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Jeffrey Ross Gunter

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Jeff Gunter
Official portrait, 2019
United States Ambassador to Iceland
In office
July 2, 2019 – January 20, 2021
PresidentDonald Trump
Preceded byRobert C. Barber
Succeeded byCarrin Patman
Personal details
Born (1961-01-31) January 31, 1961 (age 63)
Political partyDemocratic (before 2018)
Republican (2018–present)[citation needed]
EducationUniversity of California, Berkeley (BA)
University of Southern California (MD)

Jeffrey Ross Gunter (born January 31, 1961[1]) is an American dermatologist, healthcare executive, and diplomat who served as U.S. Ambassador to Iceland from 2019 to 2021.[2][3][4] Gunter was a candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate from Nevada in the 2024 election, finishing second to Sam Brown.

Education

Gunter graduated from Beverly Hills High School.[5] He received his Bachelor of Arts in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley in 1983 and his Doctor of Medicine degree from the USC School of Medicine in 1987.[6]

Gunter completed his residency in 1991 at the Los Angeles General Medical Center, where he served as the chief resident of dermatology.[5]

Career

In addition to practicing dermatology, Gunter served as a Clinical Professor of Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.[5]

U.S. Ambassador to Iceland

Appointment

On August 21, 2018, Trump nominated Gunter to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Iceland.[5] The Senate took no action on the nomination, which expired on January 3, 2019, at the end of the 115th Congress.[7] Trump then renominated Gunter on January 16, 2019, at the outset of the 116th Congress. On May 23, 2019, following a hearing in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gunter was confirmed by the Senate by voice vote.[8] Gunter presented his credentials on July 2, 2019.[2]

Gunter had never visited Iceland prior to his nomination to the ambassadorship.[9]

Tenure

Further information: Iceland–United States relations

In July 2020, CBS News reported that Gunter was "paranoid" about his security in the Icelandic capital, Reykjavik, despite its status as one of the world's safest cities. Gunter asked the State Department to seek special permission from the Icelandic government for him to carry a gun, had requested to wear a "stab-proof vest" and have door-to-door armored car service.[10] Three diplomatic sources interviewed by CBS News said that Gunter was persuaded not to arm himself because doing so would be perceived as insulting to Iceland; the embassy nevertheless placed an advertisement in the Icelandic press seeking full-time Icelandic bodyguards, which CBS News' sources described as a way to "placate Gunter's 'irrational' concerns."[10]

According to those interviewed by CBS News, the work climate at the Embassy in Reykjavik was "untenable" under Gunter's leadership. In fewer than two years on the job, Gunter had seven deputy chiefs of mission (DCMs). (The deputy chief of mission is the second-highest position at the embassy.)[10] One DCM was reportedly rejected by Gunter because the ambassador "didn't like the look of him" at their first meeting.[10] The second DCM spent only six months in Iceland, and was followed a series of short-term temporary DCMs with whom Gunter reportedly clashed.[10] CBS News also reported that Gunter "accused others of various, unsubstantiated infractions, including trying to undermine him to Washington and being complicit with the 'deep state.'"[10]

In February 2020, after taking personal leave after a conference in Washington, Gunter refused to return to his post in Reykjavik. The State Department attributed Gunter's delayed return to Iceland to the COVID-19 pandemic; however, "multiple sources in Washington, Reykjavík, and elsewhere said Gunter wanted to work remotely from California and told senior officials he would not go back overseas unless expressly ordered to do so by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo".[10] A series of senior State Department officials failed to persuade Gunter to return. After Pompeo called him, Gunter returned to Iceland in May 2020.[10] Gunter is controversial in Iceland, with many objecting to his description of COVID-19 as "the Invisible China Virus!" on Twitter.[10]

In late October 2020, Icelandic newspaper Fréttablaðið reported that an employee of the embassy had contracted COVID-19. The article also stated that the relocation of the embassy was fast-tracked despite the fact that an employee had contracted the coronavirus. Gunter reportedly sought to ensure that the move would be complete before the upcoming US presidential election.[11] Following the publication, the US embassy Facebook page posted a statement claiming the article was “irresponsible,” “shameful,” and “fake news.”[12] The statement asserted that the embassy was “one of the safest havens from COVID-19 in Reykjavík.” The post incorrectly claimed that Iceland had one of the highest rates of COVID-19 infections in Europe.[13]

In 2021, the State Department’s Office of the Inspector General released a report indicating that Gunter had created a "'threatening and intimidating environment'" at the embassy.[14]

