President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts, 05-05-09

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals for key administration posts: Ellen O. Tauscher, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, Department of State; Homer Lee Wilkes, Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment, United States Department of Agriculture; Carmen Nazario, Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services; Andrew J. Shapiro, Assistant Secretary for Political-Military Affairs, Department of State; and Richard G. Newell, Administrator, Energy Information Administration.

President Obama said, "I am grateful that these distinguished individuals have made the admirable decision to serve their country at this important moment. I know that they will meet and exceed the America people’s expectations, whether it is in working to ensure our nation’s safety at home and abroad or helping to strengthen the economy and improve the lives of working families. They will be valued voices on our team, and I look forward to working with them in the coming months and years."

Ellen O. Tauscher is a seven term member of Congress serving California’s 10th Congressional District. She chairs the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee and the New Democrat Coalition. Throughout her career, Congresswoman Tauscher has been a leader on national security and nonproliferation issues. During her tenure, she has introduced legislation to increase and expand our nation’s nonproliferation programs, strengthen arms control regimes and provide our troops with the support and equipment they deserve. In addition, she has improved our nation’s missile defenses by conducting greater oversight of the Missile Defense Agency and making sure that our military has fully tested and reliable systems. She also represents two of the nation’s nuclear laboratories, Livermore and the California campus of Sandia, as well as Travis Air Force Base. She is a member of the NATO Parliamentary assembly where she serves as the Vice Chair for the Future Security and Defense Capabilities Subcommittee of the Defense and Security Committee. Before winning a Congressional seat in 1996, she worked as an investment banker. At age 25, she was one of the first women to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in early childhood education from Seton Hall University.

Mr. Wilkes is a 28 year veteran of the Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS), currently serving as State Conservationist in Mississippi. He is charged with administering a natural resources conservation program for the state of Mississippi. He has also served as a Budget Officer for NRCS in Amherst, Massachusetts, the Assistant Financial Manager and Fiscal Specialist for NRCS in Washington, DC, and served as the Chief of Administrative Staff for the South Technical Center for NRCS in Fort Worth, Texas. Mr. Wilkes received his Bachelors, Masters of Business Administration and PhD. in Urban Conservation Planning and Higher Education from Jackson State University.

Carmen Nazario is an Assistant Professor at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico, where she teaches Social Policy and coordinates the Social Work Practicum at the School of Social Work. Nazario has vast experience in public service with a focus on improving services to children and families within the United States and around the world, dating back to 1968. From January 2003 – December 2008, she served as Administrator of the Administration for Children and Families for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, where she led an agency of 4,000 staff with a budget of over $220 million. Prior to that, she served as the Senior Resident Investigator for the Jordan Poverty Alleviation Program, where she developed and implemented a national poverty reduction strategy for the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and advised leaders in the nation on the delivery of social services. During the Clinton Administration, she first served as Associate Commissioner for Child Care in the Administration on Children, Youth and Families and later became the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF). Nazario joined the Clinton Administration after serving as Secretary of Health and Social Services for the state of Delaware from 1993-1997, and, prior to that, she was the Director of Social Services in Norfolk, Virginia and Loudon County, Virginia. Nazario has held a number of national leadership roles, including Vice President of the Board of Directors of the American Public Welfare Association, President of the National Council of Local Public Welfare Administrators and Secretary of the National Council of State Human Service Administrators. Nazario is from Bayamon, Puerto Rico. She received a Bachelor of Arts with honors in Sociology from the University of Puerto Rico in 1967, and was awarded her Master of Social Work degree from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Social Work in 1973.

Mr. Shapiro is currently a Senior Advisor to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Prior to joining the State Department with the Secretary, he served from 2001 to 2009 as Senator Clinton's Senior Defense and Foreign Policy Advisor. In this position, he was Senator Clinton's primary policy advisor on national security issues including Senator Clinton's work on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Previously, Mr. Shapiro was counsel to the Justice Department's International Competition Policy Advisory Committee, and was an associate at the Washington, DC law firm Covington & Burling. He received a B.A. cum laude with honors distinction in Diplomatic History from the University of Pennsylvania and a joint law/master's in international affairs degree from Columbia University where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. Prior to attending law and graduate school, he worked as a senior research assistant at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Andrew Shapiro is recipient of the Gold Star Wives of America Appreciation Award and the National Guard Association’s Patrick Henry Award. He is a member of the Council of Foreign Relations and the International Institute of Strategic Studies.

Richard G. Newell is the Gendell Associate Professor of Energy and Environmental Economics at the Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University. He served previously as the Senior Economist for energy and environment on the President’s Council of Economic Advisers. Newell is a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research and a University Fellow of Resources for the Future, where he was formerly a Senior Fellow. He has published widely on the economics of markets and policies for energy, the environment, and related technologies, particularly alternatives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and achieving other energy and environmental goals. He has served on many advisory boards, editorial boards, the National Academy of Science, and other expert committees related to energy, environment, and innovation. Newell received a Ph.D. from Harvard University, M.P.A. from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School, and B.S. and B.A. from Rutgers University.