POSITIVE RSVP ONLINE ONLY: http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/events/rizzo.html
The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs will host a Directors' Seminar with John A. Rizzo, Former General Counsel, CIA.
Currently Mr. Rizzo is a Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University where he is working on a memoir detailing his career at the Agency. Mr. Rizzo retired in December of 2009 after 34 years of service as the Acting General Counsel of the CIA a position he had held since 2004. He had previously held the position on several other occasions since 1995, when he was named Senior Deputy General Counsel for the CIA. He was responsible for all legal issues regarding the initiation and implementation of intelligence collection and covert action operations. Mr. Rizzo also had been the Senior Designated Agency Ethics Official for the past ten years.
Mr. Rizzo served the CIA for over three decades, beginning his agency career in 1976. One of his most significant early achievements was drafting and interpreting the Agency's internal regulations governing the CIA's relationships with US news media, clergy, academia, and domestic business interests. These regulations are still in use today.
Mr. Rizzo served as Deputy Director of the Office of Congressional Affairs from 1986 to 1989. During this appointment, he was the Agency's lead counsel in dealings with the House and Senate Committees investigating the Iran-Contra affair. For this work, he received the CIA's Distinguished Officer in the Senior Intelligence Service Award. He has also received the CIA Director's Award three times for his service as Acting General Counsel.
In 1996, Mr. Rizzo became the only attorney from the Intelligence Community to receive the Thomas C. Clark award from the Federal Bar Association. President George W. Bush nominated him for the position of CIA General Counsel in 2007, the first career CIA lawyer ever put forward for the position, and Mr. Rizzo withdrew his nomination later that year.
A member of the District of Columbia Bar, Mr. Rizzo earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Brown University and graduated cum laude from George Washington University Law School, where he was a member of the Law Review. Before joining the Agency, he practiced law for the US Department of Treasury's Office of General Counsel specializing in enforcement, customs, and narcotics issues.
RSVP REQUIRED! http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/events/rizzo.html
As space is limited for this event, RSVPs will be accepted on a first come, first served basis.
Belfer Center Directors' Seminars are strictly off-the-record. By indicating your desire 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.
