U.S. ambassador to Canada, Pete Hoekstra, reportedly under consideration as next national intelligence director

U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra. Photo by Tony Caldwell /Postmedia

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The U.S. ambassador to Canada, Pete Hoekstra, is reportedly under consideration to become the new director of national intelligence, reports Associated Press.

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Hoeskstra is a former House of Representatives intelligence committee chairman. In a Wednesday afternoon post on X, AP also noted he also played a key role in rebuilding the Michigan Republican party in advance of the 2024 federal election that returned Donald Trump to the White House.

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After the election win, Hoekstra called Trump and secured an invitation to Mar-a-Lago to discuss possible positions in the administration.

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Within three hours of the meeting, as previously reported by National Post, Trump announced on Truth Social that Hoeskstra would be his new ambassador to Canada. But his post has not been without controversy. He has publicly voiced a lack of understanding as to why Canadians are angry at Trump for imposing devastating tariffs, while urging this country to become the 51st state. He has suggested Canada’s response to Trump has been “nasty and mean.”

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Some see Hoekstra as a diplomatic embodiment of the pugnacious president he represents, the Post has reported. He is personable and unassuming in one-on-one conversation, while making no apologies for his abruptness.

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Hoekstra served as a Member of Congress from 1993 to 2011 representing Michigan’s 2nd District.  Hoekstra was the chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence from 2004 to 2007. The latter involved meeting with world leaders from Muammar Gaddafi to Vladimir Putin.

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As a conservative Republican lawmaker, think-tank pundit, author and diplomat, he has often expressly shared Trump’s worldview. Hoekstra is also listed as one of the contributors to Project 2025, a blueprint for governing, mirrored by Trump’s administration since taking power.

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He obtained undergraduate and MBA degrees before rising to become vice president of marketing at office-furniture maker Herman Miller. He turned his attention to politics, first winning election to the House of Representatives.

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He was a founding member of the conservative Tea Party caucus. His voting record shows him as opposing abortion rights, same-sex marriage, gay adoption, gun control and paid parental leave for federal employees. Hoekstra voted in favour of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.

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Born in the Netherlands, Hoekstra emigrated to the United States as a child. During Trump’s first administration, he was named ambassador to the Netherlands. The foreign posting ended when Joe Biden captured the White House in 2020, but four years on Hoekstra was back in Michigan, assisting Trump’s second run for the White House.

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Hoekstra says he was interested in the Ottawa job, partly because of his ties to this country. He had an aunt and uncle who lived in B.C. and Alberta. His wife has a sister in Smithers, B.C., and an uncle who was a pastor in St. Catharines, Ont. He also cites the fact that Canadian troops liberated his parents’ city in the Netherlands during the Second World War, as well as Canada trade partnership with the U.S.