USA nominates Elizabeth Bagley as new ambassador to Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On Wednesday, January 19, the US government announced the appointment of Elizabeth Bagley as ambassador to Brazil. US President Joe Biden appointed her, and her name still needs to be approved by the US Senate. Brazil granted the nominee agrément (authorization) a few weeks ago.

The Brazilian government’s expectation around the possible confirmation of Bagley in the post is very positive. The evaluation in Brasília is that Bagley, who has a more center or center-left profile, will not mix government politics with diplomacy and seems to demonstrate sensitivity to face the complex and varied bilateral agenda. Some examples are trade, defense, science and technology, space cooperation, fighting Covid-19, and research for new vaccines.

According to a White House statement, Bagley was ambassador to Portugal from 1994 to 1997, during Bill Clinton’s administration, and served as special representative to the UN General Assembly, adding that she has “worked in diplomacy and advocacy for more than four decades.”

She is currently the owner and director of the cell phone company SBI in Arizona. For the Brazilian government, this fact is irrelevant because the firm is regional in scope.

With a doctorate in law from Georgetown University, she has been an advisor to Secretaries of State John Kerry and Hillary Clinton under Barack Obama and Madeleine Albright under Bill Clinton.

“Earlier in her career, Bagley worked with the State Department and Congress for the Panama Canal Treaties, was special assistant for the Camp David Accords, and assisted in liaisons with Congress for the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Accords) in Madrid, Spain,” the White House statement said.

Bagley is a long-time donor to the Democratic Party, President Joe Biden’s acronym. Recipients of her donations include the campaigns of former Presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and President Biden, as well as Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who was defeated by Trump in 2016, according to Federal Election Commission data.

Bagley’s husband, executive and philanthropist Smith Bagley, who died in 2010, was also a significant contributor to the Democrats, joining the party at age 17 and then serving as vice chairman of the Democratic National Committee, according to the New York Times.

APPROVAL LIMBO

However, it is not known when the US Senate will vote on Bagley’s name. She is now part of a list of hundreds of Biden nominations that have been in limbo in the House, some of them awaiting a vote for months. As of January 8, only 41% of Biden’s nominees have been approved in a year in office, according to the Partnership for Public Service, a Washington-based nonpartisan organization.

The diplomatic mission in Brasilia has been without an ambassador since mid-2021, when Todd Chapman – who had been appointed by former President Donald Trump – announced his retirement after running the diplomatic office since March 2020.

During his time in Brasilia, Chapman developed a close relationship with Bolsonaro and his children.

On Wednesday, the US government also nominated names for other embassies: Jane Hartley – former ambassador to France – for the United Kingdom, Alexander Laskaris – career member of the Foreign Service and former ambassador to Guinea – for Chad, and Alan Leventhal – president and CEO of real estate investment firm Beacon Capital Partners – for Denmark.

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