President Donald J. Trump today announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key positions in his Administration:
James Thomas Abbott of Virginia to be a Member of the Federal Labor Relations Authority for the remainder of a five-year term expiring July 1, 2020. Mr. Abbott has served as Chief Counsel to the Federal Labor Relations Authority since 2007, currently with Acting Chairman Patrick Pizzella and previously with Chairman Dale Cabaniss and Member Thomas Beck. Prior to his appointment to the Authority, Mr. Abbott served as Deputy General Counsel for the Congressional Office of Compliance, from 2004 to 2007. Earlier in his career, Mr. Abbott served as the Senior Associate District Counsel for Personnel and Ethics at the Defense Contract Management Agency; Chief Counsel at Corpus Christi Army Depot, U.S. Army Materiel Command; and Senior Labor Counsel at the HQ Depot Systems Command, U.S. Army Materiel Command. Mr. Abbott received his J.D. from Temple University Beasley School of Law in Philadelphia, and was a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Malone University.
Larry Edward Andre Jr. of Texas to be Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Djibouti. Mr. André, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor, has served as an American diplomat since 1990. He is currently the United States Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. Previously a two-time Deputy Chief of Mission with appointments to nine American missions abroad, mostly in Africa, Mr. André has held senior policy positions at the State Department in Washington. His excellent leadership skills and experience working closely with the U.S. military provide him expertise on the challenges and opportunities of the Horn-of-Africa region and deep understanding of the context of United States policy goals there. Mr. André earned a B.A. at Claremont McKenna College and an M.B.A. at American Graduate School of International Management.
Robert Behler of Pennsylvania to be Director of Operational Test and Evaluation, Department of Defense. Mr. Behler most recently served as Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Director for Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute, where he worked to advance software engineering and cybersecurity to solve national cyber challenges through focused research, development, and transition to the broader software engineering community. Previously he served as President and Chief Operation Officer of SRC, Inc. and as Senior Vice President and General Manager at MITRE Corporation and the Business Area Executive of Precision Engagement at John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. Mr. Behler was formerly Commanding General at the Air Force Command and Control & Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Center as well as the Deputy Commander at Joint Headquarters North, NATO. He is a U.S. Air Force retired Major General, and the recipient of various Distinguished Service Medals. He is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School, a National Security Fellow at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and holds an M.B.A. from Marymount University, and an M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Oklahoma.
James Bridenstine of Oklahoma to be Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Mr. Bridenstine was elected in 2012 to represent Oklahoma’s First Congressional District. He serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the Science, Space and Technology Committee. Mr. Bridenstine began his Naval aviation career flying the E-2C Hawkeye off the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. It was there that he flew combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. While on active duty, he transitioned to the F-18 Hornet and flew as an “aggressor” at the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center. After leaving active duty, Mr. Bridenstine returned to Tulsa, Oklahoma to be the Executive Director of the Tulsa Air and Space Museum & Planetarium and flew counter-drug missions in Central and South America in the Navy Reserve. He holds a triple major from Rice University and an M.B.A. from Cornell University. Mr. Bridenstine is currently a member of the 137th Special Operations Wing of the Oklahoma Air National Guard.
Thomas L. Carter of South Carolina to be the Representative of the United States on the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization with the Rank of Ambassador during his tenure of service. Mr. Carter, a former military and commercial pilot, retired from the U.S. Air Force Reserve in 2009 with the rank of Major General after a 34-year career. He flew 12 years for USAirways and attained B737 Captain status. Mr. Carter served as Vice President for Government Relations at Elbit Systems of America, Arlington, Virginia (2009-2015) and President of Commonwealth Consulting Corporation, Arlington, Virginia (2005-2009). He was Senior Counselor to the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) for Legislative Affairs in Baghdad, Iraq (2003-2004) and served as Assistant to the Chairman for Government Affairs of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board in Washington, D.C. Mr. Carter’s earlier government service included positions as a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense and a staffer for the Senate Republican Leader, Bob Dole. He earned a B.S. from the University of Memphis and a MA from Georgetown University.
