‘He’s got two or three things that are really going to be useful to him. The first is he’s very experienced as a trade negotiator and foreign affairs figure. Secondly, he’s got a very subtle political mind. The things that he says are constantly interesting. He looks at political problems with an acute mind. And the third thing is, ideologically, he believes in market economies and transatlantic alliance. He’s clearly in the place where he can do the job of being what is, after all, our representative to the United States.’
We know of course that Trump has a fondness for our country (his mother moved from the Isle of Lewis to America at just 18 and the Trump Organisation owns several golf courses in Scotland) and a taste for legacy and status. It was only earlier this month that the Prince of Wales was swept off to Notre Dame to impress the President-Elect, who clapped him on the back and was all thumbs up ‘fantastic’.
So can Lord Mandelson, with all his experience and political legacy, make the embassy the ultimate invitation? ‘He has immense political skills, and Washington, DC is an immense political town,’ says Steve Bates who worked with Mandelson as a Labour staffer, and is now CEO of the BioIndustry Association. ‘He has the right skill set for the city and the charming ability to make dinner receptions at the Lutyens mansion [where the ambassador lives] a hot ticket in DC. Back in the day, he was Northern Ireland secretary, so this won’t be his first significant residence. He was well liked and respected by all he came into contact with in Northern Ireland, particularly the staff and the team at Hillsborough Castle.’
Finkelstein agrees that Mandelson has all the potential to become the toast of DC: ‘Peter is an immensely engaging person; socially witty and clever and people know that he’s a big political figure. This is a very difficult Washington he’s going to be navigating – and trying to establish himself in that environment will be hard, but we have to have someone who can do both jobs. There’s no point choosing somebody who can relate to the United States, but can’t relate to the British government or the Labour Party in Parliament. Simultaneously, there’s no point being able to relate to the Labour Party in Parliament if you can’t relate to the American government. I think Peter can pull off doing both. If anyone can, it’s him.’
