Kevin Rudd deletes commentary critical of Donald Trump after US presidential win

Kevin Rudd is deleting past statements he made about US president-elect Donald Trump before becoming the ambassador to Washington as Australia scrambles to ensure it will still have a strong relationship with the new American administration.

Dr Rudd’s office issued a statement noting he had been a regular commentator on American politics in his previous role as the head of US-based think tank the Asia Society.

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“Out of respect for the office of President of the United States, and following the election of President Trump, Ambassador Rudd has now removed these past commentaries from his personal website and social media channels,” it said.

“This has been done to eliminate the possibility of such comments being misconstrued as reflecting his positions as ambassador and, by extension, the views of the Australian Government.”

Earlier this year, Mr Trump said Dr Rudd was clearly “not the brightest bulb” but that he didn’t know much about him, after being informed by UK politician Nigel Farage in an interview of some of the Australian’s previous criticisms.

“If he is at all hostile he will not be there long,” Mr Trump said.

The comments sparked months of speculation about Dr Rudd’s future as ambassador to the US, a post he has only held for 20 months.

Labor will hope past criticisms of Mr Trump - including from now Prime Minister Anthony Albanese - doesn’t harm efforts to build ties with the new US administration.

Mr Albanese in 2017 said Mr Trump “scares the s... out of me”, while other colleagues publicly criticised the President’s character and policies during his first term.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil last year described Donald Trump’s son as a “big baby” after he complained about visa delays to enter Australia.

The post was quickly deleted.

Mr Albanese also rebuked then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison for aligning himself so closely with Mr Trump.

Mr Albanese on Thursday reiterated his support for Dr Rudd to remain in the post despite the past comments, which included the claim that Mr Trump was the “most destructive president in history”.

“Kevin Rudd is doing a terrific job as Australia’s ambassador to the United States,” Mr Albanese said on Thursday.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong pointed to Dr Rudd’s track record in the job including assisting the passage of legislation through Congress enabling the AUKUS submarine deal.

“(We were) really pleased to see some of the changes that have been delivered, with bipartisan support, Republican support, for AUKUS. Kevin’s worked very hard with the rest of the team at the embassy to deliver that,” she said.

Under questioning at Senate estimates, Senator Wong described Mr Rudd as a “highly respected individual” and “highly effective ambassador”.

“We think he brings precisely the sort of expertise that you want as an ambassador in this most critical of relationships,” she said, highlighting Mr Rudd’s world-renowned expertise on China.

Shadow foreign affairs minister Simon Birmingham questioned why Mr Rudd waited until Mr Trump’s election win to wipe traces of the inflammatory comments, rather than removing them when he was appointed US ambassador in March 2023.

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Secretary Jan Adams said Mr Rudd chose to remove the statements out of “respect for the office of president”.

“There has been a material change in circumstances given that Former President Trump is now also President-elect,” she said.

Mr Rudd made the decision himself and not at DFAT’s request, Ms Adams said.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton referenced Mr Rudd’s workaholic reputation in considering how he would be preparing to represent Australia.

“You know K-Rudd as well as I do — he’ll be down at the tie shop, he’d be buying up red ties, he’d be buying red hats, he’ll be ordering those MAGA hats. He will do everything he can to ingratiate himself with the Trump campaign,” he told 2GB radio.