John C. Demers of Virginia to be an Assistant Attorney General, National Security Division, at the Department of Justice. Mr. Demers is Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at The Boeing Company. He has held several senior positions at the company including in Boeing Defense, Space, and Security and as lead lawyer and head of international government affairs for Boeing International. From 2006 to 2009, Mr. Demers served on the first leadership team of the National Security Division, first as Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General and then as Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Law & Policy. Before that, he served in the Office of Legal Counsel. For the past eight years, he has taught national security law as an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center. Mr. Demers worked in private practice in Boston and clerked for Associate Justice Antonin Scalia of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He graduated from Harvard Law School and the College of the Holy Cross.
Nina Maria Fite of Pennsylvania to be Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Angola. Ms. Fite, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor, has served as an American diplomat since 1990. She is currently Principal Officer at the U.S. Consulate General in Montreal, Canada, a position she has held since 2014. Ms. Fite is known for her leadership skills, knowledge of Angola, and strong record promoting United States trade and foreign direct investment, including as a negotiator in the office of the U.S. Trade Representative. She has served at seven United States Missions overseas and in senior leadership positions at the Department of State. Ms. Fite earned an M.S. at the National Defense University, an M.B.A. at Thunderbird School of Global Management and a B.Arch. at Carnegie-Mellon University. She speaks Portuguese, French, Spanish, and Hungarian.
Daniel Lewis Foote of New York to be Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Zambia. Mr. Foote, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor, has served as an American diplomat since 1998. He is currently a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs at the Department of State. A two-time Deputy Chief of Mission overseas, Mr. Foote has held diverse senior foreign policy positions at home and abroad and is known for his leadership acumen, judgment, and management of several of the United States Government’s largest overseas programs in some of the world’s most challenging, high-threat environments. Mr. Foote earned a B.A. from Columbia University. He speaks Spanish.
Timothy Gallaudet of California to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. Dr. Gallaudet is a Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy whose most recent assignment was Oceanographer of the Navy and Commander of the Navy Meteorology and Oceanography Command. During his 32 years of service, Dr. Gallaudet has had experience in weather and ocean forecasting, hydrographic surveying, developing policy and plans to counter illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing, and assessing the national security impacts of climate change. Dr. Gallaudet has led teams of Navy Sailors and civilians performing such diverse functions as overseeing aircraft carrier combat operations, planning and conducting humanitarian assistance and disaster response efforts, assisting Navy SEAL Teams during high visibility counter-terrorism operations, and developing the Navy’s annual $52 billion information technology, cyber security, and intelligence budget. Dr. Gallaudet holds a bachelor’s degree from the U.S. Naval Academy and master’s and doctoral degrees from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, all in oceanography.
Mark L. Greenblatt of Maryland to be Inspector General for the Export-Import Bank. Mr. Greenblatt has been serving as the Assistant Inspector General for Investigations at the Department of Commerce since 2016. He was previously Director of Special Investigations and then the Deputy Assistant Inspector General for Compliance and Ethics at the Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General (OIG) from 2014 to 2016. Prior to serving in the Commerce OIG, Mr. Greenblatt was an investigative counsel at the Department of Justice OIG. Prior to joining DOJ, Mr. Greenblatt was Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel for the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. Earlier in his career, Mr. Greenblatt served as a law clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Anita Brody and then worked as a litigator in New York City. Mr. Greenblatt received his law degree from Columbia University, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, and received an A.B., with distinction, from Duke University.
Richard Grenell of California to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Federal Republic of Germany. Mr. Grenell, a foreign policy writer and commentator, founded the international consulting firm Capitol Media Partners in 2010. For nearly two decades, he has served as the primary communications adviser for public officials at the local, state, Federal, and international levels, as well as for a Fortune 200 ranked company. Mr. Grenell is the longest serving United States spokesman at the United Nations (2001-2008) having served four United States Ambassadors. He earned a B.A. from Evangel University and an MPA from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Gregory Ibach of Nebraska to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs. Mr. Ibach earned his B.S. in Agriculture from the University of Nebraska with majors in Animal Science and Agricultural Economics. Mr. Ibach has been a visionary leader for Nebraska’s agriculture effectively supervising Departmental staff and programs, with the ability to analyze issues, develop strategies, and create solutions for domestic and global initiatives. Mr. Ibach has oversight of Nebraska’s plant and animal heath regulatory functions. He has been actively involved in foreign and domestic marketing and development activities. Mr. Ibach has been inducted into the Nebraska Hall of Agricultural Achievement and honored with the Service to Agriculture Recognition from the University of Nebraska- Lincoln, College of Agriculture Science and Natural Resources, among other honors. Mr. Ibach is the immediate past President of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. Mr. Ibach and his wife, Teresa, have three grown children and live on their farm and ranch in Sumner, Nebraska.
