[Senate Prints 116-59]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


116th Congress}                                        { S. Prt.

 1st Session  }         COMMITTEE PRINT		       { 116-59

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                       ON THE NOMINATION OF KELLY

                    CRAFT TO BE U.S. REPRESENTATIVE

                         TO THE UNITED NATIONS

                               __________

                        A MINORITY STAFF REPORT

                      PREPARED FOR THE USE OF THE

                     COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                     One Hundred Sixteenth Congress

                             FIRST SESSION

                               July 2019

[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


               Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Relations


                     Available via the World Wide Web: 
                          http://www.govinfo.gov
                    
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                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE                    
44-821 PDF                  WASHINGTON : 2021                     
          
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                 COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS        

                JAMES E. RISCH, Idaho, Chairman        
MARCO RUBIO, Florida                 ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey
RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin               BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland
CORY GARDNER, Colorado               JEANNE SHAHEEN, New Hampshire
MITT ROMNEY, Utah                    CHRISTOPHER A. COONS, Delaware
LINDSEY GRAHAM, South Carolina       TOM UDALL, New Mexico
JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming               CHRISTOPHER MURPHY, Connecticut
ROB PORTMAN, Ohio                    TIM KAINE, Virginia
RAND PAUL, Kentucky                  EDWARD J. MARKEY, Massachusetts
TODD YOUNG, Indiana                  JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon
TED CRUZ, Texas                      CORY A. BOOKER, New Jersey
DAVID PERDUE, Georgia
                Christopher M. Socha, Staff Director            
             Jessica Lewis, Democratic Staff Director            
                  John Dutton, Chief Clerk            


                            C O N T E N T S

                              ----------                              
                                                                   Page

I. Summary.......................................................     1



II.  Kelly Craft: Not the Right Choice for U.S. Ambassador to the 
  United Nations.................................................     3


    A. Lack of Relevant Experience...............................     3


    B. Excessive Absences from Post..............................     4


    C. Lack of Diligence in Avoiding Conflicts...................     6


    D. Conclusion................................................     8


                                 (iii)


                               I. Summary

                              ----------                              

    The U.S. representative to the United Nations (UN) is a 
critically important position. The U.S. representative is 
charged with protecting and advancing U.S. interests in the UN 
Security Council and in other complex, multilateral fora; 
negotiating agreements with partners and adversaries; building 
hard-to-achieve consensus on the world's most intractable 
problems; and navigating and nurturing long-standing diplomatic 
relationships and disputes. Domestically, the position occupies 
a key role in the President's national security and foreign 
policy team.
    Those who have represented the United States in this role 
in the past brought with them diverse diplomatic and political 
experience that positioned them as skilled negotiators and 
diplomats--Americans who have the experience and qualifications 
to protect and advance U.S. interests on the world stage.
    While any administration is entitled to select the 
representative of its choosing, the Senate must carefully 
administer its constitutional duty to advise and consent on 
such nominees. This includes a thorough examination of a 
nominee's background, as well as specific experience and 
skillset. In this case, Ambassador Kelly Craft's qualifications 
fall short: she does not have the knowledge, skills, 
qualifications, or experience to successfully lead the United 
States' efforts at the United Nations.
    This appointment also comes at a time of increased 
hostility towards the United Nations and multilateral 
institutions more broadly. The President has spoken 
disparagingly about the role of the body itself; and, under his 
administration, the United States pulled out of the UN Human 
Rights Council, withdrew from talks on the Global Compact on 
Migration before they had even finished, and referred to the 
International Criminal Court as ``illegitimate.'' Balancing the 
views of this administration while effectively participating in 
the work of the UN is a challenging task for even the most 
skilled of diplomats. For a diplomatic novice, it risks being 
an insurmountable hurdle.
    The United States needs a skilled and experienced leader to 
represent the nation's interests at the United Nations. This 
position requires someone who can stand up to the toughest of 
adversaries, who can deftly negotiate on a global stage without 
compromising our principles, and who can effectively advocate 
on behalf of those who do not have a sufficient voice in the 
world.
    Regrettably, Ambassador Craft is not that individual. While 
the Senate may have deemed Ambassador Craft a fine emissary to 
serve as one of our ambassadors abroad, she lacks the 
qualifications to serve in this particular role, and in a 
position so crucial to the security of the United States and 
the world.


