Press Release - President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Personnel to Key Administration Posts

President Donald J. Trump today announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key positions in his Administration:

Samuel Dale Brownback of Kansas to be Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom, Department of State. Mr. Brownback has been Governor of Kansas since 2011. Previously, he served as a U.S. Senator (1996-2011) and a U.S. Representative in the House of Representatives (1995-1996) from Kansas. While a member of the Senate, he worked actively on the issue of religious freedom in multiple countries and was a key sponsor of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. He also served as Kansas Secretary of Agriculture (1986-1993) and was a White House Fellow in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (1990-1991). Mr. Brownback was a private attorney in Kansas and taught agricultural law at Kansas State University. He co-authored two books on the subject. He earned a B.S. from Kansas State University and a J.D. from the University of Kansas. He and his wife Mary have five children.

Daniel J. Kritenbrink of Virginia to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Mr. Kritenbrink, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor, has served as an American diplomat since 1994. He is currently the Senior Advisor for North Korea Policy at the Department of State. A former Deputy Chief of Mission in Beijing, China, Mr. Kritenbrink has held senior leadership positions at the Department of State and served as a Senior Director at the National Security Council. He has two decades of experience overseas and in Washington working on Asian affairs as a policy maker, analyst, and practitioner. Mr. Kritenbrink earned a M.A. from the University of Virginia and a B.A from the University of Nebraska-Kearney. He speaks Chinese and Japanese.