FILE PHOTO: Richard Grenell U.S. Ambassador to Germany attends the “Rally for Equal Rights at the United Nations (Protesting Anti-Israeli Bias)” aside of the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Richard Grenell, U.S. President Donald Trump’s former ambassador to Germany who was tapped to be acting director of intelligence, said on Thursday Trump would not be nominating him for the job permanently, a move that would require Senate approval.
“The President will announce the Nominee (not me) sometime soon,” Grenell tweeted a day after Trump announced his selection to lead the nation’s intelligence agencies in an acting capacity.
Trump’s move follows his former national security adviser John Bolton’s abruptly departure last year amid disagreements with the Republican president over a number of foreign policy issues involving North Korea, Iran and other hot spots.
A strong Trump supporter with a reputation for sometimes being abrasive, Grenell has also been a lightning rod for controversy during his post in Germany due to his unorthodox style of diplomacy.
Joseph Maguire was serving as acting intelligence chief before Trump announced Grenell’s appointment to the post in a Twitter post on Wednesday.
Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Bernadette Baum