Overview
- President Donald Trump nominated former Missouri congressman Billy Long to serve as U.S. ambassador to Iceland, but he has not taken up the post.
- Politico reported that Long joked Iceland could become the 52nd U.S. state and that he would be its governor.
- Iceland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it contacted the U.S. Embassy in Reykjavik to confirm whether the remark was made.
- A petition urging Foreign Minister Katrín Gunnarsdóttir to reject the nomination has drawn more than 4,000 signatures, according to local reports.
- Long told Arctic Today the comment was intended as humor and apologized if anyone was offended, as the episode feeds sensitivities over Arctic sovereignty.