Past Speakers

Ambassador Frank Wisner

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Frank Wisner

Retired American diplomat

Ambassador Frank Wisner’s diplomatic career spans four decades and eight American presidents. He served as ambassador to Zambia, Egypt, the Philippines, and India during his years in the State Department.

After graduating from Princeton University in 1961, Frank Wisner joined the State Department as a Foreign Service officer. Ambassador Wisner worked as a senior diplomat in Tunisia and Bangladesh before returning to Washington as Director of Plans and Management in the Bureau of Public Affairs. He then joined the President’s Interagency Task Force on Indochina, the entity responsible for evacuating and settling nearly one million refugees and served as its Deputy Director. Later, as Director of the Office of Southern African Affairs, Frank Wisner worked closely with Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to launch negotiations with Zimbabwe and Namibia. Ambassador Wisner played a crucial role in negotiating Kosovo’s independence as the nation’s special representative to the Kosovo Status Talks in 2005. He is currently a foreign affairs adviser for Patton Boggs.

Ambassador Wisner spoke at The Common Good in 2013: Foreign Affairs Series: Egypt in Crisis with Ambassador Frank Wisner.

David Rohde

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David Rohde

Journalist, author

David Rohde is the online news director for The New Yorker. He is a global-affairs analyst for CNN and a former reporter for Reuters, The New York Times, and the Christian Science Monitor. He was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for international reporting in 1996 for stories that helped expose the Srebrenica massacre during the war in Bosnia. In 2009, he shared a Pulitzer Prize with a team of Times reporters for coverage of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

His other books include Beyond War: Reimagining America’s Role and Ambitions in a New Middle East, A Rope and a Prayer: The Story of a Kidnapping (co-authored with his wife, Kristen Mulvihill), and Endgame: The Betrayal and Fall of Srebrenica, Europe’s Worst Massacre Since World War II.

Rohde spoke at The Common Good in 2013: Foreign Affairs Series: Rethinking US Approaches to the Middle East with David Rohde.

Twitter: @RohdeD

Joseph Lhota

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Joseph Lhota

American public servant, former politician

Joe Lhota is an American politician and businessman, former chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and former deputy mayor of New York City. He was the Republican nominee in his unsuccessful bid for the 2013 election for Mayor of New York City. As of 2015, he is senior vice president, vice dean, and chief of staff at NYU Langone Medical Center. In 2017, he returned to the chairmanship of the MTA and later resigned from the position in 2018.

Lhota spoke at The Common Good in 2013: NYC Mayoral Candidate Series: Joe Lhota - August 13, 2013.

Twitter: @JoeLhota

Eric Schneiderman

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Eric Schneiderman

Lawyer

Eric T. Schneiderman was elected the 65th Attorney General of New York State on November 2, 2010. He served until his resignation in 2018 amid accusations of sexual misconduct.

Schneiderman previously spent 15 years in private practice as an attorney, and later as a partner, at the firm of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart. He was also a public interest lawyer for many years, and his clients included taxpayers in historic lawsuits against the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, tenants trying to evict drug dealers from their buildings, and women seeking access to health clinics. Before becoming an Attorney General, he served ten years as a democrat in the New York State Senate.

He was hosted by The Common Good in 2013: Leadership Series: New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman - July 23, 2013.

Twitter: @EricSchneiderNY

John Catsimatidis

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John Catsimatidis

Owner and CEO of the Red Apple Group

John Catsimatidis was born on the Greek Island of Nisyros in 1948. Six months later his parents emigrated to New York City. Catsimatidis enrolled in New York University to study electrical engineering, going to school during the day and working in a small grocery store on nights and weekends to help his parents pay the bills. He eventually dropped out of school to work full time. By his 25th birthday he already had 10 Red Apple Supermarkets. Four decades later, the Red Apple Group ranked 156th by Forbes in 2015 in“America’s largest private companies” and has evolved into a diversified corporation that has holdings in the energy, aviation, retail and real estate sectors and over 8,000 employees.

