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Georgette Mosbacher

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Georgette Mosbacher
United States Ambassador to Poland
In office
September 6, 2018 – January 20, 2021
PresidentDonald Trump
Preceded byPaul W. Jones
Succeeded byB. Bix Aliu
Personal details
Born
Georgette Paulsin

(1947-01-16) January 16, 1947 (age 77)
Highland, Indiana, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Political partyRepublican
Spouses
  • Robert Muir
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1972; div. 1977)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1979; div. 1982)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1985; div. 1998)​
Residence(s)New York City, U.S.
Alma materIndiana University
AwardsGrand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland

Ellis Island Medal of Honor

Georgette Mosbacher (née Paulsin; January 16, 1947) is an American business executive, entrepreneur, and political activist who served as the United States Ambassador to Poland from 2018 to 2021. She is the chairman of the Green Beret Foundation advisory board,[1] and a Fox News contributor.[2] On November 19, 2015, President Barack Obama nominated her as a member of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy.[3]

Mosbacher started her career as an executive in 1987 when she purchased the struggling cosmetics firm La Prairie, outbidding companies such as Revlon, Avon, and Estee Lauder.[4] After selling La Prairie in 1991 to Beiersdorf for a profit,[5] in the 1990s she founded Georgette Mosbacher Enterprises, her own business and finance consulting company.[6] From 2000[7] to 2015 she served as CEO of Borghese,[7] a cosmetics manufacturer based in New York City.[8] Mosbacher authored two motivational books for women in the 1990s: Feminine Force through Simon & Schuster[9] and It Takes Money Honey through HarperCollins.[10]

Active in American politics, Mosbacher previously served as a co-chair of the Republican National Committee’s Finance Committee,[11][12] and she was the first woman to serve as the general chairperson of the Republican Governors Association.[13] Mosbacher has been noted in the media for her private fundraising events since the 1990s,[14] and after supporting John McCain's bid for senate in 1998,[15] she served as national co-chairman of McCain's 2000 presidential campaign[11][12][16] and also anchored fundraising efforts for campaigns such as Bush Cheney '04.[5] Involved with a number of non-profit organizations, in 1995[11] she founded the New York Center for Children,[11] which aims to assist abused children and their families.[17] A fellow at the Foreign Policy Association,[11] she is a board-member for Business Executives for National Security (BENS) and the Atlantic Council,[1][11] among other organizations.[18]

On February 14, 2018, President Donald Trump nominated Mosbacher to be Ambassador to the Republic of Poland.[19] On July 12, 2018 her nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate by voice vote.[20] On December 26, 2020, Mosbacher announced her intent to resign, effective January 20, 2021.[21]

Early life and education

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A native of Highland, Indiana,[15][22] Georgette Mosbacher (née Paulsin) was born to Dorothy (Bell) and George Paulsin.[4][15][23] Her father died in an automobile accident when she was young,[15] leaving the seven-year-old Georgette and her three younger siblings[24] under the care of their mother,[4] grandmother, and great-grandmother.[16] When her mother returned to work,[4] Mosbacher took on childcare duties for her brother George[4] and two sisters, Melody and Lyn.[15]

Mosbacher attended high school in Highland, Indiana, graduating in 1965.[15] She went on to earn a B.S. in education[15] from Indiana University in 1970.[4][22] As an undergraduate student she worked three jobs in order to fund her education.[24] After graduating from Indiana University, Mosbacher moved to Chicago to take a job at an advertising firm.[22]

Business career

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Mosbacher in 1999

Mosbacher purchased the high-end cosmetics firm La Prairie in 1987, outbidding companies such as Revlon, Avon, and Estee Lauder.[4] Despite the fact that La Prairie had been struggling with sales,[25] she had raised the funds for the purchase[25] by pitching to investors and venture capitalists.[24] As primary owner[11] of the Switzerland-based company,[26] she also served as CEO[6] and president[26] for four years.[5] Among other changes,[4] she sold La Prairie in 1991 to Beiersdorf, a large personal care products provider based in Germany.[5][26]

After selling La Prairie, in the 1990s she founded her own consulting company,[6] Georgette Mosbacher Enterprises.[11][27] Described as an "international entrepreneurial and consulting business in New York City,"[11] she served as chairman[28] and CEO.[11][28] Mosbacher published her first book,[24] the semi-autobiographical and women's motivational guide Feminine Force: Release the Power Within to Create the Life You Deserve, in 1993. Released through Simon & Schuster,[9] it had a foreword by Kathie Lee Gifford.[12] Her second book, It Takes Money Honey: A Get-Smart Guide to Total Financial Freedom, was also partly focused on finances, and was released through HarperCollins in 1998.[10]

