President-elect Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he will nominate MAGA hardliner and former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker to serve as the U.S. ambassador to NATO. Whitaker spent roughly three months leading the Justice Department during Trump’s first term, following the resignation of Jeff Sessions. He was a vocal critic of the Mueller investigation before Trump tapped him to temporarily lead the Justice Department. “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,” Trump said in a statement. A former tight end for the University of Iowa football team, Whitaker has been an aggressive media surrogate for Trump and has echoed the president-elect’s view that other NATO members don’t spend enough on defense, blaming European countries for spending money on “socialized medicine and other experiments.”
