Ric Grenell is a rarity. He’s basically hated everywhere he goes. He was not popular as the United States Ambassador to Germany. As a matter of fact, there were those who wanted him expelled. Remember this?
Wolfgang Kubicki, deputy chairman of the Free Democratic Party, said Grenell repeatedly “interfering” with Germany’s sovereignty should be enough for Foreign Minister Heiko Maas to remove him, German broadcaster Deutsche Welle reported.
“Any U.S. diplomat who acts like a high commissioner of an occupying power must learn that our tolerance also knows its limits,” said Kubicki, who is also one of five deputy Speakers of Germany’s Parliament.
Kubicki’s comments come after Grenell called Germany’s spending on NATO insufficient earlier Tuesday.
I’m sure you recall that NATO not doing their share was one of Donald Trump’s key talking points. He didn’t know how NATO works, obviously Grenell doesn’t either.
And of course it got worse. Then Grenell was called an “ultra-rightwing sniper” when he got the surprise appointment as Acting Director Of National Intelligence.
As acting DNI, Grenell will oversee 17 intelligence agencies on an interim basis, including the National Security Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency. He will also serve on the National Security Council.
However, even stranger, Grenell will also stay in his current post as US ambassador to Germany. Oh, and he’ll stay in his other job — as special envoy in Kosovo-Serbia talks — as well.
On Thursday, Grenell clarified on Twitter that he will only be serving as DNI temporarily. “The President will announce the Nominee (not me) sometime soon,” he tweeted.
But even if it’s temporary, the question remains: How, exactly, does one oversee America’s 17 intelligence agencies while sitting in an embassy in Berlin over 4,000 miles away from Washington, DC? Or, if the other way around, how does one act as an effective ambassador to Germany while being 4,000 miles away in Washington?
John Koenig, who previously served as US ambassador to Cyprus, told Politico that Grenell’s dual role as ambassador and acting DNI isn’t “realistic at all.”
But now reality is actually being served, so I guess that’s progress. Grenell heads up Trump’s “Make America Great Again, Again” PAC and now he’s got a key role on his propaganda organ, Newsmax. This is what people in Trump world end up doing. They’re basically unemployable, so they seek out Fox, OAN, Newsmax and/or they write books. Or they sell inspirational digital artwork that you can buy with cryptocurrency and that’s Melania’s new grift.
But getting back to Grenell, he’s playing more roles than Bottom ever dreamt of playing in Midsummer Night’s Dream. Actually, Bottom is the perfect nickname for Grenell, but if I use it he’ll likely take it as a gay slur because I’m sure he’s too illiterate to know it’s an allusion to Shakespeare. It will be our little in joke here on PZ.
According to Newsmax’s press announcement, Grenell will serve as a “national security contributor” as well as vice president for international development. The network said that Grenell will “work to expand the Newsmax brand internationally” in his executive role.
“Ric Grenell is a master of politics, media and government and we believe our viewers will gain great insight from his broad experience and public service,” Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy said in a statement.
“I am honored to join Newsmax as a National Security Contributor and also to spearhead their international partnerships,” Grenell added.
Grenell served as ambassador to Germany from Sept. 2017 through June 2020 under former President Trump. The loyal Trump aide was later installed as acting DNI in Feb. 2020, replacing Joseph Maguire. Grenell served in the role until May of that year, when former Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) was confirmed to take the post.
Outside his time working for the Trump administration and Fox News, Grenell is known for his acerbic presence on social media, regularly getting into Twitter fights and taking aim at the “fake news” and liberal pundits. He’s also faced backlash over his “snarky” tweets commenting on the personal appearances of female politicians and journalists.
Newsmax has recently undergone a minor makeover, after its ratings collapsed in 2021 following a brief post-election surge. The company hired two longtime Fox News producers in October to reshape its newsroom and brought on ex-Fox News reporter James Rosen, who was accused of sexual misconduct at Fox after his exit, as its new chief White House correspondent earlier this month.
Newsmax found the anti-vaxxer and the crazy lady talking about satanic bioluminescence a bit rich for their tastes but now they’ve got Grenell and everything should be fine. Newsmax, whether they know it or not, has acquired Bottom and they may find themselves hitting bottom, too.
Who ever thought they were committed to objectivity in the first place? These people want validation. Validation of their petty grievances, their hatred, and every meaningless thought in their tiny brains. They want to be spoon-fed what they believe because otherwise they’d have to think for themselves and I imagine they can no longer do that.