 
II. Kelly Craft: Not the Right Choice for U.S. Ambassador to the United 
                                Nations

                              ----------                              

    In May 2019, President Trump nominated Kelly Craft to be 
the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, approximately seven 
months after the resignation of former Ambassador Nikki Haley. 
Ambassador Craft is not deserving of the Senate's confirmation 
for three main reasons: (1) she does not possess the requisite 
credentials, knowledge, or experience to effectively represent 
and defend U.S. interests and values at the United Nations; (2) 
her absenteeism as U.S. Ambassador to Canada demonstrates a 
failure of leadership, a lack of the understanding of the role 
of an ambassador vis-a-vis the embassy and host country, and a 
lack of commitment to government service; and (3) she has 
failed to demonstrate diligence in avoiding financial 
conflicts, even involving her husband, the CEO of a major coal 
company, in official government meetings related to energy 
matters.

A. Lack of Relevant Experience
    Since October 2017, Kelly Craft has served as the U.S. 
Ambassador to Canada. Prior to that position, Ambassador Craft 
had no significant diplomatic or foreign policy experience.
    In contrast, previous U.S. Ambassadors to the United 
Nations have had deep and proven experience upon nomination. 
They have been former senators and governors, accomplished 
scholars and diplomats, and included a former Supreme Court 
justice. When Thomas Pickering was appointed as Ambassador to 
the UN, he had served in four previous posts as an ambassador, 
and held more than 15 years of experience in the State 
Department's foreign service. Richard Holbrooke had served as 
Ambassador to Germany and Assistant Secretary of two regional 
bureaus at the State Department. Charles Yost, who preceded 
former President George Herbert Walker Bush as U.S. Ambassador 
to the United Nations, had served more than 30 years as a 
career diplomat, including four ambassadorships. Prior to their 
appointments, Madeleine Albright and Samantha Power served at 
the National Security Council and as a professor of 
international affairs and a director of a human rights 
initiative, respectively.
    Unlike these predecessors, Ambassador Craft's main 
qualification is that she, along with her husband, has been a 
substantial political donor, contributing more than a million 
dollars to Donald Trump's presidential campaign. Before she was 
confirmed to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to Canada, her only 
professional experience was running a small marketing 
consulting firm, Kelly G. Knight LLC. Her only prior foreign 
policy experience was serving for one session as an alternate 
U.S. delegate to the UN, a largely ceremonial role.
    Ambassador Craft's performance in the confirmation process 
reflected this lack of knowledge and experience. For example, 
at her nomination hearing, Ambassador Craft displayed a lack of 
depth on key foreign policy issues. When asked about the most 
pressing issues the UN faces and how the United States can 
leverage the UN to pursue our national foreign policy 
priorities, Ambassador Craft did not mention the major crises 
or complexities facing the United States today: North Korea's 
aggression or nuclear proliferation, threats from Iran, China's 
growing influence, Russia's malign influence, the political and 
economic meltdown in Venezuela, or the upheaval and turmoil in 
Libya. When asked about the two-state solution, which has been 
the cornerstone of U.S. policy concerning the Israeli-
Palestinian conflict for years, she could not articulate a 
coherent or succinct viewpoint. In response to Senator Cardin's 
question about working globally on climate issues, she said 
that the United States does not ``need to be a member [of the 
Paris climate agreement] in order to show leadership,'' but 
could not articulate any other compelling view of U.S. 
leadership on climate. While she acknowledged at her hearing 
that, ``climate change needs to be addressed,'' she has 
previously said, ``I believe there are scientists on both sides 
that are accurate.''\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ Kashmira Gander, `` `Both sides of the science': U.S. 
ambassador to Canada mocked for climate change stance--again,'' 
Newsweek, Dec. 7, 2018.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Supporters of Ambassador Craft primarily cite her 
experience in Canada as evidence that she possesses the 
experience and preparation to be U.S. Representative to the 
United Nations. As discussed in detail below, however, Craft 
was absent from her post in Ottawa for a majority of her 
tenure. While the daily diplomatic back-and-forth at a major 
embassy would certainly be useful preparation to lead the U.S. 
Mission to the United Nations, Ambassador Craft was more often 
than not absent from her post.
B. Excessive Absences from Post
    As Ambassador to Canada, Craft's primary obligation was to 
serve as the representative of the United States to Canada, and 
to build relationships in Canada with government, business, 
civil society, and others to advance the U.S.-Canada bilateral 
relationship. Serving as ambassador inherently involves 
engaging in face-to-face diplomacy. In the words of legendary 
diplomat and former U.S. Representative to the UN, Richard 
Holbrooke, ``telephoning is necessary but not sufficient.'' 
Indeed, as chief of mission, an ambassador is responsible for a 
number of tasks that are often out of public view: forcefully 
representing U.S. interests with host-country interlocutors, 
coordinating among a long list of government agencies, 
overseeing and managing personnel, and staying abreast of 
political, economic, and social developments in the country. At 
the same time, ambassadors also have extensive ceremonial and 
public diplomacy duties, including representing the United 
States in person at host-country events. These duties require 
an on-the-ground presence in the host country; dialing-in from 
long distance is not sufficient.
    The extent to which Ambassador Craft was away from the 
embassy--and indeed, outside the country--calls into question 
the seriousness with which she undertook the obligations of her 
job and undermines the notion that serving in Canada prepared 
her for the United Nations. If confronted with unexplained 
absenteeism, such as Ambassador Craft's, almost any employer 
would question her suitability for continued employment--
promotion to a new job would be out of the question.
    Ambassador Craft's inordinate amount of time away from the 
embassy and outside Canada was well documented by outside 
observers. According to an article in Politico, Ambassador 
Craft was viewed by some colleagues as an ``absent ambassador'' 
who often let deputies run the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa while she 
``attended to personal business and domestic politics in the 
United States.''\2\ A senior official at the embassy, speaking 
with the State Department's authorization, confirmed that 
Ambassador Craft had left the embassy in control of a deputy 
``more times . . . than perhaps at any other embassy.'' One 
Canadian TV journalist said in June 2018--eight months into 
Craft's tenure as ambassador--that ``embassy sources whisper'' 
that she ``is barely engaged in diplomatic connecting and 
mostly flying south on her husband's private jet.'' Two 
Canadian members of parliament reportedly said that Craft 
``kept a lower profile than past ambassadors to the country and 
didn't seem as engaged as her predecessors.''\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\ Lauren Gardner, ``Trump's U.N. nominee was `absent' 
ambassador,'' Politico, June 17, 2019.
    \3\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Following these questions about Ambassador Craft's time 
away from post, Committee staff reviewed Craft's work 
calendars, flight logs, and request and approval travel cables 
provided by the State Department, covering her tenure (from 
October 23, 2017 to June 23, 2019, totaling 608 calendar days). 
This review found the following:


