The new US envoy is proud of his Irish roots, but he will find his hosts out of step with the White House on a range of issues from trade to Gaza
‘I am eager to advance the Trump administration’s agenda’: Edward S Walsh is sworn in as US ambassador to Ireland by President Donald Trump at the White House. Photo: White House
The new US ambassador to Ireland, Edward Walsh, has arrived in his palatial residence in the Phoenix Park with a welcome from the powers-that-be. But it is a reception tinged with awkwardness, and in certain quarters, the policies of his government will be met with downright hostility.
Lurking in the background is an ill-disguised Irish loathing of much of what is going on in Donald Trump’s White House – the war in Gaza, the bombing of Iran and the precarious nature of current trade talks which could be devastating for the Irish economy should they go wrong. What happens if the president of the United States throws an unpredictable hissy fit?