Robert Jackson of New York to be a Member of the Securities and Exchange Commission for the remainder of a 5-year term expiring June 5, 2019. Mr. Jackson is a Professor at Columbia Law School and Director of its Program on Corporate Law and Policy. Mr. Jackson’s academic work focuses on corporate governance and the use of advanced data science techniques to improve transparency in securities markets. His career has spanned the public and private sectors. Mr. Jackson served as a senior advisor at the Department of the Treasury during the financial crisis, assisting Kenneth Feinberg in his work as Special Master for TARP Executive Compensation, and previously worked as a lawyer in private practice. Mr. Jackson holds two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.B.A. in Finance from the Wharton School of Business, a master’s degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and a law degree from Harvard Law School. Born in the Bronx, New York, Mr. Jackson currently lives in New York City.
Kenneth I. Juster of New York to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of India. Mr. Juster most recently served as the Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economic Affairs and Deputy Director of the National Economic Council. Mr. Juster has previously served as Under Secretary of Commerce from 2001-2005, Counselor (acting) of the State Department from 1992-1993, and deputy and senior adviser to the Deputy Secretary of State from 1989-1992. In the private sector, he has been a partner at the investment firm Warburg Pincus LLC, Executive Vice President at Salesforce.com, and senior partner at the law firm Arnold & Porter. He has also served as Chairman of Harvard University’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, and as Vice Chairman of The Asia Foundation. Mr. Juster holds an A.B. in Government (Phi Beta Kappa) from Harvard College, an M.P.P. from the Harvard Kennedy School, and a J.D. from the Harvard Law School.
Colleen Kiko of North Dakota to be a Member of the Federal Labor Relations Authority, for a term of five years beginning July 30, 2017 and, upon confirmation, designated chair. Ms. Kiko was born and raised in North Dakota. She currently serves as a Judge of the Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board in the Department of Labor. Ms. Kiko has a long history with the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA). She worked in its predecessor agency and, when the FLRA opened its doors on January 1, 1979, Ms. Kiko began work in the Washington Regional Office investigating unfair labor practices. She ultimately moved into positions within the headquarters of the FLRA. In 2005, she returned to serve as General Counsel of the FLRA. Ms. Kiko has served in the Justice Department in various capacities, as an associate counsel to the House Judiciary Committee, and in the private practice of law. She holds a J.D. from Antonin Scalia Law School and a B.S. degree from North Dakota State University. Ms. Kiko lives in Virginia with her husband, Phil. They have four children and four grandchildren.
W. Robert Kohorst of California to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Croatia. Mr. Kohorst, President and founder of Everest Properties in Pasadena, California, is a prominent American businessman with expertise in law, real estate and finance. His company is a large commercial enterprise that purchases and operates apartment, self-storage and retail properties throughout the United States. Mr. Kohorst has contributed to public service organizations and educational institutions as director and chairman of the Young Presidents’ Organization (San Gabriel Valley Chapter), Regent of Loyola Marymount University, Trustee of La Salle High School in Pasadena, and President of the San Gabriel Valley Council, Boy Scouts of America in Los Angeles. He earned a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School and a B.S. from the University of Dayton.
