to the Washington Post.

Responding to President Trump's widely-derided decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear pact and again impose sanctions on the Middle Eastern country, Grenell chimed in with a tweet.

The Post said that many German politicians and business leaders viewed Grenell's tweet as a "threat" and quoted several people who took umbrage with Grenell's caustic and bossy tone.

"It's not my task to teach people about the fine art of diplomacy, especially not the U.S. ambassador. But he does appear to need some tutoring," Andrea Nahles, the leader of Germany's mainstream Social Democratic party, told the Post.

Grenell stood by his tweet, saying it was reflective of his boss's policies. That may be true, but it did nothing to warm the chilled relations between the U.S. and Germany; Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Trump are not known as seeing eye to eye on many issues, including Iran.

Considering his habit of insulting female politicians via tweet, Grenell -- a former spokesman for George W. Bush's ambassador to the United Nations, as well as 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney -- was seen by Democrats as a bad choice for a U.S. ambassador, especially since he'd be working with a country led by a woman.