AP

Biden picks Burns for China ambassador; Emanuel for Japan

Aug 20, 2021, 1:42 PM | Updated: 3:50 pm

FILE - In this Jan. 18, 2008, file photo, Nicholas Burns announces his retirement at the State Depa...

FILE - In this Jan. 18, 2008, file photo, Nicholas Burns announces his retirement at the State Department in Washington. President Joe Biden is nominating longtime former senior State Department official Nicholas Burns to serve as his ambassador to China. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

President Joe Biden is nominating longtime former senior State Department official Nicholas Burns to serve as his ambassador to China and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to serve as his envoy to Japan.

The White House formally announced the much-anticipated nominations Friday.

Emanuel was also a former three-term congressman who served as President Barack Obama’s first White House chief of staff and was a senior adviser in President Bill Clinton’s administration.

If confirmed by the Senate, Emanuel will be dispatched to Tokyo at a critical point in the U.S.-Japan relationship as Biden has made strengthening relations with partners in the Pacific a priority as he increases focus on China.

Biden with his pick of Burns turns to a seasoned career foreign service officer to serve as his envoy to arguably the most difficult diplomatic mission. The president has repeatedly called China the United States most significant economic competitor and a rising national security concern and subsequently has sought to center his foreign policy on the Pacific in the early going of his administration.

The White House also announced that Biden was tapping Michael Battle, a former diplomat, academic, and military chaplain to serve as ambassador to Tanzania. Battle was executive vice president/provost at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. He also previously served as the U.S. representative to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the U.S. ambassador to the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Biden had considered naming Emanuel to serve as his transportation secretary but ultimately passed him over in the face of fierce opposition from some in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party who took issue with his record on policing and school closures in predominantly Black neighborhoods during his time as Chicago’s mayor.

Emanuel served as an informal adviser to Biden’s White House campaign and has been a significant force in Democratic Party politics for much of the last three decades.

He left Congress to serve as Barack Obama’s first White House chief of staff, helping the president shepherd his signature health care law and push for massive stimulus in the wake of the Great Recession.

As the House Democrats’ chief fundraiser in 2006, he was the architect of the wave election that delivered his party to the majority for the first time in a dozen years, and made Nancy Pelosi the first female speaker in history.

As mayor, Emanuel touted record high school graduation rates in the nation’s third largest city and his success recruiting several large corporations to relocate to Chicago among his chief accomplishments.

But he faced criticism for soaring homicide rates during his time as mayor, a fraught relationship with the Chicago Teachers Union, and mounting unmet pension obligations for city workers. Much of the city’s financial plight was something Emanuel inherited from his predecessor Richard M. Daley’s administration.

In 2018, he announced that he wouldn’t seek a third term as mayor as the city was bracing for the high-profile trial of a white police officer who fatally shot a black teen, Laquan McDonald, on a city street.

The 2014 shooting death of McDonald, who was shot 16 times, was one of the several high-profile police shootings of black men and women around the country that spurred national outrage and a larger debate about policing in Black communities.

Emanuel, facing reelection in 2015, argued against releasing police video of the shooting while the investigation was continuing.

After months of litigation – and after Emanuel was reelected to a second term – a court ordered the city to show the footage to the public. Emanuel’s relationship with Chicago’s Black community became strained following the video’s release.

Emanuel in a statement touted his decades of working with Biden and the importance of the U.S.-Japan relationship.

“The alliance between the United States and Japan is the cornerstone of peace and prosperity in a free and open Indo-Pacific, and I would proudly represent our nation with one of our most critical global allies in one of the most critical geopolitical regions,” Emanuel said.

Burns previously served as undersecretary of state under President George W. Bush and as U.S. envoy to Greece and NATO. He also served as State Department spokesman and spent five years on the White House National Security Council, a tenure that overlapped the Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush administrations.

His foreign service officer career included a stint as consulate general in Jerusalem (1985-1987) as well service at the U.S. embassy in Egypt (1983-1985) and Mauritania (1980 as an intern).

Burns is now the executive director of the Aspen Strategy Group and Aspen Security Forum. He’s also a professor of the practice of diplomacy and international relations at the Harvard Kennedy School.

If confirmed by the Senate, Burns will head to Beijing at a difficult moment.

U.S. intelligence officials are in the midst of a 90-day review focused on determining the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, including any possibility the trail might lead to a Chinese lab.

The president has also pressed China’s Xi Jinping on his government crackdown of democracy activists in Hong Kong, human rights abuses against Uyghur and ethnic minorities in the western Xinjiang province, and what the U.S. sees as unfair and coercive trade practices.

The administration accused China of being behind a massive hack of Microsoft Exchange email server software and indicted four Chinese nationals on charges they tried to steal U.S. trade secrets, technology and disease research. China rejected the hacking accusation and demanded that Washington drop the charges against its citizens.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

Republican presidential candidates, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, left, talking with forme...

Associated Press

The GOP debate field was asked about Trump. But most of the stage’s attacks focused on Nikki Haley

The four Republican presidential candidates debating Wednesday night mostly targeted each other instead of Donald Trump.

4 days ago

Law enforcement officers head into the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, campus after reports of an ...

Associated Press

Police say 3 dead, fourth wounded and shooter also dead in University of Nevada, Las Vegas attack

Police said a suspect was found dead Wednesday as officers responded to an active shooter and reports of multiple victims at UNLV.

4 days ago

President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, leaves after a court appearance, July 26, 2023, in Wilming...

Associated Press

Republicans threaten contempt proceedings if Hunter Biden refuses to appear for deposition

House Republicans are threatening to hold Hunter Biden in contempt if he does not show up this month for a closed-door deposition.

4 days ago

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., listens to a question during a news conference, March 30, 2022, in W...

Associated Press

Tuberville is ending blockade of most military nominees, clearing way for hundreds to be approved

Sen. Tommy Tuberville announced Tuesday that he's ending his blockade of hundreds of military promotions, following heavy criticism.

5 days ago

An employee works inside the Hanwha Qcells Solar plant on Oct. 16, 2023, in Dalton, Ga. On Tuesday,...

Associated Press

US job openings fall to lowest level since March 2021 as labor market cools

U.S. employers posted 8.7 million job openings in October, the fewest since March 2021, in a sign that hiring is cooling.

5 days ago

Megyn Kelly poses at The Hollywood Reporter's 25th annual Women in Entertainment Breakfast, Dec. 7,...

Associated Press

The fourth GOP debate will be a key moment for the young NewsNation cable network

By airing the fourth Republican presidential debate, NewsNation network will almost certainly reach the largest audience in its history.

5 days ago

Sponsored Articles

Follow @KTAR923...

The 2023 Diamondbacks are a good example to count on the underdog

The Arizona Diamondbacks made the World Series as a surprise. That they made the playoffs at all, got past the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Wild Card round, swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS and won two road games in Philadelphia to close out a full seven-game NLCS went against every expectation. Now, […]

Follow @KTAR923...

West Hunsaker at Morris Hall supports Make-A-Wish Foundation in Arizona

KTAR's Community Spotlight this month focuses on Morris Hall and its commitment to supporting the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Arizona.

...

Midwestern University

Midwestern University: innovating Arizona health care education

Midwestern University’s Glendale Campus near Loop 101 and 59th Avenue is an established leader in health care education and one of Arizona’s largest and most valuable health care resources.

Biden picks Burns for China ambassador; Emanuel for Japan