   Half her time away from Canada: Craft spent nearly a full 
        year, 357 days, away from Canada, just over 58 percent 
        of her tenure. Despite Craft's representation at her 
        confirmation hearing that her travel outside Canada was 
        to participate in negotiations of the U.S.-Mexico-
        Canada trade agreement (USMCA), only a fraction--
        approximately 40 days--were due to USMCA meetings.

   Seven months in Kentucky and Oklahoma: Craft made over 43 
        trips to Kentucky or Oklahoma while Ambassador, 
        spending 210 days (34.5 percent of her time) in states 
        where she and her spouse have homes.

   Traveled without State Department approval: Although Craft 
        said at her nomination hearing that she always 
        requested and received approval for her travel, records 
        show that she spent at least 11 days out of Canada 
        without State Department approval, including one three-
        day trip to Kentucky and repeated unapproved extensions 
        of existing trips to Kentucky or Oklahoma.

   Equivalent of one month in the Trump Hotel: During her 
        trips to Washington D.C., Craft stayed in the Trump 
        International Hotel for at least 29 days.


    Craft's extensive absences from Canada during her tenure as 
Ambassador demonstrate a dereliction of her most basic duties 
as the President's representative to a foreign country. Given 
her absenteeism, Craft was unable to meet with senior Canadian 
officials or lead the efforts of the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa. 
This alone should disqualify her from serving as U.S. 
Representative to the United Nations.
C. Lack of Diligence in Avoiding Conflicts
    As with any government official, avoiding the appearance 
and occurrence of any conflicts of interest, as required by 
federal law, is paramount. Each nominee before the Committee is 
required to submit completed forms detailing all personal 
assets, investments, and positions. This enables the agency, 
ethics officials, and the Committee to evaluate the existence 
of any potential or actual conflicts of interests. Nominees 
also submit an ethics agreement negotiated with the relevant 
agency. They are expected to know and understand the contents 
of their ethics agreements and, if confirmed, are required to 
abide by them.
    Ambassador Craft's husband, Joe Craft, runs Alliance 
Resources Partners, LP--the second-largest coal producer in the 
Eastern United States--and has lobbied the U.S. government to 
roll back regulations against air and water pollution, among 
other environmental protections.\4\ Ambassador Craft provided 
all required documents and disclosures to the Committee, and 
her ethics agreement includes standard language regarding 
recusals involving Alliance Resources Partners.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \4\ Alliance Resources Partners, About Us, http://www.arlp.com/
about-us; Steve Eder et al., ``A Courtside View of Scott Pruitt's Cozy 
Ties with a Billionaire Coal Baron,'' The New York Times, June 2, 2018.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    However, those recusals depend in large part on Ambassador 
Craft properly knowing and understanding the extent of her 
assets and identifying that a potential conflict exists with 
Alliance Resources Partners or with regard to other assets. 
Statements by Ambassador Craft at her nomination hearing 
suggest that she has not sought to learn the full extent of 
those financial interests while in her current position, nor in 
preparation for the position for which she has been nominated. 
In particular, she was unaware of Alliance Resources Partners' 
holdings in oil and gas. When asked whether her family held any 
oil and gas interests, Craft replied that, ``I am not aware. I 
do not--I do not know what our interest [is].'' Yet Alliance 
Resources Partners has acquired multiple oil and gas interests 
over the last few years, and the company announced a $145 
million agreement to acquire additional oil and gas interests 
just days after Ambassador Craft's hearing.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \5\ Alliance Resources Partners, ``Alliance Resource Partners, L.P. 
Announces Agreement to Acquire Permian Basin Oil and Gas Mineral 
Interests,'' June 24, 2019.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Equally troubling was Ambassador Craft's refusal to recuse 
herself from all matters related to fossil fuels or climate 
change, despite these vast interests. At her hearing, she said, 
``we are still waiting for clarity on the fossil fuels, for 
that conversation within our ethics agreement.''
