Who’s afraid of ‘alpha male’ Adams?

YOU know that guy whom President Donald Trump has nominated as his ambassador to Malaysia, Nick Adams? Prior to his nomination announced on July 9, I doubt many Malaysians had heard of him. I hadn’t.

But we sure learned fast and what we found out, like from his March 13, 2023, tweet that went viral, caused much consternation: “I go to Hooters. I eat rare steaks. I lift extremely heavy weights. I read the Bible every night. I am pursued by copious amounts of women. I am wildly successful. I have the physique of a Greek god. I have an IQ over 180. I am extremely charismatic.”

He ended it with, “They hate this.”

He may be narcissistic and egotistical, but surely he was also being deliberately provocative and tongue-in-cheek with such self-puffery. Still, it gave cause for instant dislike. He can now include many of my fellow citizens as among the “They” who hate him.

But Malaysians’ animosity is actually fueled more by the Islamophobic comments he has made and his pro-Israel stand.

Why does that surprise anyone, however? Adams is merely echoing his Great Leader, Trump, who, according to Institute of Strategic and International Studies’ foreign policy analyst Shahriman Lockman, has himself “expressed troubling views about Islam –amplifying them on social media and even enacting them through policy.”

When it comes to appointing ambassadors, US presidents can choose non-career diplomats, rewarding plum postings to individuals for their support and loyalty. And Malaysia is well-known as a much sought after posting in diplomatic circles.

The US has had a long history of bilateral ties with us. Their embassy was set up on Aug 31, 1957, the very day of our independence. And in all that time, there was only one political appointee, Barbara M. Watson, chosen by President Jimmy Carter. Watson served less than a year from September 1980 to March 1981.

She at least had impressive credentials as a lawyer and had served as assistant Secretary of State.

As for Adams, he supposedly “took degrees at both undergraduate and graduate level at the University of Sydney”, according to Wikipedia. But in what studies, I have no idea.

That’s the other weird thing about Adams. He was born and raised in Australia, dabbled in local council politics at the age of 21 and apparently wanted to become the prime minister of Australia.

He obviously had second thoughts and instead decided that America was his destiny. He immigrated in 2012 because he loved the country for its guns, hot dogs, cheerleaders, American football, small town parades, muscle cars and 16-lane freeways lined with supersized American flags and other deep and meaningful things.

Adams, who became an American citizen in 2021, was clever and prescient enough to latch on to Trump as early as 2016, and became useful in his presidential campaigns. And when Adams wrote his glowing, star-struck From Mar-a-Lago to MARS: President Trump’s Great American Comeback that was published in May this year, he proved himself to be Trump’s utterly devoted fan.

Adams’ nomination raised eyebrows in international media and set off a firestorm of protest in Malaysia. Many saw it as an insult and an indication of Trump’s low regard for nations like ours and even Singapore. His nomination of another political appointee, Dr Anjani Sinha, an India-born orthopaedics and sports medicine surgeon, for our southern neighbour hasn’t gone down well either.

Local politicians from both sides of the divide – PKR, DAP and PAS – and NGOs are up in arms against Adams and calling for Putrajaya to reject his appointment.

But Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan has said all that anger and calls to reject him are premature.

He told the Dewan Rakyat: “We haven’t received anything – it’s all just hearsay. If we reject it now, they might say, ‘But we never even asked for it’. That would be embarrassing for us.”

He added that Wisma Putra would provide the Cabinet with its views on the matter only when the appointment is confirmed.

Indeed, at this point, Adams is still a nominee and has yet to face a Senate confirmation hearing and vote. No date has been set yet, but with the Republican-majority Senate approving every Trump nominee since he became president, the expectation is that Adams – and Dr Sinha – will be appointed.

And when Wisma Putra does receive the official news, what then? For the record, we have never rejected anyone named as US “Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary” (the full title of the position) since 1957.

Aunty thinks we should not reject Adams. Hell no. What did he say in his X post on his nomination? “I can’t wait to experience your noble culture and learn much from you.”

That’s right. He can surely learn a thing or two from us. We can shower him with our amazing Malaysian hospitality and teach him how a Muslim-majority nation can also be a highly developed, peace-loving, multiracial practising democracy.

Also, I really don’t think he will be foolish enough to behave badly and spout his “alpha male”, misogynistic, Islamophobic nonsense here. Surely the US embassy’s staff of career diplomats and officers will know how to school and keep in check a political appointee, no matter how loose a cannon he may be.

As analyst Shahriman pointed out, as unpalatable as Trump is, “Yet we have all had to hold our noses and engage him regardless.” We should treat Adams likewise, although some people might mistake him for the High Commissioner from Australia because even after 13 years in America, he still speaks with a dinky-di Aussie accent!

He may miss his Hooters restaurant since there are none here, but Malaysian cuisine has never failed to win over stomachs. He will find he can read his Bible daily and go to church every Sunday here. He may even appreciate Malaysia’s conservatism that is aligned with his anti-LGBT stance.

When you think about it, just how much influence and impact does a US ambassador have on ordinary Malaysians anyway? In the ongoing tariff controversy, we don’t hear of current ambassador Edgard D. Kagan having any say or input. What he has been doing is mostly nice, winsome PR stuff.

Do we even remember any of them? Well, there was one I do recall: John R. Malott who served from January 1996 till December 1998. He was very pro-Reformasi, showed great interest in Malay­sian issues and continued to write about us long after his retirement.

When Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth grilled Dr Sinha during his Senate hearing, she told him not to treat Singapore as a “glamour posting”.

But that is actually what it is. KL is also a glamour posting, and Adams, an unmarried man with a penchant for the good life, could actually find us very charming and lovable. Who knows, we might even convert him.

Therefore, if he behaves, he can stay.

But if he doesn’t, Wisma Putra can summon him to convey displeasure or a warning. And if he really behaves badly and causes a major row, then we will have just cause to expel him. Under Article 9 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, we have the right to declare him “persona non grata”, which means he is no longer welcome and must leave the country.

So who’s afraid of Nick Adams? Not us lah!

The views expressed here are entirely the writer’s own.