He and his wife are actively involved in political contributions and campaigns on both sides of the aisle.

Catsimatidis was hosted by The Common Good in 2013: NYC Candidate Series: John Catsimatidis - July 16, 2013.

Twitter: @JCats2013

Anthony Weiner

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Anthony Weiner

American politician and Former U.S. Representative

Anthony David Weiner is an American politician and former U.S. Representative who served New York’s 9th congressional district from January 1999 until June 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he won seven terms, never receiving less than 59% of the vote. Weiner resigned from Congress in June 2011, due to a sexting scandal.

He was a member of the New York City Council from 1992 to 1998, and a congressional aide to then–U.S. Representative Chuck Schumer from 1985 to 1991. A New York City native, he attended public schools and graduated from the SUNY Plattsburgh in 1985 with a B.A. in political science. He was an unsuccessful candidate for Mayor of New York City in the 2005 and 2013 New York City mayoral elections.

Weiner was incarcerated in 2017 for sending explicit photos to a minor. He was released from prison in February, 2019. After two months in a halfway house, Weiner was released as a registered sex offender.

Weiner spoke at The Common Good in 2013: NYC Mayoral Candidate Series: Anthony Weiner on health care policy.

James Goodale

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James Goodale

Leading First Amendment lawyer with Debevoise & Plimpton

James C. Goodale is a leading First Amendment lawyer with Debevoise & Plimpton. He has represented The New York Times in every one of its cases to go to the Supreme Court. These cases include the Pentagon Papers case (The New York Times Co. v. The U.S.), The New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (libel), and The New York Times Co. v. Tasini (digital rights).

Goodale spoke at The Common Good alongside Brian Knappenberger at a Special Screening and Conversation on “Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press” in 2017 and at the Democracy Series: ‘Fighting for the Press’ with James Goodale event in 2013.

Ribal al-Assad

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Ribal al-Assad

Syrian businessman, political activist

Ribal al-Assad is the founder and director of the Organization for Democracy and Freedom in Syria, which promotes democracy, freedom and human rights in Syria and the Middle East. He is also the Chairman and Founder of the Iman Foundation, a non-partisan and not for profit organization which aims to promote dialogue to strengthen international understanding and co-existence through the exchange of ideas, people, culture and religion. He was born in Syria and has lived in the West since being exiled from his country as a child.

Ribal al-Assad spoke at The Common Good in 2013: Foreign Affairs Series: Syria update with Ribal al-Assad - June 25, 2013.

Twitter: @RibalAlAssad

Brenda Fulton

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Brenda s. Fulton

Board member of OutServe-SLDN, Co-founder of Knights Out

Brenda S. “Sue” Fulton is a Board member of OutServe-SLDN, the national organization supporting LGBT members of the Armed Forces. A Florida native, Fulton graduated West Point in 1980, part of the first class to include women, and was commissioned in the Army. She served as a platoon leader, staff officer, and company commander in Germany, and was honorably discharged as a Captain.

In 2009, she co-founded Knights Out, an organization of LGBT West Point graduates and allies, and later helped Josh Seefried and Ty Walrod launch OutServe, the association of actively-serving LGBT military personnel. She served both organizations as Communications Director and later became Executive Director of Knights Out. A key player in the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Fulton was appointed by President Obama to the U.S. Military Academy Board of Visitors in 2011 – the first openly gay member of the Board.

Governor Murphy appointed Chief Fulton as one of three State government appointees to the State Ethics Commission, which administers and enforces State conflicts of interest law in July of 2018.

Fulton spoke as part of the panel Women in the Military: US Senator Jeanne Shaheen and others – March 15, 2013 alongside Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Anu Bhagwati, and Molly O’Toole, moderated by MSNBC contributor Krystal Ball at The Common Good.

