Could Breitbart Editor Joel Pollak Be Next American Envoy to South Africa?

Image by CNN

By Dave Goldiner February 7, 2017

Breitbart News alumni are already fast filling the ranks at the Trump White House with far-right flamethrower Steve Bannon said to be the new president’s most powerful lieutenant.

Now, Joel Pollak, Breitbart’s editor-at-large is being tipped to be the Donald’s new ambassador to South Africa, the influential local Daily Maverick web site reported.

Pollak was born in South Africa to a Jewish family that emigrated to the United States and once served as speechwriter to Tony Leon, who was leader of the liberal opposition party.

He’s married to the daughter of a onetime anti-apartheid activists and would seem to have strong ties to the country’s strongly pro-Israel Jewish establishment.

But former colleagues in the Democratic Alliance and other South African commentators are reportedly expressing dismay that Pollak, whose political views have veered to the far right, could wind up being America’s man in Pretoria.

The ties to Trump could be embarrassing to the DA as it seeks to gain traction against the ruling African National Congress since the new president is widely viewed here as a dangerous and divisive figure.

Ex-colleague Gareth van Onselen told the Daily Maverick that Pollack “could be difficult, unavailable, fraught and sometimes unthinkingly impulsive.”

Dave Goldiner is the Forward’s director of digital media. Dave is a veteran journalist who has spent two decades working at newspapers in the United States and Africa. A native New Yorker, Goldiner wrote for the New York Daily News, where he covered some of the biggest stories of our time, including the attacks of September 11, along with thousands of stories of hope and heartbreak. He also studied and worked in Southern Africa and has written for publications in South Africa and Zimbabwe. He holds masters degrees in journalism and public administration from Columbia University. Dave can be reached at [email protected], or follow him on Twitter @davegoldiner

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