After serving as a consultant to the company since 1999,[24] in 2000 Mosbacher was appointed chief executive officer of Borghese, a prominent cosmetics manufacturer based in New York City.[11] She also took on the role of president,[11] and by 2006 had been appointed chairwoman.[24] The Borghese brand had first started in the 14th century in Italy, using minerals and ingredients from Tuscany.[8] Upon becoming CEO, she closed half of the line's outlets to retain exclusivity, and reduced the number of items to focus on core products.[24] During her early years at Borghese, she helped the company expand its global operations and establish a wide distribution network in China.[13]

Political career

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A longtime Republican,[29] Mosbacher served as a co-chair of the Republican National Committee’s Finance Committee,[11][12] and she has furthermore been involved with the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the New Republican Majority Fund.[15] She was New York State's Republican National Committeewomen[29] for more than a decade,[13] and was also the first woman to serve as the general chairman of the Republican Governors Association,[13] a role she continued to hold as of 2001.[30] Mosbacher was a presidential appointee to the US Advisory Board for Trade Policy and Negotiations,[29] a gubernatorial appointee as a New York Commissioner of Racing, and a mayoral appointee for trustee of the New York Hudson River Park Trust.[29] She has also been involved with the National Women's Economic Alliance.[15] On November 19, 2015, it was announced that President Obama had nominated her to be a member of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy.[3]

Mosbacher has been noted in the media for her private fundraising events since the 1990s,[14][31] and after supporting John McCain's bid for senate in 1998,[15] she served as national co-chairman of McCain's 2000 presidential campaign.[11][12][16] Mosbacher also anchored fundraising efforts for Bush Cheney '04, John McCain 2008, George W. Bush for president,[5] John Ashcroft 2000, John McCain 2008, and McCain-Palin Victory 2008.[15] Other American politicians she has fundraised for include Fred Thompson, Dick Lugar, Rudy Giuliani, Roy Blunt, Mitt Romney, and David Dreier.[15]

On February 12, 2018 President Donald Trump nominated her for a position of United States Ambassador to Poland to replace Paul W. Jones.[32] On July 12, 2018 her nomination was confirmed in the United States Senate by voice vote.[20]

In the media

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In relation to both business and politics,[28] Mosbacher has lent her opinions and personal anecdotes to several radio and television programs, including CNN’s Pinnacle, The Today Show, Larry King Live,[18] Fox Business,[2] C-SPAN,[33] and This Weekend with Lou Dobbs.[12] She has also been interviewed by publications such as Small Business Advocate[34] and the Wall Street Journal,[35] and a number of her op-eds have been published in publications such as the Washington Times[36] and Financial Times, covering topics such as health care for war veterans.[37] While she generally takes a Republican standpoint in relation to political issues, she has at times expressed frustration with Republican candidates and politicians,[12] for example over incidents such as Congress stalling the vote on aid for Hurricane Sandy in 2012.[38] She also has appeared on Bravo Television series Southern Charm as Patricia Altschul's best friend, and partner in her customized dog caftan business.[39][40]

Charity work and boards

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For several decades, Mosbacher has been involved with a number of non-profit organizations. In 1995[11] she founded the Children's Advocacy Center of Manhattan (CAC),[24] currently known as the New York Center for Children,[11] which aims to assist abused children and their families.[17] She is a trustee of several charitable and civic organizations, including the Hudson River Park Trust and the New York Racing Association.[11][18] Mosbacher has also received appointments from the M.D. Anderson Hospital Cancer Center[18] and is on the board of the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.[29] Through her own charitable foundation, Mosbacher provides two annual scholarships for women in the MBA program at Indiana University, her alma mater.[18]

She was elected to the board of directors of the information commerce company Intelius[11] in October 2009,[41] and is also on the boards of the Atlantic Council, the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, and has served on the advisory boards of Brasilinvest, RUSI International, and the Dilenschneider Group.[29] A fellow at the Foreign Policy Association,[11] she is a board-member for the International Institute for Strategic Studies.[11] Mosbacher has been on the board of advisors for Diligence London, Harvard Center For Public Leadership, Gow & Partners LLC, Grupo Brasilinvest S.A., and Village Cares.[11] She is a chairman of the Green Beret Foundation and a board-member for Business Executives for National Security (BENS) and the Atlantic Council,[1] among other organizations.[18]