Twitter: @suefulton

Anuradha Bhagwati

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Anuradha Bhagwati

Service Women’s Action Network’s First Executive Director

Anuradha Bhagwati is the Service Women’s Action Network’s (SWAN) first Executive Director. A former Captain and Company Commander, Anu served as a Marine officer from 1999-2004. Under Anu’s leadership, SWAN has spearheaded legislative reform and litigation to end military rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment, and domestic violence, and to eliminate all barriers to equal opportunity for service women.

Anu has testified before Congress, advised the White House and the United Nations, and has spoken to countless audiences on challenges faced by military women, including the Combat Exclusion policy, Military Sexual Trauma, the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, and the VA health care and benefits system. A regular contributor to the media, Anu has been featured on Piers Morgan Tonight, the CNN Situation Room, MSNBC, NBC Nightly News, NPR, the BBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Newsweek. Anu is the author of “UNBECOMING: A Memoir of Disobedience”, published in March 2019.

Bhagwati spoke as part of the panel Women in the Military: US Senator Jeanne Shaheen and others – March 15, 2013 alongside Molly O’Toole, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, and Brenda S. Fulton, moderated by MSNBC contributor Krystal Ball at The Common Good.

Twitter: @AnuBhagwati

Senator Jeanne Shaheen

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Jeanne Shaheen

American Politician

The first woman in history to be elected a Governor and a United States Senator, Jeanne Shaheen has been involved in all levels of New Hampshire life. She became the first woman elected Governor of New Hampshire, serving three terms from 1997-2003. In 2008 Shaheen became the first woman elected to the United States Senate from New Hampshire. She chairs the Committee on Foreign Relations’ Subcommittee on European Affairs, and the Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s Subcommittee on Water and Power. Shaheen is also a member of the Armed Services Committee and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Shaheen spoke as part of the panel Women in the Military: US Senator Jeanne Shaheen and others – March 15, 2013 alongside Molly O’Toole, Anu Bhagwati, and Brenda S. Fulton, moderated by MSNBC contributor Krystal Ball at The Common Good.

Twitter: @SenatorShaheen

Mark Kelly

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Mark Kelly

American astronaut, engineer, and U.S. Navy Captain

Mark Kelly, husband of former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, is a retired astronaut and US Navy Captain with 6,000 flight hours in more than 50 different aircraft, 375 aircraft carrier landings, 39 combat missions and more than 50 days in space.

As a Naval Aviator, Kelly flew combat missions during the Gulf War. He received initial training on the A-6E Intruder attack aircraft. He was then assigned to Attack Squadron 115 (VA-115) in Atsugi, Japan, and made two deployments to the Persian Gulf on the aircraft carrier USS Midway, flying 39 combat missions in Operation Desert Storm. Kelly has won many awards, including the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit and Distinguished Flying Cross. He was selected as an astronaut in 1996 and flew his first of four missions in 2001 aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour, the same space shuttle that he commanded on its final flight in May 2011. He is one of only two individuals who has visited the International Space Station on four different occasions.

Kelly was thrust into the national spotlight in January 2011 after his wife, U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, was shot in an assassination attempt in Arizona.

He spoke at The Common Good in 2013: Astronaut Mark Kelly “Reducing Gun Violence Responsibly”.

Twitter: @ShuttleCDRKelly

Alan Blinder

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Alan Blinder

American economist, journalist

Alan S. Blinder has been on the Princeton faculty since 1971, taking time off from January 1993 through January 1996 for service in the U.S. government—first as a member of President Clinton’s original Council of Economic Advisers, and then as Vice Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. In addition to his academic writings (books, academic articles) and his best-selling introductory textbook, he has written many op-eds and columns, and, in recent years, has been a regular columnist for The Wall Street Journal.

He also appears frequently on television on PBS, CNBC, CNN, Bloomberg, and others. Dr. Blinder is a Distinguished Fellow and past vice president of the American Economic Association, a past president of the Eastern Economic Association, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, and the American Academy of Political and Social Science.

