Colleen Bell is a Hollywood supporter of Barack Obama. She is known as the producer of the wildly successful television soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. Bloomberg News columnist Jeffrey Goldberg has uncharitably characterized the show as “her masterwork.” Her true masterwork is in the fundraising department; she raised more than $500,000 for Obama’s reelection from her friends in Hollywood.
Obama duly rewarded Bell with appointment as the United States ambassador to Hungary. Okay, she earned the appointment the old-fashioned way. Her appointment remained pending in the Senate all year; she was only confirmed to the position by the Senate (under its new no-filibuster rule) earlier this week. To mark the occasion, ABC News included a memorable clip of John McCain questioning her at the Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing this past January here in its report. Ouch!
White House spokesman Josh Earnest took a few questions about Bell’s qualifications to serve from ABC’s Jon Karl at a press briefing earlier this week. Twelve months was apparently insufficient time for Earnest to come up with a face-saving rationale for Bell’s appointment, as he demonstrates in response to Karl’s questions in the video below.
Video via Daniel Halper/Weekly Standard.
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