Hm. Can we fit "consul" (roughly equivalent to "ambassador", but lower, I think?) in there? President Obama received sage counsel from his council but wanted t

Hm. Can we fit "consul" (roughly equivalent to "ambassador", but lower, I think?) in there? President Obama received sage counsel from his council but wanted to consult with his counsel before consenting to collaborate with the visiting consul. Hm. I'm not sure whether "consenting" and "collaborate" help or hurt the sentence, there.