Donald Trump has recently announced the appointment of Mark Burnett as Special Envoy to Britain. Burnett, the producer and creator of Survivor, Shark Tank, and The Voice, is most famously connected to Trump for collaborating with him on the film The Apprentice, a reality show that portrayed Trump as being the model American billionaire.
Born in London, Burnett immigrated to the United States in 1982 and became a prominent figure in reality television, earning 13 Emmy Awards. While his career achievements in entertainment are notable, they do little to address concerns about his preparedness for a diplomatic position—where expertise and knowledge are critical for success.
Trump justified the appointment by stating, "With a distinguished career in television production and business, Mark brings a unique blend of diplomatic acumen and international recognition to this important role." However, a closer look at Burnett’s background reveals a lack of diplomatic or foreign policy expertise typically required for such a position—a departure from bureaucratic norms, where career diplomats and individuals with extensive experience are preferred. Instead, Trump highlighted Burnett’s global recognition and entertainment industry success as assets for fostering trade, investment, and cultural exchanges between the U.S. and the UK.
A Pattern of Unqualified Appointments
Burnett’s selection is just the latest in a series of controversial appointments by Trump’s administration. Among those who have already been appointed are Charles Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law’s father, chosen as ambassador to France; former NFL player Herschel Walker, named ambassador to the Bahamas; and Tilman Fertitta, the Houston Rockets owner, appointed ambassador to Italy. These selections have garnered attention for prioritizing loyalty and celebrity status leaving many to question the competence of these appointees in handling the complexities of international diplomacy.
Democratic Rep. Jim Himes posted on social media regarding Trump's appointments: “We are becoming the world’s first nuclear-armed reality television show.” Many like him argue that such appointments undermine the credibility of U.S. foreign relations, particularly during a time when skilled diplomacy is essential.
Interestingly, the position of special envoy is traditionally reserved for global challenges in politically sensitive regions, like the Middle East. Trump’s decision to assign Burnett to the UK, a close ally with a long-established relationship with the U.S., stands out as an unconventional choice. This move is part of a broader trend, as Trump has announced a series of special envoy positions to several top loyalists ahead of Inauguration Day, further highlighting his administration’s emphasis on loyalty. These nominations by Trump bypass traditional practices of selecting bureaucratic appointments, potentially undermining the effectiveness of government agencies dealing with international relationships and complicating the long-term credibility of U.S. diplomacy.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/21/us/politics/mark-burnett-special-envoy.htmlhttps://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3rqj5z1e5vo
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/trump-taps-apprentice-producer-mark-burnett-special-envoy-117022619
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/21/trump-appoints-mark-burnett-special-envoy-uk
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/21/trump-team-cabinet
https://apnews.com/article/trump-cabinet-media-personalities-1b9bc74e807f6a6b4b3b86028d967dbd
5 comments:
This trend of Trump appointing people based on his previous relationships with them, or just simply for celebrity status is dangerous. I think specifically for Burnett, his appointment is an expression of appreciation for embedding Trump as a billionaire model (whether you respect him or not). With Trump’s appointment not being merit-based, I feel like Trump is just appointing these people to function as pawns, and in times where Trump wants to control he can do whatever he wants (because the appointed people don’t know what they are doing). As this trend continues, I can only imagine the huge backlash that would happen when all of these appointees actually have to do their job.
It's quite interesting that Trump appointed people who were either family or rich - he seems to make sure that everyone working with him are similar in status or are extreme loyalists. In a twisted humor, the rich are being taxed less, yet the rich are also the ones in the government. I'm curious to see how Fertitta and Walker will turn out though, as they both have wealth - Trump has used money to control others, and we know that the checks and balances of our current government are getting weaker with each rule break, so what's to stop these billionaires and celebrities from ruining our country? They now have power, and with the wrong motives they have the possibilities to start wars with bad relations.
It is a worrying trend that trump has been appointing people based off their relationship and support of him. If I had to make a connection it seems to be like the political machines, although I am also pretty sure it is normal for presidents to award supporters with positions in their government. I feel that the main issue with trump is that he defies conventions in order to include allies into the government for example creating an unecessary envoy to our good ally britain and creating a whole new cabinet with its own beauracy to get rid of government beaucracy for his ally Musk. Its all extremely hypocritical and a little corrupt in my opinion.
Trump's justification that Burnett’s international recognition and TV background can somehow help with US - UK relations feels more like a PR move than a carefully considered diplomatic decision. This appointment, like others Trump has made, seems more about maintaining loyalty and media attention than about selecting someone qualified for the job. This probably also makes it hard for the U.S. to have a respected representation in international affairs. While loyalty isn’t unusual in politics, the trend Trump is currently keeping up undermines the professionalism and expertise needed for important roles such as those that are diplomatic roles.
Though the trend that everyone has mentioned is very clearly seen, I don't see much to be concerned about in this appointment, and I think people are generally overreacting to Trump's "appointment trend." Every president is going to appoint people who have a history of supporting them, so getting upset simply because Trump is appointing people he has worked with in the past or otherwise knows support him is silly. That said, the lack of merit could be problematic in several of his appointments so far, but I do not think this one really falls into this category. Sure, he doesn't have the exact credentials that someone in this position would typically have, but I think Trump's statement regarding Burnett's British fame and business experience is mostly valid.
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