President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts, 2/16/10

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

• Robert Stephen Ford, Ambassador to the Syrian Arab Republic, Department of State
• Jonathan Andrew Hatfield, Inspector General, Corporation for National and Community Service

President Obama said, “Our nation will be well-served by these fine public servants, who both bring a depth of experience and tremendous dedication to their fields. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.” 

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

Robert Stephen Ford, Nominee for Ambassador to the Syrian Arab Republic, Department of State
Robert Stephen Ford is presently Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Iraq. Mr. Ford is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Ambassador to Algeria on May 27, 2006, and sworn in on August 11, 2006. Mr. Ford served from 2004 until 2006 and again from 2008 until 2009 as the Political Counselor to the U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Iraq and was Deputy Chief of Mission in Bahrain from 2001 until 2004. Mr. Ford has also served in a number of other posts since entering the Foreign Service in 1985, including Izmir, Cairo, Algiers, and Yaoundé. Mr. Ford earned a Master of Arts in 1983 from Johns Hopkins University. He is a recipient of a number of Department of State awards, including the 2005 James Clement Dunn Award for outstanding work at the mid-level in the Foreign Service as well as three Superior Honor Awards and two Meritorious Honor awards. Mr. Ford speaks German, Turkish, French, and Arabic.

Jonathan Andrew Hatfield, Nominee for Inspector General, Corporation for National and Community Service
Jonathan Andrew Hatfield has served as the Deputy Inspector General of the Federal Election Commission since 2005.  He has been with the Federal Election Commission Office of Inspector General since 1994 and has held several executive, managerial, and staff positions.  As the Deputy Inspector General, Mr. Hatfield is responsible for assisting the Inspector General coordinate and supervise audits, investigations, and inspections at the Commission.  He is also responsible for policy setting and strategic planning that integrates key audit and investigative goals and priorities to provide effective oversight of the Commission.  Mr. Hatfield has received several awards during his professional career for outstanding accomplishments; most notably, the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency recognized Mr. Hatfield for his audit, investigative, and individual accomplishments.  In 2009, he was granted a graduate certificate by American University for completion of the University’s Key Executive Leadership Certificate Program for Inspector General Leaders.  Mr. Hatfield holds a B.B.A. in Accounting from Radford University and is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Virginia.