Matthew Z. Leopold of Florida to be an Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, General Counsel. Mr. Leopold is a lawyer in Tallahassee, Florida with the law firm of Carlton Fields. He is the former General Counsel of the Florida Department of Environment Protection and a former attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division. He has 10 years of combined Federal and State government experience. Mr. Leopold’s practice focuses exclusively on environment law, policy, and litigation. He has represented the State and Federal governments on complex environmental litigation, including Florida v. Georgia, an original action in the United States Supreme Court, and United States v. BP Exploration and Production, Inc., to address the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. He also represented Florida in the long-running Everglades case, and worked with policy makers to help move comprehensive restoration forward. Mr. Leopold previously served as an environmental policy advisor in the Washington, D.C. office of Governor Jeb Bush.
Tom Marino of Pennsylvania to be Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Mr. Marino was born and raised in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, where his father worked two jobs as a firefighter and janitor. He followed his father’s example and went to work on the floor of a manufacturing facility after high school. He advanced into management and, at age 30, decided to pursue a college education. With the support of his family, friends, and the community, Mr. Marino graduated magna cum laude from Lycoming College and earned his law degree from Dickinson School of Law—all within five years. He practiced law before being elected Lycoming County District Attorney in 1991. In 2002, President George W. Bush appointed him to serve as the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. He returned to private practice until 2010 when he was elected to represent Pennsylvania’s 10th District in Congress. Mr. Marino and his wife Edie have two children.
Cheryl L. Mason of Virginia to be Chairman of the Board of Veterans Appeals for a term of six years. Ms. Mason is currently the Interim Principal Deputy Vice Chairman at the Board of Veterans Appeals. She previously served as Deputy Vice Chairman, Chief Veterans Law Judge, Veterans Law Judge, and Counsel at the Board of Veterans Appeals. Ms. Mason’s government experience also includes serving as an attorney with the Federal Labor Relations Authority and as a Department of the Air Force civilian at HQ United States Air Forces in Europe at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Ms. Mason also served as a contract attorney investigator for Department of Justice Civil Rights Division specializing in the American with Disabilities Act, a military services paralegal coordinator for Europe, and an instructor at Central Texas College, Kapaun Air Station, Germany. Ms. Mason began her legal career in private practice in Omaha, Nebraska. While attending college, Ms. Mason served an LBJ Intern for Congressman Bob McEwen (R-OH) of Ohio. Ms. Mason is married to Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (retired) Brett S. Mason and is the daughter of a World War II Navy Veteran. Ms. Mason received her B.A. with Distinction in Political Science and Psychology from Ohio Northern University and her J.D. from Creighton University School of Law. Ms. Mason resides in Virginia with her family.
Admiral Edward Masso to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Estonia. Mr. Masso is a highly decorated Naval Officer who is the founder and president of Flagship Connection, a consulting company focused on business development, strategic planning, and operations analysis in the areas of missile defense, cyber security, and data analytics. During his distinguished 32-year career in the U.S. Navy, he held nine command assignments, including Commander, Navy Personnel Command/Deputy Chief of Naval Personnel. He has served in NATO and the United States European Command. Mr. Masso is a Senior Fellow at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies in Cyber Security. He graduated from the University of Mississippi in 1977.
Katherine Brunett McGuire of Virginia to be an Assistant Secretary of Labor, Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs. Ms. McGuire currently serves as Chief of Staff to Congressman Randy Hultgren of Illinois. She previously served as Staff Director of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee under the Chairmanship of Senator Mike Enzi. Prior to her role on the Committee, she served as Legislative Director to Senator Enzi and also Staff Director on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs’ Subcommittee on Securities and Investment. She earlier served in senior posts in the Senate with Assistant Republican Leader Alan K. Simpson and Senator Richard Lugar. Her private sector experience includes leading BSA The Software Alliance’s global public policy and government relations division as Vice President, concentrating on promoting innovation and intellectual property protection. Ms. McGuire earned a B.S. and M.S. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Wyoming. She resides with her husband and two children in Virginia.
Edward T. McMullen, Jr. of South Carolina to be to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Swiss Confederation, and to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Principality of Liechtenstein. Mr. McMullen has served in public policy, political, and business positions for 31 years. Currently, he is President of McMullen Public Affairs with offices in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina and Washington, D.C. The firm is a full service advertising and corporate public affairs company that implements advertising, alliance development, corporate communications, predictive data analytics, and strategic consulting solutions for challenging business and public policy environments. Clients have included several fortune 100 companies. Mr. McMullen has been appointed by South Carolina state leaders to serve on key statewide boards and commissions. He earned a B.A. from Hampden Sydney College in Hampden Sydney, Virginia.