Political involvement

Gunter was registered as a Democrat in California, but did not contribute to Democratic candidates.[14] Gunter's dermatology practice began in California in 1992 and expanded to Nevada in 1995; he changed his residency to Nevada in 2019.[15]

Donations to Republican Party

He has a history of donating to Republican Party candidates and is a member of the board of directors of the Republican Jewish Coalition.[16] In 2016, he donated $58,563 to several state Republican Party organizations, $33,400 to the Republican National Committee and $5,400 (the maximum contribution) to Donald Trump's presidential campaign.[5] Gunter also gave $100,000 to the Trump Victory PAC and $100,000 to Trump's inaugural committee.[9]

2024 Senate campaign

Main article: 2024 United States Senate election in Nevada

Gunter is running the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate from Nevada in 2024, seeking to challenge Democratic incumbent Jacky Rosen.[14] In the Republican primary, he is running against Sam Brown, former state Representative Jim Marchant, former lieutenant governor candidate Tony Grady, and nine other candidates.[14][17]

Republican Party leaders discouraged Gunter from entering the 2024 race, in part because of his record as ambassador and in part because he had not previously voted in any Nevada election.[14] The National Republican Senatorial Committee and its chair Steve Daines, as well as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, instead supported Brown.[14][17] The Koch network's Americans for Prosperity Action super PAC also ran ads in support of Brown.[14] On the campaign trail, Gunter emphasized his loyalty to Trump, described himself as a "staunch supporter" of Trump and what he called Trump's "brilliant" policies,[14] and airing a television ad calling himself "110% pro-Trump" and using Trump slogans.[17] During the race, Gunter declined to say whether he believed the 2020 elections was "stolen" from Trump, declined to say whether he supported a national restriction on abortion, and expressed uncertainty on the causes of climate change.[15]

References

  1. ^ "About us - Ambassador Jeffrey Ross Gunter, former U.S. Ambassador to Iceland". April 27, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Jeffrey Ross Gunter (?–)". Office of the Historian. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  3. ^ "Former ambassador to Iceland Jeffrey Gunter mulling Senate run in Nevada". The Nevada Independent. June 6, 2023.
  4. ^ Vakil, Caroline (August 7, 2023). "Jeffrey Gunter, ambassador to Iceland under Trump, announces Senate run in Nevada". thehill.com.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Lancaster dermatologist appointed ambassador to Iceland". The Antelope Valley Times. August 22, 2018. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  6. ^ "Ambassador Jeffrey Ross Gunter". US Embassy in Iceland. Archived from the original on April 13, 2020. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  7. ^ PN2431 — Jeffrey Ross Gunter — Department of State: 115th Congress (2017-2018), Congress.gov.
  8. ^ PN126 — Jeffrey Ross Gunter — Department of State: 116th Congress (2019-2020), Congress.gov.
  9. ^ a b Emily R. Siegel, Andrew W. Lehren, Brandy Zadrozny, Dan De Luce & Vanessa Swales, Donors to the Trump inaugural committee got ambassador nominations. But are they qualified?, NBC News (April 3, 2019).
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i Ruffini, Christina (July 26, 2020). "Controversial U.S. Ambassador to Iceland wants firearm, security for Reykjavik post". CBS News. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
  11. ^ Oddur Ævar Gunnarsson. "Kappkosta við flutninga fyrir kosningar í kjölfar smits". Fréttablaðið. October 29, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2020 (in Icelandic).
  12. ^ US Embassy Reykjavik Iceland (October 29, 2020). "Has Fake News Arrived in Iceland?". Facebook. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  13. ^ Gréta Sigríður Einarsdóttir. "US Embassy Accuses Icelandic Newspaper of Irresponsible Journalism and Fake News". Iceland Review. October 30, 2020, Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h "The GOP Senate candidate whose Trump ambassador stint is coming back to haunt him". POLITICO. August 14, 2023.
  15. ^ a b Jessica Hill, Former ambassador lays out priorities in race for Senate, Las Vegas Review-Journal (September 21, 2023).
  16. ^ Samuels, Ben (August 17, 2023). "Revealed: Who the big Jewish donors are backing in the 2024 GOP presidential primaries". The Forward.
  17. ^ a b c Gabby Birenbaum, Week later, underdog Nevada GOP Senate hopeful Gunter's ad buy begins to materialize, Nevada Independent (April 10, 2024).
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by United States Ambassador to Iceland
2019–2021 		Succeeded by
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