On August 21, 2018, Trump nominated Gunter to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Iceland; the Senate took no action on the nomination, which expired on January 3, 2019 at the end of the 115th Congress. Trump then renominated Gunter on January 16, 2019, at the outset of the 116th Congress; on May 23, 2019, following a hearing in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gunter was confirmed by the Senate by voice vote. Gunter presented his credentials on July 2, 2019. Gunter had never visited Iceland prior to his nomination to the ambassadorship.
Controversial tenure
Gunter's tenure has been controversial. In July 2020, CBS News reported, that, according to interviews with diplomats, officials, and persons familiar with the situation, Gunter was "paranoid" about his security in the Icelandic capital, Reykjavik, despite its status as one of the world's safest cities; Gunter asked the State Department to seek special permission from the Icelandic government for him to carry a gun, had asked requested to wear a "stab-proof vest" and have door-to-door armored car service. Three diplomatic sources interviewed CBS News said that Gunter was persuaded not to arm himself because it would be perceived as insulting to Iceland; the embassy nevertheless placed an advertisement in the Icelandic press seeking full-time Icelandic bodyguards, which CBS News' sources described as a way to "placate Gunter's 'irrational' concerns."
According to those interviewed by CBS News, the work climate at the Embassy in Reykjavik was "untenable" under Gunter's leadership; in fewer than two years on the job, Gunter had already had seven deputy chiefs of mission, the second-highest positions at the embassy, held by career foreign service officers. A State Department official told CBS that the first DCM spent months learning Icelandic, but was rejected by Gunter, reportedly because the ambassador "didn't like the look of him" at their first meeting. The second DCM spent only six months in Iceland, and was followed a series of short-term temporary DCMs, with whom Gunter reportedly clashed frequently. CBS News also reported that Gunter "accused others of various, unsubstantiated infractions, including trying to undermine him to Washington and being complicit with the 'deep state.'" In February 2020, after taking personal leave after a conference in Washington, Gunter refused to return to his post in Reykjavik. The State Department attributed Gunter's delayed return to Iceland to the COVID-19 pandemic; however, "multiple sources in Washington, Reykjavik and elsewhere said Gunter wanted to work remotely from California and told senior officials he would not go back overseas unless expressly ordered to do so by Secretary of StateMike Pompeo." A series of senior State Department officials failed to persuaded Gunter until Pompeo called him; Gunter returned to Iceland in May 2020. Gunter is controversial in Iceland, with many objecting to his description of COVID-19 as "the Invisible China Virus!" on Twitter.
