Ric Grenell will almost certainly be confirmed this week as President Trump's ambassador to Germany after months of being stalled in the Senate.
Details: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has moved to end debate on Grenell and a senior Republican aide told me he'll almost certainly be confirmed into the position before the end of the week.
Behind the scenes: Marc Short, the director of White House Legislative Affairs, told me Trump made it clear he wanted Grenell confirmed by the Senate before German Chancellor Angela Merkel visits Washington on Friday.
- Flashback: We reported in Axios' Sneak Peek newsletter on Sunday that Grenell "was seen at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday night talking to Trump... the president has let it be known he's impatient with the hold-up in the Senate over Grenell's confirmation and has told people he had wanted to get it done before Merkel's visit this week.
Background: Last month, the NYT's Maggie Haberman dove into the unusually loud and sustained campaign to confirm Grenell:
- "Few drives for a confirmation vote have turned into a cause — supported by groups often on opposite sides of the political spectrum...
- "Grenell, a Republican who worked with the incoming national security adviser, John R. Bolton, at the United Nations...[is] the president’s most prominent openly gay appointee.