US considers conservative nominee Leo Brent Bozell III as its ambassador in SA

On Friday (24 October), the US Foreign Relations Committee will consider the nomination of Leo Brent Bozell III to become the ambassador of the United States to South Africa.

It's widely tipped that Bozell will get the job, having been identified by US President Donald Trump as "the right man for the job".

Bozell is a conservative media critic, father of a January 6 rioter and vocally pro-Israel.

Daily Maverick Associate Editor Brooks Spector said that while the nomination and election process was usually a smooth one, sometimes it can be acrimonious.

Sometimes nominees get voted down, he said.

"In a sharply divided Senate, as we have now, there's always the possibility."

While Bozell may have been able to curry favour with the US president, he himself has been highly critical of Trump in the past, describing the president as "totally unsuitable for office".

But Spector said that Bozell has recently shown himself to be strongly supportive of Trump's policies and views about South Africa.

During a Senate confirmation hearing this week, Bozell said if elected, he would lean on South Africa to drop its genocide case against Israel before the International Court of Justice.

"I would press South Africa to end proceedings against Israel before the International Court of Justice and to pressure the International Criminal Court prosecutor to discontinue this lawfare, which is belied by Israel’s support for the ceasefire in Gaza," he said.

Spector added that it was important to remember that Washington's stance does not reflect the stance of the United States as a whole.

Bozell also told the committee that he would advance Donald Trump's invitation to Afrikaners who claim to face racial discrimination in South Africa.

To listen to the conversation with Spector and Lester Kiewit from CapeTalk's Good Morning Cape Town Show, use the audio player below.