How Ric Grenell Became Trump’s Go-To Fixer

Ric Grenell is back in the Trump administration and wearing multiple hats in his second round of service.

Post-election, Grenell set his sights on the role of Secretary of State, which eventually went to former Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL). Grenell’s coarse personality was cited as one reason for the snub, with Rubio being seen as more diplomatic.

Grenell now leads the presidential envoy for special missions and has been busy executing Trump’s plans. In the first few weeks of the Trump administration, Grenell secured the release of American hostages in Venezuela, pushed to rebuild California following devastating wildfires, and was even tapped by Trump to become the Kennedy Center's new president, reforming a center that Trump saw as succumbing to a leftist agenda with the hosting of sexualized performances such as drag shows.

Grenell’s first major accomplishment this term was negotiating the release of American hostages with Venezuela’s President Nicholas Maduro. Grenell called the day of the release of six American hostages from Venezuela “the greatest day of my 25-year career.” He recounted the scene that played out before him as he saw his fellow Americans, with “their feet shackled, their hands chained” and “black hoods over their heads,” finally informing them that he was an American diplomat to take them home.

Though working for the same administration, Grenell and Rubio appear to have competing agendas in Latin America. Rubio notably spoke with Venezuela’s opposition leader, Edmundo González, during his first month as Secretary of State. An official State Department release about the meeting referred to González  as “Venezuela’s rightful president.” Grenell, on the other hand, met with Maduro to negotiate the hostage release and seemingly acknowledged him as Venezuela’s leader. Maduro rewarded Grenell with a diplomatic win he could tout back home.

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