Biden nominates Victoria Kennedy for Austria ambassadorship

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FILE - In this May 8, 2014, file photo David Cohen, Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation testifies during the House Judiciary Subcommittee on… FILE - In this May 8, 2014, file photo David Cohen, Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation testifies during the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial, and Antitrust Law oversight hearing on the proposed merger of Comcast and Time Warner Cable, on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Joe Biden is nominating Cohen to serve as his ambassador to Canada, according to the White House. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

FILE - In this May 7, 2017 file photo, Victoria Reggie Kennedy, widow of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, arrives at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library a… FILE - In this May 7, 2017 file photo, Victoria Reggie Kennedy, widow of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, arrives at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum before the 2017 Profile in Courage award ceremonies. President Joe Biden is nominating the widow of Sen. Ted Kennedy to serve as his ambassador to Austria Kennedy, an attorney and a gun control advocate, came to know Biden during the years he served with her husband in the Senate. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is nominating Victoria Kennedy, an attorney and the widow of Sen. Ted Kennedy, to serve as his ambassador to Austria. He’s naming a top political fundraiser — Comcast executive David Cohen – to serve as his ambassador to Canada, the White House said Wednesday.

Kennedy, a gun control advocate, came to know the president during the years when Biden served with her husband in the Senate.

She is the president of the board and co-founder of the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate, a non-partisan nonprofit that educates the public about the U.S. Senate, and also leads the education committee of the board of trustees for the Kennedy Center in Washington.

Kennedy has also served on the boards of gun control advocacy groups, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in Washington, D.C., as well as Stop Handgun Violence in Boston. She founded the group Common Sense about Kids and Guns, aimed at reducing guns deaths and injuries to children.

“My parents and grandparents taught us through the example of their own lives how important it is to serve and give back,” Kennedy said in a statement. “And my late husband, and his extended family, embodied the noblest qualities of service to country. I am humbled by the confidence the President has placed in me, and if confirmed, I look forward to being able to serve my country as ambassador to Austria.”

Biden is also giving serious consideration to another member of the Kennedy family.

Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy who served as ambassador to Japan during the Obama administration, is being weighed as a contender to serve in a high-profile ambassadorial role – perhaps in Asia or Australia, according to a person familiar with the deliberations who was not authorized to comment.

Cohen is a senior executive at the cable company Comcast, and previously served as chief of staff to another powerful Biden ally, Ed Rendell, when Rendell was the mayor of Philadelphia. He was an early backer of the president’s third White House run, hosting Biden’s first 2020 presidential campaign fundraiser.

Cohen said in a statement that, if confirmed, he would look to grow “the important relationship” as both nations look to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic. Canada announced this week that it would ease restrictions at the border next month, allowing U.S. citizens and permanent residents living in the United States who are fully vaccinated to enter without quarantining.

The U.S. government on Wednesday extended the closure of the land borders with Canada and Mexico to non-essential travelers until at least Aug. 21.

The White House also announced that Biden was nominating Jamie Harpootlian, a South Carolina attorney and influential Democrat in the early primary state, to serve as his ambassador to Slovenia. She is married to another powerful South Carolina Democratic operative and Biden ally, state Sen. Dick Harpootlian.

The president’s victory in the South Carolina primary turned out to be the turning point for a campaign that struggled out of the gate.

Victoria Kennedy nominated for Austria ambassadorship by Biden

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NEW ON 5: THE WIDOW OF SEN. TED KENNEDY COULD SOON CARRY ON THE KENNEDY FAMILY’S DIPLOMATIC TRADITION. PRESIDENT BIDEN TODAY ANNOUNCED HIS INTENT TO NOMINATE VICTORIA REGGIE KENNEDY TO BE U.S. AMBASSORAD TO AUSTRIA. A LONGTIME FRIEND OF THE PRESIDENT, THE 67-YEAR-OLD IS SENIOR COUNSEL AT THE INTERNATIONAL LAW FIRM GREENBERG TRAURIG. SHE’S ALSO PRESIDENT O

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President Joe Biden intends to nominate the widow of U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, of Massachusetts, to serve as his ambassador to Austria.White House officials announced Wednesday that attorney Victoria Reggie Kennedy is the nominee for Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Austria.“Vicki” Kennedy, 67, is senior counsel in the corporate and securities practice group at Greenberg Traurig LLP, a firm based in Boston and Washington, D.C.She is also president of the board and co-founder of the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate, a nonpartisan nonprofit in Boston that educates the public about the U.S. Senate and inspires leadership and active citizenship.Kennedy chairs the education committee of the board of trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in D.C., and is on the board of other nonprofit and civic organizations.She is a gun safety advocate and was a long-time member of the board of trustees of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in Washington, and has served on the board of Stop Handgun Violence in Boston. She founded Common Sense about Kids and Guns, an advocacy group that aims to reduce gun deaths and injuries to children.“My parents and grandparents taught us through the example of their own lives how important it is to serve and give back,” Kennedy said in a statement obtained by The Associated Press. “And my late husband, and his extended family, embodied the noblest qualities of service to country. I am humbled by the confidence the President has placed in me, and if confirmed, I look forward to being able to serve my country as ambassador to Austria.”The AP is also reporting that Biden is also giving serious consideration to another member of the Kennedy family for an ambassadorship.Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy who served as ambassador to Japan during the Obama administration, is being weighed as a contender to serve in a high-profile ambassadorial role – perhaps in Asia or Australia, according to a person familiar with the deliberations who was not authorized to comment.On June 23, Biden nominated Massachusetts House Majority Leader Claire Cronin, the second-ranking Democrat in the state’s House of Representatives, to become the next ambassador to Ireland.In addition to Vicki Kennedy’s nomination, White House officials also announced Wednesday that Biden will nominate Comcast executive David Cohen to serve as his ambassador to Canada and Jamie Harpootlian, a South Carolina attorney and influential Democrat in the early primary state, to serve as his ambassador to Slovenia.The Associated Press contributed to this report.

拜登提名親信和政治獻金大戶持節加拿大與澳洲

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請同意我們的隱私權規範，才能啟用聽新聞的功能。

（中央社華盛頓21日綜合外電報導）美國總統拜登今天提名一些友人與政治獻金大戶出任美國駐外大使，包括媒體通訊企業康卡斯特公司（Comcast Corp）高階顧問出使加拿大、聯邦參議員遺孀持節澳洲。

路透社報導，拜登提名柯恩（David Cohen）出任美國駐加拿大大使。柯恩是康卡斯特執行長羅伯茲（Brian Roberts）的資深顧問，也是這家企業的重要說士。

自拜登今年1月上任以來，美國與加拿大就偶爾發生齟齬，包括在COVID-19（2019冠狀病毒疾病）疫情下恢復正常跨境旅行的時機，以及拜登正式撤銷美加輸油管「基石XL」（Keystone XL）興建計畫的許可，這條管線原本是要將石油從加拿大運送到美國市場。

拜登也提名維多利亞．甘迺迪（Victoria Kennedy ）出任駐澳洲大使。她是麻薩諸塞州聯邦參議員泰德．甘迺迪（Ted Kennedy）的遺孀，也是拜登多年好友，積極支持槍枝管制。

柯恩與維多利亞．甘迺迪都是拜登在競選總統期間的頭號募款者。

另外，拜登提名哈樸廉（Jamie Harpootlian）出使斯洛維尼亞。哈樸廉的丈夫也是拜登支持者，曾捐贈大筆政治獻金。

許多政治人物的盟友與競選期間的重要捐款人都希望獲提名出使他國。大使任命案必須經過參院認可。（譯者：陳怡君/核稿：曾依璇）1100722