White House Author

Matt was an Associate Director of Public Engagement who served as the liaison to the American Jewish community and on international issues. Since joining the White House in 2013, he has served both in the Office of Public Engagement and as Director for Outreach on the National Security Council Staff.  Matt joined the Obama Administration in 2009 as Senior Counselor to Assistant Attorney General Tom Perez in the Civil Rights Division. He was the Division’s point person on LGBT issues, including the challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act and the implementation of the new hate crimes law, and oversaw the establishment of the Division’s Policy and Strategy Section.  In 2012, he became the Associate General Counsel for Legal Counsel at the Department of Homeland Security, leading a division of the Office of General Counsel.  Matt earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History with Honors and a law degree from Stanford University, was a Truman Scholar and studied in Israel. He has worked in the private, public, and non-profit sectors, including in the Clinton Justice Department’s Office of Policy Development, on the House Judiciary Committee Minority Staff, and as Counsel for Senator Bill Nelson of Florida.  He worked on Obama campaign in 2008 in Florida and helped lead the campaign's LGBT Policy Committee.   In 2013, Matt received the American Bar Association’s inaugural Stonewall Award in recognition for his professional contributions to advancing LGBT civil rights and the Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award for his work on the Defense of Marriage Act litigation.  He lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.