Biden nominee for Croatia diplomat is Latino activist, Dem donor from Planned Parenthood lobbying arm
Fox News
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced one of President Biden’s nominees this week — Latino activist and Democrat donor Nathalie Rayes — to serve as ambassador to Croatia.
Rayes is vice chair of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, an advocacy arm of the progressive organization advocating for policies in support of legalized abortion. She is also the CEO of Latino Victory Fund, a super PAC founded by big Democratic donor and actress Eva Longoria.
The organization’s PAC in the 2020 election cycle spent $9,118,302 in favor of Biden’s presidential campaign, accounting for 89% of its independent expenditures, according to Open Secrets.
In a closed business meeting Wednesday to vote on several international ambassador nominees, all 10 Republicans on the committee voted against Rayes, a senior aide told Fox News Digital.
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Ranking member James Risch, R-Idaho, voiced concerns specifically about Rayes’ involvement in Planned Parenthood before casting his vote, the aide said.
Appointed by Biden, Rayes serves on the board of the United States Institute of Peace, a federal agency responsible for fostering global conflict resolution and prevention. She also chairs the Hispanas Organized for Political Equality Binational Advisory Group, a progressive California-based organization that aims to elect Latinos in government positions.
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“I am deeply honored to be nominated as Ambassador to the Republic of Croatia. I thank @POTUS for the opportunity to serve my country,” Rayes posted on X, formerly Twitter, in May. “If confirmed, I will work to further strengthen our important relationship with the people and the government of Croatia.”
Rayes began her political career as a field deputy and subsequently served as a senior adviser to Los Angeles City Councilmember Mike Feuer, a Democrat, from 1995-2001.
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Rayes’ path in government continued as deputy chief of staff for Democratic Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn from 2001-2005, and she oversaw the Office of Intergovernmental Relations, International Trade, Protocol, and initiated the city’s inaugural Office of Immigrant Affairs.
Other nominees who advanced Wednesday were James C. O’Brien as assistant secretary of state (European and Eurasian Affairs), Dennis B. Henkins as ambassador to Haiti and Tobin John Bradley to the ambassadorship of Guatemala.
They must now undergo confirmation by the Senate.
The White House, the Planned Parenthood Action Fund and the Latino Victory Fund did not respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.