swissinfo.ch and agencies
January 31, 2014 – 15:11
US President Barack Obama has officially nominated Suzi LeVine as the next ambassador to Switzerland. She succeeds Donald S. Beyer, who left his post in May 2013.
LeVine was actively involved in Obama’s second election campaign (Suzi LeVine / twitter)
The US Senate now has to confirm the presidential nomination, a decision which is expected in spring.
LeVine, who describes herself on the professional social networking site, LinkedIn, as a “citizen, volunteer and mom”, previously worked for Microsoft. She studied English and engineering.
She was an active campaigner and fundraiser in Obama’s second run for the White House, raising between $450,000 and $1 million (CHF400,000 to CHF900,000). She is currently chair of the Advisory Board of the Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences at the University of Washington.
It is not unusual for US ambassadorial posts to go to non-career diplomats, in return for “services rendered”.
Categories: Americas, Switzerland, United States
US Ambassadors in Switzerland tend to be non-diplomats, ‘rewarded’ for ‘favors done to the President’. Right, Switzerland is a pleasant post, this, however, does not mean that it is not an important one. It is not just a ‘for-fun-posting’. We just need to look at unsolved problems between the two countries …