Big on tennis, not on Adelaide: Trump’s ambassador to Australia speaks

Washington: David Brat, the former Republican congressman whom Donald Trump has nominated to be his man in Canberra, is a big tennis fan.

“I follow your pros, the [Australian] Open, and, of course, the game of Prime Minister Albanese,” he says. “I’m looking forward to sports diplomacy across the board.”

Brat, 61, was questioned by American senators in a hearing on Wednesday, US time – a standard process for US ambassadors before their nomination can be confirmed.

While the hearing was largely uneventful, the committee’s Republican chairman, Jim Risch, said he hoped Brat would push Australia to fully implement foreign investment screening and foreign influence laws to counter “malign Chinese influence” and assist Australia in tackling rising antisemitism.

There was also an awkward moment early on as Republican senator Cynthia Lummis, of Wyoming, read out Brat’s qualifications, including a masters in divinity and a PhD in economics.

“You could probably be ambassador to somewhere who spoke Hebrew or Greek or Latin, and you’re going to an American-speaking - I mean an English-speaking country,” she said.

A former congressman from Virginia, Brat came to prominence in 2014 when he defeated the then-Republican leader of the House of Representatives, Eric Cantor, in a preselection contest – striking a huge blow against the party establishment for what was then known as the Tea Party movement.

He lost his seat in 2018 and returned to academia, serving as the senior vice president of business relations at Liberty University, a private, evangelical Christian university.

At his confirmation hearing, Brat heaped praise on Australia, saying there were few countries as integral to American interests. He noted Australia had fought alongside the US in every major conflict since World War II, and shared the same values of life, liberty and happiness.

“Australia has been with us every step of the way with loyal friendship and with courage,” he said. “I love the Australian people I have met in life – I appreciate their decency, their wit, their sense of humour above all.”

On policy, Brat identified three priorities: critical minerals and commercial engagement, defence co-operation and broadening the two countries’ partnership in the Indo-Pacific.

He said he would work to ensure American companies enjoyed a level playing field in Australia, and praised the Trump administration for securing market access for American beef – although the latest figures show very low levels of US beef sales into Australia so far.

On AUKUS, Brat noted it was a bulwark against “China’s unprecedented military build-up”, and dismissed any suggestion there was still resistance to the agreement within the Pentagon after its review of AUKUS by policy boss Elbridge Colby.

“They’re our good friends,” Brat said. “I have a very positive feeling about the Australian people. I think they like us, and we need to step up and show that we’re all in.

“With respect to Bridge [Colby] and all that, the president said ‘full speed ahead’. I think Bridge said, ‘I work for the president, it’s full speed ahead’. And so I’m full speed ahead.”

It is not clear whether Brat has ever been to Australia, and it appeared he was not familiar with Adelaide, the city where Australia’s AUKUS submarines will be built. While outlining the AUKUS agreement, Brat said three subs were “to be made with the UK down in Adeline [sic], Australia”.

A representative at Brat’s university declined an interview request from this masthead, saying he could not speak until he was confirmed.

Regarding his third priority – expanding the US-Australia partnership in the Indo-Pacific and Pacific Islands – Brat said the two countries could “fight against [the] malign influence of our adversaries”. He did not identify those adversaries, but China is the main competitor for influence in the region.

It took Trump more than 15 months to nominate an ambassador to Australia. Multiple sources previously told this masthead that he wanted to appoint a higher-profile figure from business or entertainment, but had difficulty finding someone willing to live in Canberra.

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