Mark Esper
| Mark Esper | |
|---|---|
| United States Secretary of the Army Nominee | |
|
Taking office TBD* | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Succeeding | Ryan McCarthy (Acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Republican |
| Education |
United States Military Academy (BS) Harvard University (MPA) George Washington University (PhD) |
| *Pending Senate confirmation | |
Mark Thomas Esper is an American lobbyist and former government administrator for the United States Department of Defense. He currently serves as Vice President of government relations at Raytheon.[1]
On July 19, 2017, it was announced that President Donald Trump had the intention of nominating Esper to become U.S. Secretary of the Army.[2]
Education
Esper graduated from Laurel Highlands High School in 1982.[3] He received his BS in engineering from the United States Military Academy in 1986. He received a master's degree in public administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government in 1995 and a PhD from George Washington University in 2008.[4]
Career
Esper served with the 101st Airborne Division and was deployed in the Gulf War. He later led an Airborne Rifle Company in Europe and served as an Army Fellow at the Pentagon.[3] Esper was on active duty for over ten years, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel.[5]
Esper was chief of staff at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.[6] From 1998 to 2002, Esper served as a staffer for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee. He was policy director for the House Armed Services Committee from 2001 to 2002. From 2002 to 2004, Esper served in the George W. Bush administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Negotiations Policy. He was Director for National Security Affairs for the Senate from 2004 to 2006.
Esper was executive vice president at the Aerospace Industries Association in 2006 and 2007. From September 2007 to February 2008, Esper served as national policy director to Senator Fred Thompson in his 2008 Presidential campaign. He then served as director of National Security Affairs for Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist and legislative director to Senator Chuck Hagel.[7]
From 2008 to 2010, Esper served as Executive Vice President of the Global Intellectual Property Center and Vice President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He was hired as Vice President of government relations at defense contractor Raytheon in July 2010. Esper was recognized as a top corporate lobbyist by The Hill in 2015[8] and 2016.[9]
President Trump announced his intention to nominate Esper as Secretary of the Army in July 2017. He is Trump's third nominee for the position, following the withdrawals of Vincent Viola and Mark E. Green.[10]
References
- ↑ O'Brien, Connor (July 19, 2017). "Trump taps Raytheon VP as Army secretary". Politico.
- ↑ McIntyre, Jamie (July 19, 2017). "Exclusive: Trump to nominate Mark Esper as Army secretary". Washington Examiner.
- 1 2 Basinger, Rachel (August 31, 2013). "Laurel Highlands to honor Hall of Fame inductees". TribLIVE.
- ↑ Hubler, David (July 16, 2010). "Raytheon adds defense expert to lead government relations unit". Washington Technology.
- ↑ Shane III, Leo (July 19, 2017). "Trump to nominate Raytheon VP, Gulf War vet as next Army secretary". Military Times.
- ↑ "U.S. Chamber Bolsters Its Europe-Eurasia Team". U.S. Chamber of Commerce. November 20, 2008.
- ↑ "Raytheon Names Mark T. Esper Vice President of Government Relations". investor.raytheon.com. Raytheon. July 16, 2010.
- ↑ Dickson, Rebecca (October 29, 2015). "Top Lobbyists 2015: Corporate". The Hill.
- ↑ Dickson, Rebecca (October 26, 2016). "Top Lobbyists 2016: Corporate". The Hill.
- ↑ Gibbons-Neff, Thomas; Jaffe, Greg (July 19, 2017). "Trump to nominate Raytheon lobbyist for next Army secretary". Washington Post.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Ryan McCarthy Acting |
United States Secretary of the Army Nominee Taking office 2017 |
Incumbent |