Journalism of Courage
Seven months after assuming office for the second term, US President Donald Trump nominated 38-year-old Sergio Gor as the new US ambassador to India.
Gor’s nomination comes at a time when India and the US ties have nosedived after the Trump administration has imposed 50 per cent tariffs on India.
Trump made the announcement, in a Truth social post, ““I am pleased to announce that I am promoting Sergio Gor to be our next United States Ambassador to the Republic of India, and Special Envoy for South and Central Asian Affairs. As Director of Presidential Personnel, Sergio and his team have hired nearly 4,000 America First Patriots across every Department of our Federal Government in RECORD time — Our Departments and Agencies are over 95% filled! Sergio will remain in his current role at the White House until his confirmation,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.”
“Sergio is a great friend, who has been at my side for many years. He worked on my Historic Presidential Campaigns, published my Best Selling Books, and ran one of the biggest Super PACs, which supported our Movement,” Trump said.
“Sergio’s role as Director of Presidential Personnel has been essential to delivering on the unprecedented Mandate that we received from the American People. For the most populous Region in the World, it is important that I have someone I can fully trust to deliver on my Agenda and help us, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump said.
Gor said, “Beyond grateful to @realDonaldTrump for his incredible trust and confidence in nominating me to the be his next U.S. Ambassador to India and Special Envoy for South and Central Asian Affairs! Nothing has made me prouder than to serve the American people through the GREAT work of this Administration! Our White House has achieved historic results in MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! It will be the honor of my life to represent the United States!”
Gor had sparked Trump’s explosive falling out with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk earlier this year — Musk had called him a snake — and it was reported that he was dragging his feet on submitting security clearance paperwork, despite vetting thousands of administration appointees.
Now, it remains to be seen how early the US Congress confirms his appointment, and Delhi would like to have an US ambassador as early as possible. After US ambassador Eric Garcetti left in January, the post has been lying vacant.
The new US ambassador will have a challenging task to accomplish, as New Delhi has been targeted by the US administration over tariffs and for buying Russian oil.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, “I am excited about the Presidents decisions to nominate @SergioGor to be our next Ambassador to India. He will be an excellent representative of America in one of the most important relationships our nation has in the world.”
But, the position of Special Envoy for South and Central Asian Affairs being clubbed with the US ambassador’s position is something new — and Delhi would be keen to figure out what will be his mandate.
According to US media reports, Gor was born in Uzbekistan in 1986 in the erstwhile Soviet Union. A report in a Maltese newspaper said that Gor’s family lived in Malta for a few years and then left Malta in 1999, emigrating with his family to the US where he attended high school in suburban Los Angeles before continuing his studies at George Washington University, a private federally chartered research university in Washington D.C.
According to The Dispatch, Gor enrolled at university under the surname Gorokhovsky before later shortening it. The media outlet reported that personal acquaintances of Gor said he had been born in the former Soviet Union.
Gor was an activist for US Senator and Presidential candidate John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign, when he was facing off against Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama.
In May 2013, Gor began working for Kentucky Senator Rand Paul’s political action committee, RANDPAC, eventually serving as Paul’s spokesman, communications director, and deputy chief of staff.
In June 2020, Gor left Paul’s office to serve as the chief of staff of the Trump Victory Finance Committee. The following month, he began working for Donald Trump Jr. as his consultant and book publishing manager.
Trump Jr. and Gor founded Winning Team Publishing, a conservative publishing house, in October 2021; the company published several books about Trump Jr.’s father, Donald Trump, including Our Journey Together (2021), Letters to Trump (2023), and Save America (2024). Gor was a senior advisor to MAGA Inc. and led a political action committee, Right for America, for Trump.
In November 2024, Trump named Gor as his director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office.
The PPO director was tasked with helping vet new appointees, and he was described as the man vetting the new appointees.
In his current role, Gor has been extremely influential at the centre of Trump’s agenda to reshape the federal government and pack it with his loyalists.
His appointment would mean that a trusted Trump aide will be in Delhi, and India can have access to the US president.
