Physician Anjani Sinha was pressed by Democratic senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois over issues such as trade with the US and Singapore’s priorities when it assumes the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2027.

When asked about the size of the US trade surplus with Singapore in 2024, Sinha initially said it was US$80 billion, then quickly revised it to US$18 billion.

The actual surplus was US$2.8 billion, according to the office of the US trade representative.

The responses prompted Duckworth to say: “I am trying to help you here but you have not even done your homework.”

She added that Sinha was “not prepared for this posting”.

Videos of the exchange have gone viral in Southeast Asia.

Asked if he supported Trump’s 10% tariff on imports from Singapore, Sinha said, “I believe in the president’s decision of free trade with any nation in the world and he’s resetting the trade numbers with each country and he’s open for discussion and dialogue with each country.”

Despite the pushback from Duckworth, Republicans hold the majority in the senate and have enough votes to approve the nomination.

The post of ambassador to Singapore has been a fraught issue since the first Trump term, when his initial nominee for the role failed to advance to the confirmation stage.

Then, during the Biden administration, ambassador Jonathan Kaplan was accused in an inspector-general’s report last year of threatening staff, wasting money and poorly promoting US interests.

Kaplan, who left his post in January, said in a statement at the time that he took “full responsibility for quickly addressing the concerns and recommendations found in the report”.

Sinha appeared alongside four other ambassadorial nominees, including Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr’s former fiancee, nominated for Greece.

He was introduced by South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, who cited Singapore’s medical tourism sector as an area Sinha could help develop.

“He knows the region and he knows the issues,” Graham said.