Alan Blinder spoke at The Common Good in 2013: Alan Blinder: The Economic Crisis and Response - January 24, 2013.

Representative Joaquin Castro

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Representative Joaquin Castro

Democratic Member of the U.S. House representing Texas’ 20th Congressional District

Joaquin Castro is a Democratic member of the U.S. House, representing Texas’ 20th Congressional District. Castro began his political career in the Texas House of Representatives, where he represented district 125 from 2003 to 2013. Castro won re-election to the U.S. House in 2014. He ran unopposed in the Democratic primary on March 4, 2014, and defeated Jeffrey Blunt (L) in the general election on November 4, 2014.

He created the Trailblazers College Tour, personally raising money to send underprivileged students on college visits. He also created SA READS, San Antonio’s largest literacy campaign and book drive. Over 200,000 books have been distributed to more than 150 schools and shelters across the city. He has also taught as a visiting professor of law at St. Mary’s University and as an adjunct professor at Trinity University.

Joaquin is active on several boards of education-related, non-profit organizations, including the National College Advising Corps, and the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials’ (NALEO) Taskforce on Education.

Twitter: @JoaquinCastrotx

Secretary Julián Castro

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Secretary Julián Castro

Former Mayor of San Antonio and former Secretary for Housing and Urban Development

Julián Castro was the youngest member of President Obama’s cabinet, serving as Secretary for Housing and Urban Development.

Upon his graduation from Harvard law school, Castro ran for a seat on the San Antonio City Council and won, making history as the youngest councilman in the city’s history. He served for several years and then ran for the mayoral seat, which he lost. He ran again for the mayoral seat in 2009 and won, becoming the fifth Hispanic mayor in San Antonio’s history. Under his leadership, the city established Café College, a one-stop center offering high-quality guidance on college admissions, financial aid and standardized test preparation to any student in the San Antonio area. Since opening in 2010, Café College has served more than 25,000 area students.

In March 2010, Castro joined Twitter and Google executives in being named to the World Economic Forum’s list of Young Global Leaders. Soon after, Time magazine placed him on its “40 Under 40” list of rising stars in American politics.

Castro served as the Secretary for Housing and Urban Development from 2014 to 2017.

Castro announced that he was running for president of the United States on January 12, 2019. He said he achieved universal preschool in San Antonio during his time as mayor and would do the same nationally. Castro has also promoted Medicare for All and housing affordability.

Prior to serving in the Obama administration, Castro was the mayor of San Antonio for five years. He also served on the San Antonio City Council, representing District 7.

Twitter: @JulianCastro

Senator Alan Simpson

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the honorable Alan Simpson

American politician

Alan Simpson served as a Senator from Wyoming from 1979 to 1997. He was an opponent of government regulation, as well as an outspoken advocate for access to abortion, gay and lesbian rights, and equality for all persons regardless of race, color, creed, gender, or sexual orientation. He was Republican whip from 1985 to 1995 and chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee from 1981 to 1987 and from 1995 to 1997. During his tenure, Simpson also chaired the Immigration and Refugee Subcommittee of Judiciary, the Nuclear Regulation Subcommittee, the Social Security Subcommittee and the Committee on Aging.

After his retirement from politics, Simpson taught at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, serving two years as Director of the Institute of Politics. In 2000, he returned to Wyoming to practice law with his two sons, William and Colin. Alan Simpson occasionally teaches at the University of Wyoming, and serves as co-chair of Americans for Campaign Reform.

Simpson was hosted by The Common Good in 2012: Senator Alan Simpson “The Fiscal Cliff: Go Big or Go Home” – December 3, 2012.

