Revelations from the Miller Center's new Obama oral history project (Part II)

Melody Barnes is the executive director of University of Virginia's Karsh Institute of Democracy, a professor of practice at the Miller Center, and a senior fellow at UVA Law's Karsh Center for Law and Democracy. During the Obama administration, Barnes was assistant to the president and director of the White House Domestic Policy Council. She also was cofounder of the domestic strategy firm MB2 Solutions LLC, executive vice president for policy at the Center for American Progress, and chief counsel to the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Barnes began her career as an attorney with Shearman & Sterling in New York City. She earned her BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her JD from the University of Michigan.

John O. Brennan served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency from March 2013 until January 2017. From January 2009 to March 2013, he was Deputy National Security Advisor and Assistant to President Obama for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism. Brennan began his government service at the CIA, where he worked from 1980 to 2005. In 2003, he led a multi-agency effort to establish the National Counterterrorism Center and served as the Center’s founding director. He is the author of Undaunted: My Fight Against America’s Enemies at Home and Abroad, a memoir of his career in public service. Brennan graduated from Fordham University and earned a master’s degree in government from the University of Texas at Austin.

James R. Clapper served for 54 years in various intelligence capacities, including as Director of National Intelligence (DNI) for President Obama. Clapper served for 34 years in the armed forces, first in the Marine Corps reserve, and then for more than 32 years in the Air Force, retiring in 1995 as a lieutenant general. His last active duty position was as the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency. Following six years in industry as a contractor, advisor, and consultant to the intelligence community, he returned to the government two days after 9/11 as the director of what is now the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, then served as the under secretary of defense for intelligence prior to his tenure as DNI. Clapper is the author of Facts and Fears: Hard Truths from a Life in Intelligence. He holds a BS from the University of Maryland, College Park, and an MA from St. Mary’s University.

Ray LaHood was the U.S. Secretary of Transportation from 2009 to 2013 under President Obama and had a 36-year career in public service. LaHood represented the 18th district of Illinois in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2009, serving on the House Appropriations Committee and the House Intelligence Committee, among others. He was the chief of staff to U.S. House Minority Leader Robert Michel from 1982 to 1994, district administrative assistant for U.S. Congressman Tom Railsback from 1977 to 1982, chief planner of the Bi-States Metropolitan Planning Commission from 1974 to 1977, and director of the Rock Island County Youth Services Bureau from 1972 to 1974. He holds a BS from Bradley University.

Sally Jewell served as U.S. Secretary of the Interior from 2013 to 2017, following more than 40 years in business, including eight as CEO of outdoor retailer REI. In government, Jewell advocated for thoughtful development and protection of public lands and waters, leveraged science to shape a landscape-level understanding of our resources, nurtured a respectful nation-to-nation relationship with Native American tribes, and engaged youth in opportunities to experience and care for the natural world. Early in her career, she worked for Mobil oil company and then worked in the banking industry for nearly 20 years. She holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Washington.

Chris Lu is a James R. Schlesinger Distinguished Professor at the University of Virginia's Miller Center. During a public service career that has spanned all three branches of the federal government, Lu’s experience includes both domestic and foreign policy as well as the management of complex organizations. During the Biden administration, he served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations for management and reform. During the second term of the Obama administration, Lu served as the U.S. deputy secretary of labor. From 2009 to 2013, Lu served as the White House cabinet secretary and assistant to the president, where he was the primary liaison between the White House and the federal agencies. Lu is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School and holds an honorary doctorate from MacMurray College.

Mara Rudman is a professor of practice at the Miller Center, where she directs the Ripples of Hope Project, aimed at identifying practical approaches to help democratic leaders resolve key challenges. She previously served as a Miller Center Schlesinger Distinguished Professor and on the 2022 National Defense Strategy Commission. She serves on the Howard University College of Arts and Sciences board of advisors and consults for Democracy Forward. She was previously executive vice president for policy at the Center for American Progress, and her government positions have included serving as deputy assistant to the president for national security affairs in the Obama and Clinton administrations; deputy envoy for the Office of the Special Envoy for Middle East Peace at the U.S. Department of State; assistant administrator for the Middle East at the U.S. Agency for International Development; and chief counsel to the House Foreign Affairs Committee. She received an AB from Dartmouth College and a JD from Harvard Law School.

Barbara A. Perry is the J. Wilson Newman Professor of Governance at the Miller Center, where she co-directs the Presidential Oral History Program. She has authored or edited 17 books on presidents, First Ladies, the Kennedy family, the Supreme Court, and civil rights and civil liberties. Perry has conducted more than 150 interviews for the George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama Presidential Oral History Projects; interviewed President Bill Clinton; and directed the Edward Kennedy Oral History Project's conclusion. She served as a U.S. Supreme Court fellow and has worked for both Republican and Democratic members of the Senate. Perry earned a BA in political science from the University of Louisville, an MA in politics, philosophy, and economics from Oxford University, and a PhD in government from the University of Virginia.