David Thorne is nominated for Ambassador to Italy

[karynnj]

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/06/25/1978367.aspx?CommentPosted=true#commentmessage

Kerry friend, two more bundlers get jobs

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro and Kelly O'Donnell
Senate Foreign Relations Committe Chairman John Kerry's former-brother-in law -- who remains a close friend -- and two more Obama top fundraisers were handed plum jobs as ambassadors to Italy, Austria and Finland.

David Thorne's late sister Julia was Kerry's first wife and mother of his daughters. He was named ambassador to Italy

Now, it would be nice had they mentioned that Thorne had a connection to Italy - having lived there for many years when he was young.

I commented, but it is moderated and not there with that information which was in Kerry books and the NYT profile because of Julia.

[Luftmensch067]

1. Interesting

The piece I saw yesterday is packed with FAR more nasty innuendo, but it DOES mention that Thorne was "only a modest contributor" to the Obama campaign, which is the opposite of the connotation in the MSNBC piece. The only note it has about an Italian connection is this:

David Thorne is a co-founder of Adviser Investments, "one of the nation's most highly regarded firms specializing in Vanguard and Fidelity mutual funds and electronically traded funds,'' the White House says.

He also was publisher of The Rome Daily American, "one of the most successful English language newspapers serving Southern Europe.''

He recently sold his publishing business to Martha Stewart Omnimedia.

More here: http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2009/06/obamas_italian_rep_kerrys_old.html

I suppose the true breadth of his connection to Italy will be brought out in the confirmation hearing.

Edited to add link!

[beachmom]

2. Here is more information on his background in Italy (impressive):

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aY91oawUP4w0

Obama also nominated Senator John Kerry’s close friend and former brother-in-law, David Thorne, as ambassador to Italy and San Marino. Thorne is a co-founder of Adviser Investments, based in Newton, Massachusetts, and was publisher of the English- language Rome Daily American. Kerry, of Massachusetts, was the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee. Thorne’s twin sister, Julia, married Kerry in 1970. The two were divorced in 1988.

“David will bring to the post a lifelong connection to Italy, a keen intellect, fluent command of the Italian language, and a rich background in Southern European affairs, said Kerry, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “David is a veteran who cares deeply about his country and comes from a family steeped in public service, and I’m thrilled that he’s been tapped to serve his nation.”