US President Trump has sackedbanished him
While the New York Times described his new role as “a consolation prize”, Mulvaney steps into the shoes of George Mitchell, Richard Haass, Meghan O’Sullivan, Mitchell Reiss, Paula Dobriansky, Declan Kelly and Gary Hart.
His replacement in the White House, North Carolinan Mark Meadows, will resign from Congress to take over as chief of staff in this crucial election year.
The BBC’s North American Anthony Zurcher comments:
Donald Trump … prefers to operate on instinct and improvisation – attributes that have thwarted the best designs of his three previous chiefs. Reince Priebus, a Republican Party functionary, was unable to control the rivalries and feuds that festered within the White House. John Kelly, the former general, attempted to impose military discipline on the administration – and eventually clashed with the free-wheeling president.
Mick Mulvaney’s strategy to “let Trump be Trump” appeared to suit the president, but his missteps during the impeachment investigation eventually sealed his fate.
With incidents of loose language (and embarrassing roll backs) assumed to be reason for his replacement, Mulvaney may need to be extra careful with his comments once on the ground in Northern Ireland if he is to use his undoubted political skill to make a contribution to the ongoing peace process.
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Fist Minister Arlene Foster responded to the new US envoy:
“We met Mr Mulvaney during his recent trip to Belfast and welcomed his interest in the restoration of a power-sharing Executive. The United States has been a loyal friend to Northern Ireland and the appointment of the new Special Envoy will be important in developing that friendship. The US is a key market for us and we will be using our time in Washington next week to get the message across that we are open for businesses, an attractive place to invest with a skilled and strong work force.”
Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill said:
“I welcome the appointment of Mr Mulvaney and hope this role will allow him to build on the work of those who held the role before him in supporting the peace process and the Good Friday Agreement. We have strong historical, political and economic connections with the US and I look forward to working with the new Special Envoy during his term in office to build on those links as we work to protect our interests after Brexit.”
Alan Meban. Tweets as @alaninbelfast. Blogs about cinema and theatre over at Alan in Belfast. A freelancer who writes about, reports from, live-tweets and live-streams civic, academic and political events and conferences. He delivers social media training/coaching; produces podcasts and radio programmes; is a FactCheckNI director; a member of Ofcom’s Advisory Committee for Northern Ireland; and a member of the Corrymeela Community.
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