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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Gay rights opponent picked as ambassador to Netherlands by Trump | Gay rights opponent picked as ambassador to Netherlands by Trump |
| (6 months later) | |
| Nomination of Pete Hoekstra, one of Tea Party’s founders, raises eyebrows in first country to legalise gay marriage | |
| Daniel Boffey in Brussels | |
| Wed 26 Jul 2017 15.42 BST | |
| Last modified on Mon 27 Nov 2017 19.29 GMT | |
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| A gay rights opponent who once appeared in a campaign advert that was accused of being racist and who has claimed that refugees pose a threat to Europe has been named as Donald Trump’s choice for US ambassador to the Netherlands. | A gay rights opponent who once appeared in a campaign advert that was accused of being racist and who has claimed that refugees pose a threat to Europe has been named as Donald Trump’s choice for US ambassador to the Netherlands. |
| The nomination of Pete Hoekstra, a former congressman and one of the founders of the conservative Tea Party movement, has raised eyebrows in the Netherlands, a bastion of liberal values and the first country in the world to legalise gay marriage. | The nomination of Pete Hoekstra, a former congressman and one of the founders of the conservative Tea Party movement, has raised eyebrows in the Netherlands, a bastion of liberal values and the first country in the world to legalise gay marriage. |
| The Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant observed that Trump had “put a Dutchman in the Netherlands – but it is a Dutchman from the Netherlands of the 50s”. | The Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant observed that Trump had “put a Dutchman in the Netherlands – but it is a Dutchman from the Netherlands of the 50s”. |
| Hoekstra, who represented Michigan’s 2nd congressional district in the House of Representatives from 1993 to 2011, was born in the Netherlands but left when he was three years old. | Hoekstra, who represented Michigan’s 2nd congressional district in the House of Representatives from 1993 to 2011, was born in the Netherlands but left when he was three years old. |
| His nomination will need to be approved by the Dutch government and confirmed by the US Senate in order for him to take up the post. | His nomination will need to be approved by the Dutch government and confirmed by the US Senate in order for him to take up the post. |
| Hoekstra has spoken out against gay marriage and as a congressman consistently voted to limit women’s right to abortion. He is also a strident supporter of the death penalty. | Hoekstra has spoken out against gay marriage and as a congressman consistently voted to limit women’s right to abortion. He is also a strident supporter of the death penalty. |
| He caused a stir when running for the Senate in 2012 when he appeared in a campaign advert featuring a young Chinese women with a thick accent cycling by some rice fields thanking the US for borrowing heavily from her country. | He caused a stir when running for the Senate in 2012 when he appeared in a campaign advert featuring a young Chinese women with a thick accent cycling by some rice fields thanking the US for borrowing heavily from her country. |
| The Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote group described the advert as “very disturbing” and claimed it had been designed to stir up “anti-Asian sentiment”. | The Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote group described the advert as “very disturbing” and claimed it had been designed to stir up “anti-Asian sentiment”. |
| Hoekstra also once claimed there was chaos in the Netherlands due to a “secret jihad” in Europe. “Cars are being set on fire. Politicians are being set on fire,” he said. “Yes, there are no-go zones in the Netherlands.” | Hoekstra also once claimed there was chaos in the Netherlands due to a “secret jihad” in Europe. “Cars are being set on fire. Politicians are being set on fire,” he said. “Yes, there are no-go zones in the Netherlands.” |
| He has spoken in recent years at congresses of the anti-Islam American Freedom Alliance, where the far-right Geert Wilders was once a guest. | He has spoken in recent years at congresses of the anti-Islam American Freedom Alliance, where the far-right Geert Wilders was once a guest. |
| The Dutch liberal MEP Sophie in ‘t Veld said: “We are looking forward with interest to cooperating with Mr Hoekstra. We will certainly remind him his roots lie in a country that values tolerance, equality and inclusion. | The Dutch liberal MEP Sophie in ‘t Veld said: “We are looking forward with interest to cooperating with Mr Hoekstra. We will certainly remind him his roots lie in a country that values tolerance, equality and inclusion. |
| “We are proud of being the first country worldwide to have legislated for same-sex marriage. We are proud to have the lowest abortion rates in the world, and it is safe and legal. | “We are proud of being the first country worldwide to have legislated for same-sex marriage. We are proud to have the lowest abortion rates in the world, and it is safe and legal. |
| “We are proud in our country that people of immigrant origin can be mayor of a big city or speaker of a parliament. We expect the representative of our friend and ally the United States to fully and wholly respect our values and to show that respect in his all his acts and words.” | “We are proud in our country that people of immigrant origin can be mayor of a big city or speaker of a parliament. We expect the representative of our friend and ally the United States to fully and wholly respect our values and to show that respect in his all his acts and words.” |
| When asked in an interview in 2006 with De Volkskrant whether he feared the Netherlands had become a modern-day “Sodom and Gomorrah”, Hoekstra denied it. | When asked in an interview in 2006 with De Volkskrant whether he feared the Netherlands had become a modern-day “Sodom and Gomorrah”, Hoekstra denied it. |
| “I do not feel like that at all. I’d like to come here,” he said. “It is clear that the Netherlands has made a different choice in a number of areas than the USA. You must respect that as a foreign politician, even though you have a different opinion.” | “I do not feel like that at all. I’d like to come here,” he said. “It is clear that the Netherlands has made a different choice in a number of areas than the USA. You must respect that as a foreign politician, even though you have a different opinion.” |
| Netherlands | |
| US foreign policy | |
| LGBT rights | |
| Europe | |
| Donald Trump | |
| US politics | |
| news | |
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