Jonathan F. Mitchell of Washington to be Chairman of the Administrative Conference of the United States for a term of 5 years. Mr. Mitchell most recently served as a Visiting Professor of Law at Stanford Law School. From 2010-2015, Mr. Mitchell served as the Solicitor General of Texas, where he argued three cases before the United States Supreme Court, argued dozens of cases in other courts, and authored more than one hundred briefs. Mr. Mitchell has also served on the faculties of the University of Texas School of Law, the George Mason University School of Law, and the University of Chicago Law School. Before entering the legal academy, Mr. Mitchell served as a law clerk to Justice Antonin Scalia of the United States Supreme Court and to Judge J. Michael Luttig of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Mr. Mitchell earned his B.A., summa cum laude, from Wheaton College and his J.D., with high honors, from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was inducted into the Order of the Coif and served as an articles editor of the University of Chicago Law Review.
Thomas B. Modly of Maryland to be Under Secretary of the Navy. Mr. Modly is currently a Managing Director in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Global Government and Public Services sector and is the firm’s Global Government Defense Network Leader, where he is responsible for coordinating the development and implementation of solutions for government defense clients worldwide. Prior to this, Mr. Modly served as the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Financial Management and as the first Executive Director of the Defense Business Board. He also has extensive private sector expertise as a corporate development and mergers and acquisition specialist. Mr. Modly is a graduate with distinction from the U.S. Naval Academy, holds a Master’s Degree in Government from Georgetown University, and an M.B.A. with honors from Harvard Business School. He served on active duty in the U.S. Navy as a helicopter pilot.
Emily Webster Murphy of Missouri to be Administrator of General Services. Currently, Ms. Murphy is Senior Advisor to the Administrator at the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). Previously, Ms. Murphy served as Counsel at the House Armed Services Committee, specializing acquisition policy and reform. A procurement policy expert, Ms. Murphy’s career includes appointments at the U.S. Small Business Administration and at the GSA, where she served as its first Chief Acquisition Officer. Additionally, she served under three Chairmen of the House Small Business Committee. Her private sector experience includes five years in executive positions at a technology startup company engaged in Federal contracting and three years as a government contracts attorney with two top D.C. law firms. She has been recognized by Women Impacting Public Policy and the Small Business Technology Council, among others. A Missouri native, Ms. Murphy is a 1995 graduate of Smith College and a 2001 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law.
Jennifer Gillian Newstead of New York to be Legal Adviser at the Department of State. Ms. Newstead is a partner in the law firm of Davis, Polk & Wardwell LLP, where she has a global practice representing clients in cross-border regulatory, enforcement and litigation matters. Ms. Newstead previously served in several senior government positions, including as General Counsel of the Office of Management and Budget, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Policy, and Associate Counsel to the President. Ms. Newstead previously served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C and earlier in her career clerked for Justice Breyer of the U.S. Supreme Court and for Judge Silberman of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. She is a 1994 graduate of Yale Law School, and a 1991 graduate magna cum laude of Harvard University.
William Northey of Iowa to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm Production and Conservation. Mr. Northey is a 4th generation farmer from Spirit Lake, Iowa and is currently serving his 3rd term as Iowa Secretary of Agriculture. Under Mr. Northey’s leadership, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship has promoted science and new technologies to better care for our air, soil, and water and focused on telling the story of agriculture. Mr. Northey is a past-president of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture and serves as co-chair of the Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia Task Force. Mr. Northey served as President of the National Corn Growers Association from 1995 to 1996. He served on the Iowa U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency State Committee and as a Dickinson County Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioner. Mr. Northey graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in Agricultural Business and received a M.B.A. from Southwest Minnesota State University. Mr. Northey and his wife Cindy have 3 grown daughters and 5 grandchildren.