    Craft's inability to answer basic questions about her 
ethical obligations is surprising and disturbing. As Ambassador 
to Canada, she has been subject to an ethics briefing and 
training. Upon her prior confirmation, she signed statements 
that she was fully aware of applicable federal laws governing 
financial conflicts of interest. Her apparent lack of knowledge 
about the extent of her interests in the energy sector raises 
questions about her ability to avoid conflicts of interest. 
Agencies and ethics officials rely on individuals to disclose 
their interests and assets. If Ambassador Craft was unaware of 
her holdings, her subsequent ethics agreements may not have 
fully accounted for potential conflicts.
    Further, while Ambassador Craft insisted to the Committee 
that her husband ``plays no role whatsoever in official U.S. 
government business,'' her email and calendar records call that 
claim into question. As Ambassador to Canada, Craft 
participated in more than a dozen meetings with executives of 
energy and oil companies--some of which her spouse attended.
    According to Ambassador Craft's calendars, Mr. Craft 
participated in a handful of meetings with U.S. and/or Canadian 
government energy and environmental officials. In February 
2018, for example, Mr. Craft attended a meeting with the CEOs 
of the aluminum company Alcoa and mining group Rio Tinto, the 
Premier of Quebec, and the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy. The 
next month, March 2018, Mr. Craft joined his wife in a meeting 
with the COO of Suncor Energy in Houston, Texas, along with a 
State Department special adviser on energy and environment. In 
July 2018, he joined in meetings with the Canadian Association 
of Petroleum Producers in Calgary.
    On at least one occasion, Ambassador Craft used Mr. Craft--
while he was head of Alliance Partners--to assist her in 
carrying out a request from the Canadian government regarding 
an environmental project. Instead of using official government 
channels or embassy employees, she asked Mr. Craft to connect 
her to then-Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) Scott Pruitt. Mr. Craft was also included on a 
subsequent email.\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \6\ The Committee also obtained records of Ambassador Craft's 
communications with EPA officials that come from a personal email 
account. Craft admitted that she has at times used personal email to 
conduct official U.S. government business, and on some occasions did 
not copy her official email, resulting in possible violations of the 
Federal Records Act. However, Ambassador Craft refused to provide any 
copies of communications in which she has used a personal email account 
to conduct official State Department business. Thus, the Committee was 
unable to evaluate the extent to which she may have used personal email 
to conduct official business or her compliance with the Federal Records 
Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    That Ambassador Craft could not clearly articulate her 
financial interests or recusal obligations does not inspire 
confidence regarding how seriously she takes the obligation to 
avoid potential conflicts of interest. Nor is it clear that she 
is willing or able to prevent such a conflict from arising 
given her lack of knowledge about Alliance Partners' vast 
energy-related interests. Her reticence to recuse from all 
matters related to climate change or fossil fuels, despite 
these interests, is troubling. Based on what she has provided 
the Committee, there is little comfort she will take all 
necessary steps to avoid the appearance and occurrence of a 
conflict.
D. Conclusion
    The U.S. Representative to the United Nations is charged 
with forcefully representing U.S. interests, negotiating with 
the toughest of adversaries, and cultivating strategic 
alliances, all on perhaps the most complex world stage. At a 
time when the Trump administration is already putting U.S. 
global leadership in jeopardy and testing the limits of our 
transnational relationships, the U.S. representative at the UN 
must be fully prepared to meet these challenges. Ambassador 
Craft's lack of relevant experience, failure to carry out her 
most basic duties, and the questions surrounding her adherence 
to the highest standards regarding potential conflicts of 
interest raise serious doubts about her suitability for this 
position. Ambassador Craft has neither the experience nor the 
skillset to represent U.S. interests or challenge the world's 
most seasoned diplomats on the global stage. As such, she 
should not be our next representative to the United Nations.



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