Rules apparently bar foreign service members from taking the challenge.

The United States has a new ambassador to China: Montana Senator Max Baucus was unanimously confirmed by the Senate late last week. Is he up for the job?

Forty percent of politically appointed envoys are big campaign donors. And unlike career diplomats, they get posts in desirable destinations, like Europe and the Caribbean. Caroline Kennedy's potential appointment in Japan would have more challenges.

The U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other diplomats have been killed in protests in Benghazi. Religious extremists stormed the U.S. consulate there. A controversial anti-Islamic video, posted on YouTube, was the catalyst for the attack. That has put YouTube and it's owner Google in an uncomfortable position.

Today President Obama is expected to nominate Commerce Secretary Gary Locke to be the new U.S. Ambassador to China. He'd be the first Chinese-Ame…