Sam Zakhem
United States Ambassador to Bahrain
In office
October 6, 1986 – August 1, 1989
PresidentRonald Reagan
George H. W. Bush
Preceded byDonald Leidel
Succeeded byCharles Hostler
Personal details
Born (1935-11-25) November 25, 1935
Lebanon
Political partyRepublican
ResidenceDenver, Colorado
Alma materThe American University in Cairo
University of Detroit
University of Colorado
ProfessionProfessor
Politician

Sam Hanna Zakhem (born November 25, 1935) is a Lebanese-born American politician and diplomat who served as a member of the Colorado General Assembly, and later as the U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Bahrain.[1][2][3]

Biography

Zakhem was born to a wealthy family in Lebanon but his father disinherited him when he emigrated to the United States. He came to the US after graduating from the American University in Cairo in 1957. He went on to graduate with a master's degree in economics at the University of Detroit. Zakhem returned to Lebanon but did not stay long. In 1965, he moved to Denver and worked various jobs while studying political science at the University of Colorado Boulder's graduate school, graduating with a Ph.D.[4] He has a wife Merilynn and three sons.[5]

Colorado General Assembly

Zakhem was elected twice to the Colorado House of Representatives (1974 and 1976) and was elected to the Colorado Senate in 1978.[4] In the House, he sat on the Committee on Game Fish & Parks and the Committee on Local Government State Affairs and in the Senate, he sat on the Committee Business Affairs & Labor Finance and the Committee on Health Environment Welfare & Institutions.[3]

While a member of the Colorado General Assembly, Zakhem ran for higher office on two occasions. In 1980, he ran for US Senate. He lost the nomination to Mary Estill Buchanan, the incumbent Colorado Secretary of State.[6] In 1982, Buchanan chose not to run for reelection as Secretary of State. Zakhem ran for the nomination, losing in the primary to Natalie Meyer.[7]

Ambassadorship

Zakhem’s fundraising for conservative political causes was part of the reason Ronald Reagan appointed him as Ambassador in 1986. The State Department was not impressed because “ his resume lacked foreign affairs expertise, and one State Department observer labeled him an "amateur" dangerously miscast in the hot-spot of Middle East politics.” [4]

At the time of his appointment, some said he was the most dangerous person in the Middle East. Bahrain served as “the de facto headquarters for the biggest U.S. naval armada assembled since World War II.”[8]

Zakhem considered himself “a leading expert on Arab matters.” Deputy Secretary of State John Whitehead recalled him once for dealing with the Bahraini Government outside of official channels. He also argued with CIA analysts over whether or not the family ruling Bahrain would be overthrown by the pro-Iranian Shiite majority in the country. It turned out Zakhem was right.[4] He has also been criticized for his role in the sale of an advanced anti-aircraft missile, the Stinger, which are portable and shoulder-launched.[8]

Post-ambassadorship

In 1992, Zakhem and two other men were indicted and “charged with secretly accepting $7.7 million from the Government of Kuwait to act as undisclosed foreign agents in a "propaganda campaign" to generate support for the war against Iraq.” According to the indictment, the men failed to report the money, a violation of Federal tax laws, and while lobbying the US Congress and Administration, did not disclose their status as Kuwaiti agents, a violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act.[4][9] In 1994, charges were dismissed except for the charges of tax fraud. In March, 1995, he and his co-defendants were acquitted on those charges.[10]

In 2002, he ran for the United States House of Representatives from the newly-created Colorado's 7th congressional district.[11] He lost the nomination to Bob Beauprez and finished third of four candidates in the Republican primary.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "Sam H. Zakhem (1935–)". Office of the Historian. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  2. ↑ Sallinger, Rick (December 3, 2018). "Former Colorado Legislator Fondly Remembers Time Spent With The Late President Bush". CBS Denver. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  3. 1 2 "COLORADO LEGISLATORS PAST AND PRESENT: Sam Hanna Zakhem". Colorado General Assembly. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Johnson, Dirk (July 10, 1992). "Ex-Envoy Calls Indictment 'a Shock'". New York Times. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  5. ↑ "SOURCE: 7th Congressional District". The Denver Post. July 28, 2002. p. 08 – via NewsBank.
  6. ↑ Bartels, Lynn (March 16, 2014). "RIP: Bo Callaway, a fixture in Georgia and Colorado politics". The Denver Post – via NewsBank.
  7. ↑ Goodland, Marianne (September 23, 2021). "Former Colorado Secretary of State Natalie Meyer dead at 91". The Gazette – via NewsBank.
  8. 1 2 Straus, Richard B. (December 13, 1987). "U.S. Wild Card Dealt Into the Middle East". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  9. ↑ Goshko, John M. (July 5, 1992). "U.S. EX-ENVOY INDICTED IN KUWAITI 'FRONTS'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  10. ↑ Shore, Sandy (March 7, 1995). "Former Ambassador Acquitted of Tax Fraud". AP. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  11. ↑ "7th Congressional District: The issues". The Denver Post. August 11, 2002. p. A-32 – via NewsBank.
  12. ↑ "U.S. CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS". Rocky Mountain News. August 14, 2002. p. 26A.
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