Philip H. "Phil" Gordon (born 1962) is an American diplomat and international relations scholar. Since March 21, 2022, he has served as Assistant to the President and National Security Advisor to the Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris. Earlier in his career, he was Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs (2009–2011) and Special Assistant to the President and White House Coordinator for the Middle East, North Africa, and the Persian Gulf Region (2013–2015) during the Obama administration.[1][2]
Phil Gordon | |
|---|---|
| National Security Advisor to the Vice President | |
| Assumed office March 21, 2022 | |
| Vice President | Kamala Harris |
| Preceded by | Nancy McEldowney |
| Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President of the United States | |
| In office January 20, 2021 – March 21, 2022 | |
| Vice President | Kamala Harris |
| Preceded by | Stephen Pinkos |
| Succeeded by | Rebecca Lissner |
| 24th Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs | |
| In office May 15, 2009 – March 11, 2013 | |
| President | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Daniel Fried |
| Succeeded by | Victoria Nuland |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1962 (age 61–62) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Ohio University (BA) Johns Hopkins University (MA, PhD) |
Education
editGordon received a BA from Ohio University in 1984, a MA and PhD from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in 1987 and 1991, respectively.[3]
Career
editTeaching career
editGordon held a number of research and teaching positions, including at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C.; the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London; INSEAD, the global graduate business school in Fontainebleau; the Institut d’Etudes Politiques (“Sciences Po”) in Paris; and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik in Bonn.[3]
Clinton administration
editFrom 1998 to 1999, he served as the Director for European Affairs at the National Security Council under President Bill Clinton.[3]
Gordon was a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution was 1999 to 2009, focusing his scholarship on Turkey, Iraq, and U.S.-Europe relations. He co-authored five books on France, Turkey, Iraq, and the Middle East.[4]
Obama administration
editGordon was a senior foreign policy advisor for Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign.[4]
In the Obama administration, Gordon served as Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs under Secretary of State Hillary Clinton from May 2009 to March 2013. During his time as Assistant Secretary, Gordon prioritized cooperation with Europe on global issues; promoting U.S. commercial and business interests; extending stability, prosperity and democracy to Eastern Europe, the Balkans and the Caucasus; and developing bilateral cooperation with Russia and with Turkey.[3]
On March 11, 2013, Gordon was appointed Special Assistant to the President and Coordinator for the Middle East, North Africa, and the Gulf Region at the NSC.[3] According to the Daily Beast, Gordon (who is Jewish himself[5][6]) did not have much experience with the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, but was appointed due to his decades of experience in the Beltway and deep knowledge of how Washington worked.[4]
Council on Foreign Relations
editAfter he stepped down from the Obama administration, Gordon was one of the biggest boosters of the Iran nuclear deal. He has been described as associated with the progressive wing of the national security continuum.[6]
Between the Obama and Biden administrations, Gordon worked as the Mary and David Boies senior fellow in U.S. foreign policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he focused on U.S. foreign policy, the Middle East, and Europe. He was also a Senior Adviser at Albright Stonebridge Group.[7]
He joined the Council on Foreign Relations in April 2015 as a senior fellow focused on U.S. foreign and national security policy; U.S. policy in the Middle East; Israeli-Palestinian issues; Middle East regional issues; Europe and the EU; Russia; Turkey; nuclear weapons; intelligence; terrorism; and international economics.[8]
Biden administration
editDuring the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, Gordon was a foreign policy advisor to Kamala Harris' campaign.[6]
At the start of the Biden Administration, Gordon was named Deputy National Security Advisor to Vice President Harris.[2] On March 21, 2022, Gordon succeeded Nancy McEldowney as National Security Advisor to the Vice President.[9][10] During the Israel-Hamas war, Gordon took a high-profile trip to Israel and the West Bank, meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.[6]
In August 2024, Gordon said that Kamala Harris did not support an arms embargo on Israel.[11]
Publications
editGordon has published articles in The New York Times, Washington Post, Politico, the Atlantic, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Le Monde, and elsewhere.
He has also authored several books, including:
- Losing the Long Game: The False Promise of Regime Change in the Middle East, 2020
- Winning the Right War: The Path to Security for America and the World, 2008
- Winning Turkey: How America, Europe, And Turkey Can Revive A Fading Partnership (with Omer Taspinar), 2008
- History Strikes Back: How States, Nations, And Conflicts Are Shaping The Twenty-first Century, ed., (with Hubert Vedrine and Madeleine Albright), 2008
- Crescent of Crisis: US-European Strategy for the Middle East, ed., (with Ivo Daalder and Nicole Gnesotto), 2006
- Allies at War: The United States, Europe, and the Crisis Over Iraq (with Jeremy Shapiro), 2004
- The French Challenge: Adapting to Globalization (with Sophie Meunier), 2001
- Cold War Statesmen Confront the Bomb, ed. (with John Lewis Gaddis, Ernest R. May and Jonathan Rosenberg), 1999
- NATO's Transformation, ed., 1997
- France, Germany and the Western Alliance, 1995
- A Certain Idea of France, 1993
He has also translated two books: Nicolas Sarkozy's Testimony: France, Europe, and the World in the Twenty-First Century, 2007, and Hubert Vedrine's France in the Age of Globalization, 2001.
References
edit- ^ "White House Announces New Coordinator for the Middle East, North Africa, and the Gulf Region". Office of the White House Press Secretary (Press release). March 2, 2013. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
- ^ a b "President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris Announce Additional Members of the Office of the Vice President". Biden-Harris Transition (Press release). January 16, 2021. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021 – via Wayback Machine.
- ^ a b c d e "Philip Gordon - Senior Fellow". Council on Foreign Relations. Archived from the original on June 27, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
- ^ a b c Gittleson, Ben (2013-03-25). "Why Obama Picked Philip Gordon For NSC Post". Daily Beast. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
- ^ @GSDeutch (July 22, 2024). "Back in December, I profiled Phil Gordon, Harris' influential (Jewish) national security advisor — a holdover from Obama's term who was a big booster of the Iran deal" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ a b c d Deutch, Gabby (2023-12-22). "The Obama Mideast expert guiding VP Harris on foreign policy". Jewish Insider. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
- ^ "Philip Gordon". Albright Stonebridge Group. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021 – via Wayback Machine.
- ^ "Philip Gordon Joins CFR As Senior Fellow". Council on Foreign Relations (Press release). March 31, 2015. Archived from the original on July 4, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2021 – via Wayback Machine.
- ^ Bose, Nandita (2022-03-21). "EXCLUSIVE VP Harris's National Security Adviser McEldowney to depart". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
- ^ Samuels, Brett (2022-03-21). "Harris taps Philip Gordon as new national security adviser". The Hill. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
- ^ "Uncommitted voters respond to Harris-Walz ticket with hope and reservations". The Guardian. 8 August 2024.