The Homeland Security Project will host a conversation with Ron Klain, former Obama Ebola Czar and Chief of Staff to Vice Presidents Biden and Gore, to discuss his experience in crisis management as well as the current political climate.
Lunch will be served. Please RSVP here: https://goo.gl/forms/CVbc1hNIRsJuhr1B2
Mr. Klain has devoted considerable time to public service, most recently as White House Ebola Response Coordinator from fall 2014 to spring 2015. At the conclusion of Mr. Klain’s tenure, President Obama congratulated him for taking “on a challenge that many called insurmountable, and, in leading the team responsible for … tremendous progress, helped remind the world what makes America so exceptional.”
Earlier, Mr. Klain served as a senior White House aide to President Obama responsible for implementing the American Recovery Act , and Chief of Staff to Vice President Joe Biden from 2009 to 2011. He has also served as Chief of Staff for Vice President Al Gore, Chief of Staff and Counselor to Attorney General Janet Reno, Staff Director of the Senate Democratic Leadership Committee, and Chief Counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Mr. Klain was also Associate Counsel to President Clinton in charge of judicial selection. Through his work on the Judiciary Committee, and in the Clinton and Obama administrations, he has played a role in the selection or confirmation of eight Supreme Court Justices. Mr. Klain began his legal career as a law clerk to Justice Byron White, for the Supreme Court’s 1987 and 1988 Terms.
On top of his public service career, Ron Klain is General Counsel of Revolution LLC, an investment firm launched by AOL Co-Founder Steve Case to back disruptive, innovative companies that offer consumers more choice, convenience, and control in their lives. Prior to joining Revolution in 2005, Mr. Klain spent four years as a partner and National Practice Group Chair at O’Melveny & Myers LLP, where his practice focused on constitutional and commercial litigation, antitrust, and corporate transactions.
Mr. Klain gained national notice as General Counsel for the Gore Recount Committee in 2000, in recognition of which he was selected as one of National Law Journal’s “Lawyers of the Year,” and portrayed by Academy Award winner Kevin Spacey in HBO’s film “RECOUNT.” He has also worked as a top debate preparation advisor to Presidents Obama and Clinton, and Democratic Presidential nominees Al Gore and John Kerry.
Mr. Klain’s current and previous civic affiliations include service as Chairman of the Board of the Vice President’s Residence Foundation; a member of the Board of Visitors of Harvard Law School; a Member of the Governing Council of the Administrative Conference of the United States; and a Board Member of the American Progress Action Fund, the American Constitution Society, and Third Way.
Ron Klain is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School, where he was an Editor of the Harvard Law Review and won the Sears Prize for highest grade average in 1985. He was a summa cum laude graduate of Georgetown University, where he is an Adjunct Professor in the Government Department teaching a seminar on Presidential Debates. He is married to Monica Medina, the Senior Policy Director for National Geographic’s Pristine Seas Initiative, and previously the Deputy Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). They have three children.
As space is limited for this event, RSVPs will be accepted on a first come, first served basis. Belfer Center Seminars are strictly off-the-record. By requesting to attend the seminar, you agree that you will comply with the Belfer Center's strict policy against recording or disclosing the contents of the seminar. Your access is conditioned on your compliance with these restrictions. Should you violate these rules, the Center will pursue all available legal options and you will be excluded from all future events.