Awards and recognition

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Georgette Mosbacher has received several awards throughout her career, including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor,[42] the Entrepreneurial Woman of the Year Award from the American Women's Economic Development Corporation,[42] the Distinguished Humanitarian Award from Brandeis University,[11] and the Outstanding Business Leader Award from the Northwood Institute.[11] In 2002, the National Republican Congressional Committee's (NRCC) Business Advisory Council awarded Mosbacher with their National Leadership Award, in part citing her activism relating to small business issues.[42] In March 2015, Mosbacher was given the Founder's Award from Hedge Funds Care "in recognition of her efforts spearheading the Manhattan Children’s Advocacy Center."[17] She holds a Doctor of Business Administration Honorary Causa from Bryant College[11] and an honorary doctorate from the International Fine Arts College.[11][29]

On January 12, 2021 President of Poland Andrzej Duda decorated her with 1st class Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, the order was awarded "in recognition of outstanding achievements in developing Polish-American friendly relations and cooperation, and for involvement in activities for international security."[43]

Personal life

[edit]

Based in Manhattan, in the 1970s Mosbacher was married to Robert Muir,[15] and after their divorce in 1977,[15] for a time she was married to George Barrie,[15] the CEO of Fabergé and Brut Productions.[4] On March 1, 1985, she married Robert Mosbacher, moving to Houston.[4] In 1989 President, George H. W. Bush appointed Robert Mosbacher to the position of United States Secretary of Commerce. On June 12, 1990, she was robbed at gun point in front of her hotel room at the Barbizon Plaza in Manhattan (now Trump Parc). She dove into an elevator, the door of which unexpectedly opened, rang the alarm and rode it to the ground floor; the gunman vanished with her jewelry and handbag.[44] After 13 years of marriage, Georgette Mosbacher and her husband divorced in 1998.[15] In 2017, she gave a brief video tour of her Fifth Avenue home, discussing her many distinguished guests at parties there, on the NBC television series Open House.[45]

Controversies

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Mosbacher courted controversy when she suggested that Poland was responsible for the re-emergence of anti-Semitism across the continent of Europe because of a law which criminalizes blaming Poland for the actions of Nazi Germany on its soil during the Holocaust.[46]

Prior to being appointed, Polish President Andrzej Duda stated that if Mosbacher were appointed as the new U.S. ambassador to Poland, she would be accepted, despite having made "unnecessary and mistaken" comments about the country.

Publishing history

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Books authored by Georgette Mosbacher
Year Release title Publisher ISBN, notes
1993 Feminine Force: Release The Power Within To Create The Life You Deserve[9] Simon & Schuster ISBN 0-671-79896-0
1998 It Takes Money, Honey: A Get-Smart Guide to Total Financial Freedom[10] HarperCollins ISBN 0-06-039236-3