Neil Barofsky

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Neil Barofsky

Senior Fellow at New York University School of Law

Neil Barofsky is currently a senior fellow at New York University School of Law. From December 2008 until March 2011, he served as the special inspector general in charge of oversight of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Before that he was a federal prosecutor in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York for more than eight years. During this time he headed the Mortgage Fraud Group and prosecuted some of the most significant cases in the United States, including the conviction of the former CEO and president of Refco. He also led the investigation that resulted in the indictment of the top fifty leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC) on narcotics charges, a case described by then-U.S. attorney general as the largest narcotics indictment filed in U.S. history.

Barofsky was hosted by The Common Good in 2011: Former TARP Special Inspector Neil Barofsky, “Another Crisis is Coming” – November 28, 2011, and in 2012: Neil Barofsky on the “Broken Promises” of the Bank Bailouts – November 28, 2012.

Twitter: @neilbarofsky

Steve Hildebrand

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Steve Hildebrand

Democratic political strategist

Steve Hildebrand is a Democratic political strategist, and was the deputy national campaign director of Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign. In 2005, Hildebrand joined with Paul Tewes to form Hildebrand Tewes Consulting, a campaign consulting firm with offices in Washington, D.C., and Sioux Falls. In 2004, he was the campaign manager for U.S. Senator Tom Daschle’s (D-SD) losing re-election effort against U.S. Representative John Thune (R-SD). He was also campaign manager in U.S. Senator Tim Johnson’s (D-SD) winning re-election campaign in 2002 and Al Gore’s 2000 Iowa Caucus victory. He has served as Executive Director of the South Dakota and Minnesota Democratic Parties and Political Director of Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. He returned to his private consulting firm following Obama’s victory in the 2008 presidential election.

The Common Good hosted Hildebrand in 2010: Election Insurrection: The Mid-Term Elections 2010.

Twitter: @cooper834

Colin Kahl

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dr. Colin Kahl

American political adviser, former White House staff member

Colin Kahl was the Deputy Assistant to President Obama and National Security Advisor to Vice President Biden.  

In addition to teaching at Georgetown, Dr. Kahl served as Senior Fellow and Director of the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. From 2009-2011, Dr. Kahl served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East. In that position, he was awarded the Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service in June 2011. Dr. Kahl served at the Pentagon from 2005-2006, where he was a Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs fellow in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Stability Operations. Dr. Kahl is the author of a number of reports and publications on far-ranging issues in the Middle East. 

The Common Good hosted Dr. Kahl in 2012: Col. Jack Jacobs & Colin Kahl, Middle East Hot Topics.

Twitter: @ColinKahl

Colonel Jack Jacobs

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Colonel Jack Jacobs

Ret. Colonel in the U.S. Army

Jack Howard Jacobs is a retired colonel in the United States Army and a Medal of Honor recipient for his actions during the Vietnam War. He currently serves as a military analyst for MSNBC and NBC News, and previously worked as an investment manager.

Jack Jacobs fought in Vietnam where he was promoted to captain and awarded the Medal of Honor. In addition to the Medal of Honor, Jacobs received two Silver Stars, three Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts. Jacobs was a faculty member at the United States Military Academy in West Point, teaching international relations and comparative politics for three years, and at the National War College in Washington, D.C. He retired from the Army in 1987 as a colonel, and began a career in investment banking. Jacobs maintains involvement in several military-related organizations. He is vice chairman of the Medal of Honor Foundation, a member of the board of trustees for the National World War II Museum, and holds the McDermott Chair of Politics at the U.S. Military Academy.

In October 2008, the Penguin Group published Jacobs’ memoir, If Not Now, When?: Duty and Sacrifice In America’s Time of Need, coauthored with New York Times best-selling author, Douglas Century. In May 2012, Thomas Dunne Books published Basic: Surviving Boot Camp and Basic Training, co-written with David Fisher.

Jacobs was hosted by The Common Good alongside Colin Kahl in 2012: Col. Jack Jacobs & Colin Kahl, Middle East Hot Topics.

Twitter: @ColJackJacobs