President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts, 11/16/2009

WASHINGTON – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key administration posts:

• Julie Brill, Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
• Edith Ramirez, Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
• Scott H. DeLisi, Ambassador to the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, Department of State
• Beatrice W. Welters, Ambassador to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Department of State
• Earl F. Gohl, Jr., Federal Co-Chair, Appalachian Regional Commission

President Obama said, “These individuals bring a depth of experience to their respective roles, and I am confident they will serve my administration and the American people well. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”

President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals today:

Julie Brill, Nominee for Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
Julie Brill became the Senior Deputy Attorney General and Chief of Consumer Protection and Antitrust for the North Carolina Department of Justice in February 2009.  A resident of North Carolina and Vermont, Brill is also a Lecturer-in-Law at Columbia University’s School of Law.  Prior to her leadership at the North Carolina Department of Justice, Brill was an Assistant Attorney General for Consumer Protection and Antitrust for the State of Vermont for over 20 years (1988-2009).   Brill has also served as a Vice-Chair of the Consumer Protection Committee of the American Bar Association Antitrust Section since 2004.  Prior to her career in law enforcement, Brill was an associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in New York from 1987 to 1988, and she clerked for Vermont Federal District Court Judge Franklin S. Billings Jr. from 1985 to 1986.  Brill graduated, magna cum laude, from Princeton University in 1981 and from New York University School of Law in 1985, where she received a Root-Tilden Scholarship for her commitment to public service.

Edith Ramirez, Nominee for Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
Edith Ramirez is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges, LLP where she specializes in intellectual property and complex litigation matters.  She has a broad range of experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in copyright, trademark, antitrust, business tort, and other general business litigation cases.  Ms. Ramirez has also been active throughout her career in a variety of  professional and community activities.  Ms. Ramirez graduated magna cum laude from Harvard-Radcliffe in 1989.  She obtained her law degree from Harvard Law School in 1992, where she served as an editor of the Harvard Law Review.  Following graduation, she served as a law clerk to the Honorable Alfred T. Goodwin, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Scott H. DeLisi, Nominee for the Ambassador to the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, Department of State
As a 28 year career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Scott H. DeLisi has served as Ambassador to the State of Eritrea and as Deputy Chief of Mission of the American Embassy in Gaborone, Botswana. Currently Mr. DeLisi is the Director of Career Development and Assignments in the State Department's Bureau of Human Resources where he has played a key role in the staffing of embassies. This has included missions in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. Previously, as the Director for Entry Level Programs, Mr. DeLisi was responsible for the training, placement and career development of 600 new entrants and over 2500 existing Foreign Service Officers. Mr. DeLisi has also served as Director for Southern African Affairs, Vice Counsel for the Embassy in India, the Chief of Political Section in Sri Lanka, in addition to other postings in Madagascar and Pakistan. A native of Minnesota, Mr. DeLisi holds both a B.A. and J.D. from the University of Minnesota.

Beatrice W. Welters, Nominee for the Ambassador to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Department of State
Beatrice W. Welters is currently the President and Chairman of the AnBryce Foundation, which provides long-term academic and leadership enrichment programs for underserved youth. Ms. Welters founded the Foundation in 1995. From 1977 to 1991, she worked at IBM where she held several roles, including systems engineer. Ms. Welters was also a past Presidential Appointee to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts serving on its Executive Committee. She continues to serve on the Library of Congress Madison Council. Ms. Welters also serves as a Trustee at the Brookings Institute, the Aspen Institute, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Washington Jesuit Academy, and at the Maret School. Ms. Welters holds an A.A. from Ulster County Community College, a B.A. from Manhattanville College, and an M.A. from the City University of New York.

Earl F. Gohl, Jr., Nominee for Federal Co-Chair, Appalachian Regional Commission
Earl Gohl has 20 years of experience in Pennsylvania state and local government, ranging from his first job at the State Association of Boroughs, to serving as the Executive Assistant to the Mayor of Harrisburg; an elected member of the Harrisburg City Council; and Deputy Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Community Affairs. As Deputy Secretary, Mr. Gohl awarded and administered $100 million annually in housing and community development programs benefiting communities within the Appalachian region.  He also managed several initiatives to strengthen the capacity of rural local governments to meet economic challenges.  In 1996 Mr. Gohl was appointed to serve as Special Assistant and then Associate Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor. Mr. Gohl holds an M.P.A. from Pennsylvania State University and a B.A. from Rider College.