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Board of Advisors – Georgette Mosbacher". Green Beret Foundation. Retrieved 2015-11-20.
  2. ^ a b "Obama's Plan for Small Businesses". Houston Press. May 6, 2011. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  3. ^ a b "President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts". whitehouse.gov. November 19, 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-20 – via National Archives.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Swartz, Mimi (December 1988). "Zoom at the Top". Texas Monthly. Emmis Communications. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Georgette Mosbacher". Right Pundits. Archived from the original on April 2, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  6. ^ a b c Gray, Lisa (January 28, 1999). "How to Divorce a Millionaire". Houston Press. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  7. ^ a b Horowitz, Jason (September 19, 2012). "Georgette and Lyn: A tale of two sisters". Washington Post. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  8. ^ a b "Mosbacher's Mission". Leadership Magazine. February 2014. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  9. ^ a b c Mosbacher, Georgette (1993). Feminine Force: Release The Power Within To Create The Life You Deserve. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-671-79896-0.
  10. ^ a b c Mosbacher, Georgette (1998). It Takes Money, Honey: A Get-Smart Guide to Total Financial Freedom. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-039236-3.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y "Georgette Mosbacher". Bloomberg. Retrieved November 11, 2014.[dead link‍]
  12. ^ a b c d e f g Potempa, Philip, "Georgette Mosbacher smiling with gritted teeth about President Bush", The Times of Northwest Indiana, January 31, 2007
  13. ^ a b c d "Georgette Mosbacher". Milken Institute. Archived from the original on January 27, 2013. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  14. ^ a b Collins, Nancy, ""The World of Georgette Mosbacher"". Archived from the original on August 5, 2004. Retrieved 2006-10-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link), Harper's Bazaar, July 2004
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Georgette Mosbacher". NNDB. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  16. ^ a b c Gurley, George (January 31, 2000). "Georgette Mosbacher Rides With McCain". Observer. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  17. ^ a b c "Hedge Funds Care Raises $1.5 Million To Benefit Children". FINalternatives. March 10, 2015. Archived from the original on 2016-02-02. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  18. ^ a b c d e f "Georgette Mosbacher". All American Speakers. Archived from the original on August 30, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  19. ^ "PN1640 — Georgette Mosbacher — Department of State". United States Senate. February 15, 2018. Retrieved 2018-03-18.
  20. ^ a b "PN1640 – Nomination of Georgette Mosbacher for Department of State, 115th Congress (2017–2018)". www.congress.gov. 2018-07-12. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
  21. ^ "US ambassador to Poland resigns". www.thefirstnews.com. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  22. ^ a b c "Georgette Mosbacher-Country Girl". Woman Around Town. Archived from the original on October 26, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  23. ^ "Georgette Mosbacher: Legendary GOP Fundraiser". Right Pundits. Archived from the original on September 13, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  24. ^ a b c d e f g h Ponder, Stephanie E., "Makeup Maven", Costco Connection, May 2006
  25. ^ a b Gerston, Jill (September 22, 1993). "Hurricane Georgette : Books: The Divine Mrs. M (Mosbacher) has a few tips for women who want to tap their 'feminine force.' Let's start with neutral nail polish". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  26. ^ a b c Cawley, Janet (March 29, 1992). "The Power Couple Shifts Into A New Gear". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  27. ^ "Georgette Mosbacher Enterprises, Inc". justia.com. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  28. ^ a b c "Biography of Georgette Mosbacher". All American Speakers. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  29. ^ a b c d e f g "Georgette Mosbacher". Borghese.com. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  30. ^ Horyn, Cathy, "Is Georgette Mosbacher Too Hot for the G.O.P. to Handle?", The New York Times, January 14, 2001
  31. ^ Stirewalt, Chris (April 27, 2015). "Jeb set to debut biggest cash haul ever". Fox News. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  32. ^ Editorial, Reuters (13 February 2018). "Trump to tap Georgette Mosbacher as ambassador to Poland: White House". Reuters. {{cite news}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  33. ^ "Georgette Mosbacher". C-SPAN. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  34. ^ "Small business is vital in rebuilding economies – interview featuring Georgette Mosbahcer". Small Business Advocate. April 23, 2009. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  35. ^ "How I Built It". Wall Street Journal. June 29, 2011. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  36. ^ Mosbacher, Georgette (November 10, 2015). "The other 'one percent'". Washington Times. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  37. ^ Mosbacher, Georgette (2014). "MOSBACHER: Deadly health care at the VA". Washington Times. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  38. ^ Cottle, Michelle (January 8, 2013). "Mosbacher: I'm Furious at My Own Party". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  39. ^ "Bravolebrity graces Naples with her Southern Charm: Where did she and her bestie eat?". Naples Daily News. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  40. ^ "Patricia Altschul Talks About Couture and Caftans". Yahoo Life. 2017-03-21. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  41. ^ "Georgette Mosbacher Joins Intelius' Board of Directors". Intelius press release. October 27, 2009. Archived from the original on October 31, 2009. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  42. ^ a b c "Georgette Mosbacher Honored With National Leadership Award; Mosbacher Gains Additional Accolades from the National Repfublican Congressional Committee's Business Advisory Council". thefreelibrary.com – Bratskeir & Co. 2002. Archived from the original on 2016-01-31. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  43. ^ S.A, Telewizja Polska. "US Ambassador decorated by Polish president". polandin.com. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  44. ^ "Mosbacher's Wife Robbed of Cash, Jewelry Worth $30,000..." Los Angeles Times. 14 June 1990.
  45. ^ "If Walls Could Talk: Inside Georgette Mosbacher's Home". NBC 4 NEW YORK Open House. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  46. ^ "Poland: US envoy nominee to be accepted despite polemic view". The Seattle Times. 2018-06-08. Retrieved 2018-11-28.
[edit]
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Diplomatic posts
Preceded by United States Ambassador to Poland
2018–2021 		Succeeded by
B. Bix Aliu
Chargé d'Affaires
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