Richard Nixon

Richard Nixon: D.C. Socialite Wasn't Made Ambassador Just Because She Had 'Big Bosoms'

Ryan J. Reilly | November 10, 2011, 3:25PM

Richard Nixon wanted prosecutors to get something straight during his grand jury testimony on the Watergate controversy: wealthy D.C. socialite Perle Mesta wasn't made ambassador to Luxembourg just "because she had big bosoms." It was just because she "made a good contribution."

Mesta -- pictured here -- was appointed to the Luxembourg post by President Harry Truman in 1949 and died in March of 1975. Nixon's grand jury testimony was three months after she died.

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Topics: Ambassadors, Campaign Contributions, Campaign Donations, Luxembourg, Richard Nixon, Watergate

Cynthia Stroum

Ambassador: 'Caught Off Guard' Over Criticisms Of Management Style

Ryan J. Reilly | February 7, 2011, 9:50AM

Former ambassador to Luxembourg Cynthia Stroum -- a big-time Obama donor who was criticized in an inspector general's report for treating her staff poorly, obsessing over a bathroom remodeling, improperly spending money, wasting employees' time and propelling "Embassy Luxembourg to a state of dysfunction" -- says she's proud of her work.

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Topics: Cynthia Stroum, Luxembourg, Obama Administration, State Department