Obama's man praises Kiwi contribution

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Most Kiwis won't care about David Huebner's sexual orientation, but in the world of American politics it is deemed relevant.

Mr Huebner (pronounced Heeb-ner), 49, is the first openly gay ambassador appointed by President Barack Obama and just the third in US history.

His appointment therefore caused the sort of flurry of interest in Washington that ambassadorial postings to Wellington do not normally create.

Mr Obama's nomination of Mr Huebner came days before the president was due to speak at a gay rights fundraising dinner, and ahead of a gay activist march on Washington.

The rainbow vote in last year's election went squarely to Mr Obama, but he has since been criticised for not doing enough for gay rights – although he has extended diplomatic privileges to same-sex partners of State Department staff.

The move followed ambassador Michael Guest quitting his post in Romania in 2001 after the department refused to extend his same-sex partner the same diplomatic status as spouses of the opposite sex.

Mr Huebner, a lawyer, is open about his sexuality. His partner of 20 years, psychiatrist Duane McWaine, attended his Senate confirmation hearing, is general counsel for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, and was a member of the Yale Aids Law Project.

But if Mr Huebner's appointment served a political purpose in Washington, in Wellington it is his stellar career and avowed interest in the Asia-Pacific that have raised interest in the United States' new man.

Mr Huebner's career path certainly marks him out as one of the most cerebral and academically gifted American ambassadors to New Zealand in recent times.

A summa cum laude (highest honour) graduate of Princeton University and Yale Law School, he taught at the University of Southern California. He chaired the California Law Revision Commission, before becoming head of the China division of law firm Sheppard Mullin Richter and Hampton, based in Shanghai, where he specialised in international arbitration and mediation.

Said to be an avid rugby fan, the new ambassador lists hiking, kayaking, volleyball, wine, cinema, books, dogs and "an eclectic range of music, art, and cuisine" among his interests.

Mr Huebner had humble beginnings. He was born in a small coalmining town in Pennsylvania, in a house owned by his immigrant grandparents. His father was a butcher who served in Korea.

At his appearance before the Senate, Mr Huebner said his grandparents taught him that, in America, anything was possible. "To them it would be no surprise that, in America, the grandson of a coal miner and the son of a meat cutter could be considered for appointment as a US ambassador."

He has declined interviews ahead of his arrival next week, but at his Senate appearance he praised New Zealand, and described the ties with Washington as "stronger now than at any time since 1985".

He made special mention of New Zealand's military efforts, including military and peacekeeping operations in Sinai, the Solomons, Sudan, Bosnia and East Timor, where Mr Huebner said Kiwi soldiers played a far bigger role than those from many countries with larger populations and forces.

He also noted the recent redeployment of the SAS to Afghanistan. He described the SAS as a "highly effective fighting force" and said the US was grateful for the "service and sacrifice" of its troops.

He confronted the nuclear elephant in the room head-on, praising New Zealand's "efforts to combat nuclear proliferation and the spread of weapons of mass destruction".

Under questioning about New Zealand's anti-nuclear stance, Mr Huebner explained that it was an issue of "national identity".

He could be a useful ally in New Zealand's attempts to push for a trade agreement with the US. He told the Senate he hoped to promote a stronger economic relationship and to increase opportunities for US trade and investment.

The ambassador will hold a press conference shortly after his arrival in Wellington, where he will hope for a better start than his predecessor, fish restaurant magnate Bill McCormick, who in 2005 had to go into damage control after saying "the ball's in your court" – a statement he later said had not meant it was up to New Zealand to repair the relationship between the two countries.

Mr McCormick's posting followed that of wealthy financier Charles Swindells, a personal friend of George W Bush who raised millions for his election campaigns. He warned in his exit speech that both countries had to work hard to fix a "mistrust" that had developed in the 20 years since New Zealand's anti-nuclear legislation.

In 1999, Carol Moseley-Braun initially turned down the job in favour of one in the Education Department that paid more.

- © Fairfax NZ News