Frederick Nutt of Virginia to be Controller of the Office of Federal Financial Management, Office of Management and Budget. Mr. Nutt is currently Senior Advisor at the Office of Management and Budget. Mr. Nutt previously worked as Senior Advisor to the Vice President for Management at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation where he was responsible for managing financial resources supporting information technology, acquisition, facilities, and security operations. Previously, Mr. Nutt was at the then newly authorized Millennium Challenge Corporation, working to start up the management operations, including financial and management information systems. Prior to this, Mr. Nutt was Senior Advisor to the Chief Financial Officer at the Environmental Protection Agency where he worked on implementing the President’s Management Agenda, and the migration of select financial management systems to federal shared service providers. He also worked on budget and appropriations legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives, while serving in the Office of the Speaker. Mr. Nutt is from Reedville, Virginia and is a graduate of Virginia Tech.
Jeff Tien Han Pon of Virginia to be Director of the Office of Personnel Management. Dr. Pon most recently served as the Chief Human Resources and Strategy Officer for the non-profit professional membership organization, the Society for Human Resource Management as well as the Chief Operating Officer for Futures Inc., an organization dedicated to helping transitioning military explore careers, find jobs, and transition to civilian jobs. Dr. Pon previously served as a Principal at Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. in the consulting service areas of Human Resources, IT, and Change Management and as the U.S. Department of Energy’s Chief Human Capital Officer. He also was the Deputy Director of eGovernment at the U. S. Office of Personnel Management where he and his teams brought about HR Shared Service Centers, Payroll Modernization, and the stand-up of USAJobs. Dr. Pon is a graduate of the University of Southern California, and holds a Ph. D. and Masters of Science degree from the California School of Professional Psychology. He is the recipient of the Grace Hopper Award, Fed 100, and multiple secretarial Distinguished Service Awards.
Randy Reeves of Mississippi, to be Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Memorial Affairs. Mr. Reeves currently serves as Executive Director of the Mississippi Veterans Affairs Board and serves as President of the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs. He is a retired Commander and Surface Warfare Officer in the United States Navy. Prior to being commissioned in the Navy, he served as an enlisted airman in the United States Air Force. Mr. Reeves received his Bachelor’s degree in Management from Peru State College (Nebraska) and a Master’s degree in Health Sciences. He also completed the Senior Executive Program at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
David Dale Reimer of Ohio to be Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Mauritius and to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Seychelles. Mr. Reimer, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Counselor, has served as an American diplomat since 1991. He is currently the Director of the Office of West African Affairs in the Bureau of African Affairs at the Department of State, a position he has held since 2015. A former Deputy Chief of Mission and Office Director, Mr. Reimer is known for his extensive knowledge of Africa and outstanding leadership skills, particularly in high-threat environments. He earned an M.P.I.A. from the University of Pittsburgh and a B.A. from Goshen College. He speaks French, Italian and German.
David Ross of Wisconsin to be an Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water. Mr. Ross currently serves as the Director of the Environmental Protection Unit for the Wisconsin Department of Justice. He previously served as a senior assistant attorney general in the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office, where he represented the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality on water quality matters. Mr. Ross also represented the State of Wyoming on the Assumable Waters Subcommittee of the National Advisory Council for Environmental Policy and Technology. Prior to entering public service, Mr. Ross practiced environmental law in Washington DC and worked as an environmental consultant in California. Mr. Ross attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison for undergraduate studies, and grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin. He earned his law degree and a Master of Studies in Environmental Law from Vermont Law School. While in law school, Mr. Ross served as Editor-in-Chief of the Vermont Law Review.
R. Sharpley of Virginia to be Inspector General for the Central Intelligence Agency. Mr. Sharpley has been serving as the Acting Inspector General at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) since 2015. He was previously the Deputy Inspector General at the CIA from 2012 to 2015. Prior to serving in the CIA OIG, Mr. Sharpley was Deputy IG for Investigations at the Federal Housing Finance Authority and Deputy Special IG for Investigations as the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP). Prior to these roles, Mr. Sharpley was the Deputy IG for Investigations and Inspections at the Department of Energy and a Director of Security Operations in the U.S. Air Force. Mr. Sharpley received an M.A. from the Naval Postgraduate School and a B.A. from American University.
