(Bloomberg) -- President-elect Donald Trump selected billionaire Tilman Fertitta as his ambassador to Italy, enlisting a prominent businessman and onetime reality television star for a prime diplomatic post.
“Tilman is an accomplished businessman, who has founded and built one of our Country’s premier entertainment and real estate companies, employing approximately 50,000 Americans,” Trump said in a post to his Truth Social network on Saturday. “Tilman has a long history of giving back to the community through numerous philanthropic initiatives, which include children’s charities, Law Enforcement, and the medical community.”
Fertitta is the chair and chief executive officer of Fertitta Entertainment and has built up an extensive portfolio of restaurant and hospitality brands. Among his holdings are Landry’s Inc., the NBA’s Houston Rockets and the Golden Nugget casinos.
Landry’s oversees brands including the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and Morton’s The Steakhouse. Fertitta also owns Mastro’s Steakhouse, Del Frisco’s Grille, Strip House, the Palm and the Corner Store in New York.
“It is an honor to be nominated to serve my country as Ambassador to Italy and I look forward to the process ahead,” Fertitta said in a statement. “Italy is such an extraordinary country with its wonderful people, culture and history and its strategic importance to the United States of America.”
Fertitta was a prominent donor to Trump during the 2024 election, including giving at least $487,300 to the Trump 47 Committee and $3,300 to Donald J. Trump for President 2024 Inc. He’s one of a number of important donors selected for choice roles in the new administration.
Fertitta was also the star of a reality TV show, Billion Dollar Buyer, on CNBC.
If confirmed by the US Senate, Fertitta will be the envoy to a country that also has a populist leader in Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Meloni has a close rapport with Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and also a supporter of the president-elect.
Joe Biden plans to visit Rome in January for meetings with Meloni and an audience with Pope Francis on what’s likely to be his last overseas trip as US president.
--With assistance from Meghashyam Mali, John Harney, Laura Davison and Gregory Korte.
(Updates with Fertitta’s statement in fifth paragraph.)
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