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Trump-Backing Staten Island Councilman Wants French Ambassador Job: Report

By Nicholas Rizzi | November 22, 2016 5:11pm
 Councilman Joe Borelli said he submitted his resume for a foreign policy job in President-elect Donald Trump's administration, but denied reports he was seeking to become the ambassador to France.
Councilman Joe Borelli said he submitted his resume for a foreign policy job in President-elect Donald Trump's administration, but denied reports he was seeking to become the ambassador to France.
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Facebook/Joe Borelli

STATEN ISLAND — Staten Island's Trump-supporting councilman wants to be the country's ambassador to France, according to a report.

Councilman Joe Borelli asked the president-elect to give him the post, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Borelli told DNAinfo New York he had sent his resume to Trump's transition team before the election and checked off foreign policy as something he'd be interested in.

But he denied he was pushing for the French job, which he called one of the top 200 jobs in the new administration.

"I’d put my resume in with the transition team and foreign policy jobs are one of the types I said I’d be interested in the questionnaire," said Borelli, who speaks French and has given TV interviews in the language.

"People are trying to make more of that," he said.

Borelli was the first elected official in the city to endorse Trump's run for president. He was co-chairman of the candidate's New York campaign and appeared on TV numerous times during the campaign.

If Borelli, who was re-elected to the council this month, does wind up with a job in Trump's administration it would likely set off another special election in Staten Island.

In 2015, Borelli won his South Shore City Council seat in an uncontested special election to replace Vincent Ignizio, who vacated his seat to become CEO of Catholic Charities of Staten Island.

Despite sending in his resume, Borelli is hosting his first fundraiser for next year's re-election campaign Tuesday night and said a move to France would be a hard sell for his family.

"Things are OK," Borelli said.

"It would be tough for my family to even move to D.C. if I was offered, let alone a foreign country."