Cheryl Marie Stanton of South Carolina to be Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division, Department of Labor. Ms. Stanton currently serves as the Executive Director for the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, a position to which she was appointed in 2013 by then-Governor Nikki R. Haley. Prior to that role, Ms. Stanton worked as a labor and employment attorney in both the public and private sectors. In the public sector, she served as Associate White House Counsel for President George W. Bush. In that role, Stanton was the administration’s principal liaison to the U.S. Department of Labor, National Labor Relations Board and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Ms. Stanton also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Samuel A. Alito, Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. She received her J.D. from the Law School at the University of Chicago and her B.A. from Williams College. In 2016, then-Governor Nikki R. Haley awarded Ms. Stanton the Order of the Palmetto, the highest civilian honor in the State of South Carolina.
Suzanne Israel Tufts of New York to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Administration. Ms. Tufts is a consultant and attorney with extensive experience in turnaround management and operations in the public and not-for-profit sectors. Ms. Tufts is the founder of her own consulting firm, which focuses on providing services for tax-exempt organizations and emerging companies. She is a nationally recognized expert in the field of inner city social programming in the areas of microenterprise, education and women’s issues and has been responsible for programs in housing authorities in New York. Ms. Tufts previously worked as President and CEO of the American Woman’s Economic Development Corporation, the nation’s first women’s entrepreneurship training center. Under her leadership, AWED created emergency small business crisis services within 72 hours of the 9/11 attacks, work for which she was recognized by President George W. Bush and then- Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao. Ms. Tufts graduated summa cum laude with an A.B. in Bio-Medical Ethics from Princeton University in 1977, and graduated from the University of Virginia Law School where she was awarded a Dillard Fellowship. Ms. Tufts lives in Forest Hills, Queens with her husband Bob.
Stephen Alexander Vaden of Tennessee to be General Counsel, Department of Agriculture. Mr. Vaden is a native of Union City, Tennessee. Mr. Vaden received his B.A. in American History from Vanderbilt University and his law degree from Yale Law School. Following graduation, Mr. Vaden completed two clerkships, first with The Honorable Julia Smith Gibbons of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and then with The Honorable Samuel H. Mays, Jr., of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. Mr. Vaden has practiced law at the Washington, D.C. firms of Patton Boggs and Jones Day. At both firms, Mr. Vaden’s practice focused on litigation, particularly at the appellate level, along with election law and administrative law. When not in Washington, Mr. Vaden continues to make his home in Union City where he lives with his brother Samuel Vaden and mother Wanda Stephens Vaden. His late father John Marshall Vaden was a farmer for most of his 97 years.
Bruce J. Walker of New York to be an Assistant Secretary of Energy, Electricity, Delivery and Energy Reliability. Mr. Walker is the founder of Modern Energy Insights, Inc., which specializes in evaluating risk for utilities’ critical electric infrastructure. He has more than 25 years of electric utility experience, previously working at National Grid as the Vice President of Asset Strategy and Policy. Earlier, he worked for Consolidated Edison of New York, where he last held the position of Director of Corporate Emergency Management and served on the Biological Chemical Weapons Response Team. He has served as a member of DOE’s Electricity Advisory Committee, DOE’s Advisory Committee for the Mega-Watt scale integration lab, and was a member of GridWise Alliance, Inc. He is the co-founder of the Global Smart Grid Federation. Mr. Walker is the Deputy County Executive for the County of Putnam and is the Acting Energy Sector Chief for the Hudson Valley Infragard. He received his law degree from Pace University and holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Manhattan College.
