White House nominates entrepreneur for Colombia ambassador post

The White House announced Monday that an entrepreneur has been nominated to serve as ambassador to Colombia. The nomination ends weeks of speculation and follows the individual's withdrawal from Kentucky's Senate primary race. The entrepreneur stepped aside from the race to succeed retiring Sen.

Mitch McConnell at the request of President Donald Trump. Trump had announced in May that the individual would receive an ambassador post but did not name the country at that time. "Nate is Oxford educated, tough as nails, LOVES our Great Nation, and will represent the United States very well, overseas, or otherwise," Trump said on Truth Social at the time.

Nomination details The nomination was included in a list of more than three dozen nominations submitted to the Senate on Monday. Each nomination requires Senate confirmation. The announcement came hours after no candidate won an outright majority in Colombia's presidential election, which will now proceed to a June runoff.

Background on the Senate race The entrepreneur had been competing for support within Republican circles and had major donors. After stepping aside, the individual endorsed another Republican candidate. Two weeks later, that candidate won the GOP nomination by a 2-to-1 margin.

The entrepreneur founded a waste and recycling company and took a hard-line position on immigration during the Senate campaign.