In March, President Donald Trump nominated orthopedic surgeon Dr. Anjani Sinha to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Singapore. According to the U.S. State Department, Sinha is known for having built his medical practice “with specialized teams across eight locations in New York.”
This announcement is great news! As @potus said, the U.S. and Singapore have a vital relationship, which I am confident will continue to flourish and make our countries safer, stronger, and more prosperous. pic.twitter.com/u5oi0ZFKcI
— Chargé d’Affaires Casey Mace (@USAmbSG) March 12, 2025
The State Department praised Sinha in a press release, asserting that the nominee’s “appreciation for Singapore’s role as a financial hub, and his own business expertise — particularly in the life sciences and healthcare sectors – render him well qualified to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Singapore.”
As seen below, Sinha appeared at a confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations this week and was questioned by Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL).
Sen. Tammy Duckworth calls out Trump’s Ambassador to Singapore for being completely unprepared and clueless. pic.twitter.com/KHo2geBY0p
— The Bulwark (@BulwarkOnline) July 9, 2025
Duckworth asked Sinha, “What does holding the ASEAN chairmanship entail for Singapore? Can you name one thing?” The Senator asked the nominee: “Can you name one thing that would be of critical importance to Singapore as ASEAN chair?”
When Sinha replied, “Defense, economics,” Duckworth replied, “Those are very broad, name an issue.” Sinha replied, “Trade.”
Visibly frustrated with Sinha’s unspecific replies, Duckworth then asked: “In what way does the United States Navy work with Singapore, and how do you envision strengthening the U.S.’s work with Singapore?”
When Sinha replied, “We have a naval presence in Singapore. Our military always do exercise with the Singapore. They come here, the army of Singapore, they come here for the training as well. So we have a close ties with the Singapore in defense,” Duckworth again asked, “Can you name a specific thing?”
Duckworth, a retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel who served in the Iraq War, added, “Please, I’m trying to help you here but you haven’t even done your homework, sir. You want to be ambassador to Singapore, one of the most important alliances, friends we have in the Indo-Pacific, a key place, where we’ll be fighting against our greatest adversary in the region, the PRC…it should not be treated as a glamour posting.”
[Note: During the hearing, Duckworth noted that she thinks the position should be held by a foreign service officer.]
Running out of time, Duckworth concluded: “When the political pick is somebody as unqualified as you, I’ve opposed political picks for Singapore from Democrats, so this is not a partisan issue. I just feel that you are not taking this seriously and you think this is a glamour posting, that you’re going to live a nice life in Singapore, but what we need is someone to actually do the work.”
She added, “I want to reenforce again for you right now, you are not currently prepared for this posting, period, and you need to shape up and do some homework.”