Margaret Weichert of Georgia to be Deputy Director for Management, Office of Management and Budget. Ms. Weichert is currently Senior Advisor at the Office of Management and Budget. Ms. Weichert is a seasoned business executive who has served as a Principal at Ernst & Young, LLP since 2013. In her 25 year professional career, Ms. Weichert has also held executive leadership positions at Market Platform Dynamics, First Data Corporation, Bank of America, and Andersen Consulting focused on strategy, innovation, and business process improvement in banking and payments technology. An innovator and entrepreneur, Ms. Weichert also co-founded an Internet company, Achex, Inc., and sold that company to First Data in 2001. As a result of her innovative work in payment technology, Ms. Weichert has been named as an inventor on 14 successful U.S. patents. An avid supporter of technology innovation in Georgia, Ms. Weichert has served since 2010 on the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG)’s Fintech Steering Committee. She holds a B.S. of Foreign Service (Magna Cum Laude) from Georgetown University, a post-graduate diploma in Economics with distinction from the University of Sussex (UK) and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of California at Berkeley. Ms. Weichert also is certified as a Green Belt in Six Sigma, Design for Six Sigma.
Eric P. Whitaker of Illinois to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Niger. Mr. Whitaker, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Counselor, has served as an American diplomat since 1990. He is currently the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Africa and the Sudans in the Bureau of African Affairs at the Department of State. A two-time Deputy Chief of Mission overseas and a senior official at the Department of State at home and abroad, his diplomatic career has been diverse, and included consular, economic, commercial, political, and refugee assignments. He has served at U.S. embassies in ten African countries and was a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Philippines. Mr. Whitaker earned an M.P.P. from Princeton University, an M.P.A from the University of Pittsburgh, and an M.S. and B.S. from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. He speaks Spanish, Portuguese, French, Visayan, and Korean.
Steven E. Winberg of Pennsylvania to be an Assistant Secretary of Energy, Fossil Energy. Mr. Winberg has extensive corporate management experience and strong leadership credentials in fossil energy. He is a recognized expert in fossil energy R&D, advanced clean coal technology, and natural gas production and use. As Vice President for R&D for CONSOL Energy, Inc., and more recently as a Senior Program Manager with the Battelle Memorial Institute, he has demonstrated leadership on energy policy issues including addressing emissions legislation/regulation and electricity/natural gas deregulation. Mr. Winberg was the board chair for the FutureGen Industrial Alliance, a coalition of power producers, coal producers and equipment manufacturers, established to pursue a public/private partnership to build the world’s first near-zero emissions coal-fueled power plant. Mr. Winberg holds two patents related to NOx emissions reduction using coal and natural gas. He has a bachelor’s degree in nuclear science from SUNY Maritime College and an M.B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh.
Dean L. Winslow of Delaware to be an Assistant Secretary of Defense, Health Affairs. Dr. Winslow most recently served as Professor and Vice Chair of Medicine at Stanford University. Previously, he served as Chair of the Department of Medicine and Chief of the Division of AIDS Medicine at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center. Prior to joining Stanford he worked for 15 years in pharma and biotech industry where he helped develop several antiretroviral drugs and the first pharmacogenomics diagnostic device approved by the FDA. Dr. Winslow is a retired United States Air Force Colonel with several distinguished military decorations for his service. After 9/11 he deployed twice to Afghanistan and four times to Iraq as a flight surgeon supporting combat operations in OPERATION Enduring Freedom and OPERATION Iraqi Freedom. Dr. Winslow is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University, Jefferson Medical College, the United States Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine, and Air War College. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases.
David G. Zatezalo of West Virginia to be the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health. Prior to his retirement as Chairman of Rhino Resources GP, LLC in late 2014, he had served as President and CEO, and was previously Chief Operating Officer of Rhino as well as President of Hopedale Mining, LLC. Mr. Zatezalo began his mining career in 1974 with Consolidation Coal Company as a UMWA Laborer, became a foreman and subsequently General Superintendent for Southern Ohio Coal Company and General Manager of AEP’s Windsor Coal Company. He later rose to be Vice-President of Operations of AEP’s Appalachian Mining Operations. Mr. Zatezalo also worked in Australia for Broken Hill Proprietary, Ltd as a General Mine Manager. Mr. Zatezalo is a Mining Engineering graduate from West Virginia University where he received the 1977 West Virginia University Student Foundation Merit Award. He became a Professional Engineer and received an award for high grade on the mining exam in 1981. He also completed the Masters of Business Administration program at Ohio University in 1994.
