Trump Taps MAGA Influencer Nick Adams for Ambassadorship
President Donald Trump has made his fair share of controversial nominations to his administration, tapping wrestling executive Linda McMahon to lead the Department of Education and former Fox News host Pete Hegseth to lead the Defense Department. And on Thursday, Trump made one of his most incomprehensible picks yet, naming conservative influencer and Trump loyalist Nick Adams to be the next U.S. ambassador to Malaysia, a longtime U.S. ally and trading partner that is home to more than 34 million people. Adams, a naturalized citizen from Australia who’s known for his self-professed “alpha male” approach to politics, doesn’t have any reported experience in foreign diplomacy. In a tweet, Adams thanked Trump for the nomination, adding that he looks forward to the Senate confirmation process “that is at the heart of the Constitution that has given me the freedom to pursue the American Dream.”
Here’s what we know and what we don’t.
Is this really happening?
Yes. On Wednesday, the president officially forwarded the nominations for several ambassadorships to the U.S. Senate, including that of Adams to be the nation’s leading diplomat to Malaysia.
In a three-minute video set to patriotic-sounding music, Adams compared his being tapped for the position to the Americans similarly called to serve in the nation’s armed forces or as first responders.
“Today, duty has called me to serve my country overseas. Not in the uniform of combat, but armed with the pen of diplomacy. Our president has extended the hand of friendship to old allies and new across the world. It’s nothing short of a lifetime’s honor to take the president’s goodwill and spread it to the great people of Malaysia,” he said.
Mr. President, thank you for the honor of a lifetime. In your America, all dreams come true. It will be my honor to represent the United States of America in Malaysia.
— Nick Adams (@NickAdamsinUSA) July 10, 2025
To the esteemed Members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I look forward to a confirmation process… pic.twitter.com/SRyTEnCpwS
Does being a Twitter troll translate to diplomacy?
Probably not very well. In recent years, Adams has been known for his inescapable presence on social media, where he opines on every subject under the sun through a hypermasculine conservative lens. He denounced billionaire popstar Taylor Swift as a “jezebel.” This week, he said illegal immigration was responsible for “almost all of America’s economic and infrastructure problems.”
In 2022, Adams posted a video outside the M&Ms Store in Times Square, vowing to boycott the candy for its all-female packaging. “Not one M&M will pass my lips until Mars issues a formal apology and releases an all-male package of M&M’s to demonstrate their commitment to gender equality,” he wrote.
Last year, Adams described his ideal woman in a post that strained the limits of parody:
My ideal woman:
— Nick Adams (@NickAdamsinUSA) September 28, 2024
- 10/10
- Low maintenance
- Strong Trump supporter
- No desire to interfere with my foursomes
- Picks me up from Hooters when I’ve had a few too many domestics with the boys
- Has dinner ready at 5pm
- Doesn’t ask questions when I’m out late with the boys https://t.co/ksk3qfhMML
Does Adams have any relevant experience?
Prior to his arrival in America, Adams served in local government in Australia, becoming a deputy mayor in Ashfield in 2005 at 21, the youngest to do so in the country’s history. According to Ben Terris’s Washington Post profile, Adams gained notoriety there for an unsuccessful proposal to kill the city’s pigeons in order to prevent the spread of avian flu. “Ashfield should be inhospitable to pigeons,” he said at the time. His right-wing political career in Australia was eventually derailed by his right-wing motivational-speaking career in the U.S., where he immigrated in 2012.
Adams is also the founder of Foundation for Liberty and American Greatness or FLAG, a nonprofit that is “dedicated to educating Americans about the values and principles that make our nation exceptional,” per its website.
By comparison, the current U.S. ambassador to Malaysia has a somewhat different résumé than Adams. Edgard Kagan, who was nominated to the role by President Joe Biden in 2023, is a career diplomat with the Senior Foreign Service and speaks multiple languages including French, Mandarin Chinese, and Hungarian.
Malaysia does in fact have its own pigeon problems, however.
Did Trump nominate Adams because he’s Australian and Australia is near Malaysia?
That’s not clear, but it’s entirely possible.
Will the Senate actually confirm him?
Remains to be seen. During Trump’s tenure, the Senate has confirmed its fair share of highly contested nominees, including many with less experience than their predecessors, like Hegseth and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who leads the Department of Health and Human Services. Considering Adams’s prolific social-media history, congressional staffers (at least, Democratic ones) will likely have their hands full as they prep their bosses for his confirmation hearing.