UPDATE: Rufus Gifford, the highest-ranking "openly gay" official at the U.S. State Department,
is leaving his post as chief of protocol to become finance chair for
President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign.
In 2021 President Biden had tapped former U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Rufus Gifford to serve as the State Department's new chief of protocol.
As chief of protocol, Gifford retained the rank of ambassador. He assisted President Biden and other top U.S. leaders with proper diplomatic protocols
when visiting or receiving foreign dignitaries. Gifford also scheduled itineraries for visiting officials from abroad. He had previously served as Deputy Campaign Manager for Biden's 2020 presidential campaign.
This is my original post from October, 2016:
My regular blog readers may recall a post from 2015
reporting the marriage of Rufus Gifford, the U.S. Ambassador to Denmark,
to his partner, a veterinarian named Stephen DeVincent, at Copenhagen’s
city hall. Among the wedding guests were Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, who had become close friends. Rufus and Stephen were married by the Lord Mayor of Copenhagen.
The front page of the Wall Street Journal, however, carried a
feature article reporting the viral sensation of the ambassador’s
reality TV show, “Jeg er ambassadøren fra Amerika” (I Am the Ambassador from America),
which averaged about 200,000 viewers per episode. There were 10 installments. Ambassador Gifford won the Danish equivalent of an
Emmy for his role, in which he mused about being a gay ambassador and
his regrets at not seeing more of his husband, who spent long stretches
of time stateside to attend to his job.
Contributing to the success of the show was that fact that Gifford, 42 years old
and Hollywood handsome, made sharp, witty comments about what is
essentially a boring job – because there is virtually no strife between the two
nations. The show followed him around the grand ambassador’s
residence, traveling home to Boston to see his parents, making sojourns
to Greenland, celebrating a birthday, even spending a night with the
elite Danish Frogmen Corps. In the series Gifford steps into his limousine, he steps
out of his limousine, he goes to the gym, etc. The series culminated
with the ambassador’s wedding to his male partner. A 35-year-old Danish
female fan of the show said she wasn’t looking for false drama, like that
of other reality shows, but that she savored the scenes when Gifford was
at home with Mr. DeVincent and their dog, Argos. But there was that one
time when Gifford stripped down to his Calvins to change into a SWAT suit
(not disappointing).
As a result of this show, Gifford’s celebrity in Denmark was such that
people on the streets shouted, “Hey, Rufus!” and asked him to stop for a
selfie, completely forsaking the honorific of his office. And that’s the
way he liked it.
All 10 episodes were available for streaming on Netflix: “I Am the
Ambassador”. Note from your blogger: Ambassador Gifford is charming
beyond description.
*Note: In 2015 six gay male ambassadors represented our
country. They gathered for an event at D.C.’s Newseum: Ambassador to Australia
John Berry, Ambassador to the Dominican Republic James Brewster,
Ambassador to Denmark Rufus Gifford, Ambassador to the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Daniel Baer, Ambassador to
Spain James Costos and Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius. All were
appointed by President Obama and approved by congress. Amazing, since
homosexuality was until recent times grounds for dismissal from foreign
service. When President Bill Clinton nominated openly gay James Hormel
for ambassador to Luxembourg in 1997, Hormel was strongly opposed by
some Republican members of congress for his sexual orientation, and the
appointment was thus stalled. Clinton then used a recess appointment to
install Hormel as ambassador in 1999, making him the first openly gay
ambassador to represent the U.S.
Newlyweds Rufus (right) and Stephen leave Copenhagen's city hall:
