Matt Zeller

Matt Zeller

Author, CEO, and Afghan War Veteran

Matt Zeller is an author, Afghan war veteran, and CEO of No One Left Behind. He was deployed to Afghanistan in Ghazni Province in 2008, and upon his return to the US, he worked for the CIA. He was also the Democratic nominee for New York’s 29th district in the 2010 special election for the US House of Representatives.

In 2013 Zeller founded No One Left Behind, a nonprofit organization aiming to assist Afghan and Iraqi interpreters immigrating to the United States. This organization provides assistance to these immigrants in obtaining their Special Immigrant Visas while providing financial aid, employment opportunities, and used cars.

Matt Zeller is the author of Watches Without Time: An American Soldier in Afghanistan a story that gives a vivid description of what Zeller experienced while serving as an embedded combat adviser to the Afghan Security forces in Ghazni, Afghanistan, in 2008. Matt Zeller is also a contributor to HuffPost.

On August 25, 2021, Matt Zeller participated in Afghanistan with Ambassador Peter Galbraith and the Honorable Mike Rogers

Felicia Taylor

Felicia Taylor

Anchor-correspondent for CNN

Felicia Taylor was an anchor-correspondent for CNN International’s World Business Today having previously been contributing to the Business Updates unit for CNN. She was also the co-host of Retirement Living TV’s Daily Cafe until November 2009. Previously, Taylor was a business news anchor and a correspondent for CNBC. Prior to CNBC, she served as weekend anchor on WNBC-TV in New York. 

Taylor was a moderator for Afghanistan with Ambassador Peter Galbraith and the Honorable Mike Rogers in 2021 and for the “Women’s Breakfast” subsection of The Common Good Forum & American Spirit Awards 2017, and hosted both a Special Screening of “Disturbing the Peace” and a Lunch and Discussion with: NY Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly.

Twitter: @ftaylorCNN

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Representative Mike Rogers

Mike Rogers

Former U.S. Representative for Michigan's 8th congressional district

Honorary Mike Rogers, is a former member of Congress representing Michigan’s Eighth Congressional District, officer in the U.S. Army, and FBI special Agent. From his time in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he chaired the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) and was a member of the Energy and Commerce panel. Mike built a legacy as a tireless and effective leader on counterterrorism and national security policy.

As chairman of HPSCI, Mike authorized and oversaw a budget of $70 billion that provided funding to the nation’s 17 intelligence agencies. Rogers was a prominent leader on cybersecurity in the United States Congress during his service, shepherding multiple cybersecurity bills through the House of Representatives and is a highly sought-after national expert on cyber policy.

Mike has also worked with two presidents, Congressional leadership, and countless foreign leaders, diplomats and intelligence professionals to ensure our nation is well equipped with the resources necessary to get the job done.

Mike is the host and executive producer of Declassified: Untold Stories of American Spies that airs on CNN. Hon. Mike Rogers is also a CNN national security commentator and a regular in major news outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and the Associated Press.

On August 25, 2021, Hon. Mike Rogers participated in Afghanistan with Ambassador Peter Galbraith and the Honorable Mike Rogers.

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Ambassador Peter Galbraith

Ambassador Peter Galbraith

Author, policy adviser, former U.S. diplomat

Ambassador Peter Galbraith is an author, politician, and former United States Diplomat. From 1993 to 1998, he served as the first U.S. Ambassador to Croatia, where he was co-mediator of the 1995 Erdut Agreement that ended the Croatian War of Independence. He was a cabinet member in East Timor’s first transitional government, successfully negotiating the Timor Sea Treaty. In 2009, Ambassador Galbraith was an Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations serving as Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan. Ambassador Peter Galbraith also served two terms as a Vermont State Senator from Windham County from 2011 to 2015, and was a candidate for Governor of Vermont in 2016.

Beginning in 2003, Galbraith acted as an adviser to the Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq. As an author and commentator, he argued that Iraq has broken up and that the US occupation authorities should not try to build a strong central government over Kurdish objections. In 2009, Galbraith was appointed United Nations’ Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan where he contributed to exposing the massive fraud that took place in the 2009 Afghanistan Presidential Elections.

He is also the author of two critically acclaimed books on the Iraq War, including bestselling The End of Iraq: How American Incompetence Created a War Without End. In the 1980s, Galbraith uncovered the beginnings of the Anfal campaign against the Iraqi Kurds and, in 1988, documented the use of chemical weapons, leading the U.S. Senate to pass The Prevention of Genocide Act of 1988. Beginning in 2003, Ambassador Galbraith was an informal advisor to the Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq, supporting the Kurdistan delegation in the drafting process of the 2005 Iraqi Constitution. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, the research arm of the Council for a Livable World.

Ambassador Galbraith was an assistant professor of International Relations and Economics at Windham College in Putney, Vermont, from 1975 to 1978. Later, he was the professor of National Security Strategy at the National War College in 1999 and between 2001 and 2003. In addition to his books, Ambassador Peter Galbraith has written extensively for a range of publications including The New York Review of Books, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Guardian.

On August 25, 2021, Ambassador Peter Galbraith participated in Afghanistan with Ambassador Peter Galbraith and the Honorable Mike Rogers.

Twitter: @GalbraithforVT

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Read more:

Karzan Sulaivany, ‘Remaining part of Irag risky for Kurds: Former US Ambassador’, Kurdistan 24, 26 June 2017

Zachary Karabell

dr. Zachary Karabell

Head of Global Strategy at Envestnet

Zachary Karabell is Head of Global Strategy at Envestnet, a publicly traded financial services firm, and is President of River Twice Research. Previously, he was Executive Vice President, Chief Economist, and Head of Marketing at Fred Alger Management, a New York-based investment firm that manages approximately $22 billion. He was also President of Fred Alger & Company, Portfolio Manager of the China-U.S. Growth Fund (CHUSX), and Executive Vice President of Alger’s Spectra Funds. At Alger, he oversaw the creation, launch and marketing of several funds, led corporate strategy for strategic acquisitions, and represented the firm at public forums and in the media. He also ran the River Twice Fund from 2011-2013, an alternative investment fund which used sustainable business as its primary investment theme.

Dr. Karabell has taught at several leading universities, including Harvard and Dartmouth, and has written widely on economics, investing, history and international relations. His most recent book, The Leading Indicators: A Short History of the Numbers That Rule Our World, was published by Simon & Schuster in February 2014. He is the author of eleven previous books. He sits on the board of the New America Foundation and the Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs, and in 2003, the World Economic Forum designated him a “Global Leader for Tomorrow.” He is a Senior Advisor for BSR, a membership organization that works with global corporations on issues of sustainability.

As a commentator, Karabell is a Contributing Editor for Politico and writes the Wealth of Nations column. Previously he wrote “The Edgy Optimist” column for Slate, Reuters, and The Atlantic. He is a regular commentator on MSNBC and was a Contributing Editor for The Daily Beast. He also contributes to such publications as The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Time Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times,The Financial Times, and Foreign Affairs.

Karabell also sits on the board of New America and PEN America. In 2003, the World Economic Forum designated him a "Global Leader for Tomorrow." As a commentator, Karabell is a Contributing Editor for Wired and for Politico, and the host of the podcast “What Could Go Right?”

On July 21, 2021 Zachary Karabell participated in The Story of American Capitalism with Zachary Karabell & Douglas Brinkley

Twitter: @zacharykarabell

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Read more:

Zachary Karabell, ‘A Laptop Ban Leaves Everyone Scared and No One Safer’, Wired, 5 June 2017

Zachary Karabell, ‘Even If Apple Breaks $1 Trillion, It Won’t Stay On Top Forever’, Wired, 14 May 2017

Honorary Advisory Board Member: Governor Mario Cuomo ✝

“It was Mario Cuomo’s great gift and our good fortune that he was both a sterling orator and a passionate public servant. His life was a blessing,” - President Bill Clinton

Mario Cuomo was a three-term governor of New York who commanded national attention with his remarkable oratory skill. From 1983 to 1994, he led New York with a passion for problem solving and unyielding empathy for his constituents, garnering nationwide admiration. He exemplified the ideal of politicians being informed, instructive, and intellectual without condescension. A tenacious debater with a spellbinding public presence, he came to personify the liberal wing of his national party.

Cuomo was born to Andrea and Immaculata Cuomo on June 15th, 1932, in Queens, New York. His parents were Italian immigrants who arrived in the United States with no resources or local connections. They went on to open a grocery store in South Jamaica, Queens, where Cuomo worked as a child. While earning his Bachelor’s degree, Cuomo signed a contract to play center field for the Brunswick Pirates baseball team, but eventually returned to St. John’s University and graduated summa cum laude. He then attended St. John’s School of Law and graduated at the top of his class in 1956.

Cuomo’s first job in the legal profession was as an assistant to Judge Adrian P. Burke of the New York State Court of Appeals - a body Cuomo would go on to reshape by appointing all seven members, including the first woman to serve as chief judge. After entering private practice, Cuomo gained prominence defending local property owners from government seizures, and negotiating city-neighborhood disputes. He entered public life in 1974 as New York’s Secretary of State, before serving two terms as Lieutenant Governor under Governor Hugh Carey.

Cuomo with wife Matilda after Cuomo won the 1982 Democratic gubernatorial primary. 

Cuomo was elected Governor of New York in 1982, and became known for his tireless work ethic and powerful, plain speaking oratory skill. In an era when liberal thought was increasingly discredited, Cuomo celebrated it, challenging Ronald Reagan at the height of his presidency with an affirmative view of government and a message of compassion. He held several positions that went against the grain of public opinion, most prominent being his opposition to the death penalty. His annual veto of the death penalty became a rite, and he invoked it as a testimony to his character and principles.

In his tenure, Cuomo improved roads, revitalized education and infrastructure in New York City, created a large homeless assistance program, invested in high tech facilities, and initiated programs to support those with AIDS and mental illnesses. He appointed the Empire State’s first two female appellate judges; including the first Hispanic judge on the tribunal.

Cuomo delivers his keynote address to the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco, 1984.

Cuomo’s keynote address at the 1984 Democratic National Convention eclipsed the party’s presidential nominee and established him as a national political figure. He regularly travelled across the nation, and was considered a spokesman for liberal politics. In 1986 and 1990 Cuomo won the highest margin ever for re-election to a second and third term.

Cuomo was married to his wife, Matilda, for more than six decades. They had five children, including current New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Mario Cuomo passed away at the age of 82 on January 1st, 2015. 

The Common Good was honored to host Mario Cuomo in May of 2011:Manhattan Society: The Common Good Hosts Screening for “Living for 32”. He served as a member of The Common Good Honorary Advisory Board.

Selected Media:

Cuomo nominating Bill Clinton for president at the 1992 Democratic National Convention in New York.

• Mario Cuomo (1932-2015) Syracuse Post Standard, 2015

• Mario Cuomo, Ex-New York Governor and Liberal Beacon, Dies at 82 New York Times, 2015

• What Is Mario Cuomo's Legacy? New Yorker, 2015

• Mario Cuomo Is Grateful for His Son's

• Achievement New York TImes, 2011

Books:

• Lincoln Lessons: Reflections on America's Greatest Leader. Williams, & Pederson (Eds)., Contributor Cuomo and 14 others, 2009.

• C is for Ciao: An Italy Alphabet. Cuomo with Elissa Grodin, illustrated by Marco Ventura, 2008. 

• As They Saw It: A Half-Century of Conversations from the Open Mind. Cuomo with Richard Heffner and Marc Jaffe, 2004. 

• Lincoln on Democracy. Abraham Lincoln, Edited by Cuomo, & Harold Holzer, 2004. 

• Why Lincoln Matters: Today More Than Ever. Cuomo, 2004.

• The Blue Spruce. Cuomo,1999. 

• Reason to Believe: A Keen Assessment of Who We Are and an Inspiring Vision of What We Could Be. Cuomo, 1996. 

• More Than Words: The Speeches of Mario Cuomo. Cuomo, 1993

• Diaries of M. Cuomo: The Campaign for Governor. Cuomo, 1984.

•  Forest Hills Diary: The Crisis of Low-income Housing. Cuomo, M. 1975.

Honorary Advisory Board Member: Ed Rendell

After 34 years of public service, Governor Ed Rendell has become a champion on the issues of alternative energy and government efficiency. As the governor of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2011, he worked to make the government more responsible and responsive to the public's needs, and he successfully cut wasteful spending and improved efficiency leading to savings of over $1 billion. He continues to pursue key issues from his time in office, striving to make America a cleaner, more efficient place and to foster investment in our nation’s crumbling infrastructure. 

Rendell served two terms as Mayor of Philadelphia and two terms as Governor of Pennsylvania. His legislative agenda focused on commonsense political reform and putting progress ahead of partisanship. As Governor, he energized Pennsylvania’s economy, revitalized communities, improved education, protected the environment, expanded access to health care to all children, and made affordable prescription drugs available to older Pennsylvanians. He also spearheaded initiatives encouraging the use of alternative and renewable energy, including wind farms and solar panels.

As Mayor, Rendell eliminated a crippling deficit, balanced the City’s budget, and generated five consecutive budget surpluses. Philadelphia’s renaissance, which The New York Times called “the most stunning turnaround in recent urban history,” is largely attributed to his determination, inspiration, and energy. The subject of the book Prayer for the City by Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist Buzz Bissinger, Rendell was called “one of America’s best, most interesting mayors.” Before serving as Mayor, Rendell was elected District Attorney of Philadelphia for two terms from 1978 through 1985. Rendell also served as Chairman of the Democratic National Committee during the 2000 Presidential election. 

In 2012, Governor Rendell penned his first book, A Nation of Wusses: How America’s Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great where he chronicles his political career while making a strong statement about the state of American leadership.

Perhaps no other issue has been and continues to be as important to Rendell as America’s dire need to rebuild and reinvest in its infrastructure. He worked with Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to found Building America's Future, a national infrastructure-investment coalition. Rendell currently serves as Co-Chair of the organization.

Rendell serves as a consultant or board member for several green and alternative energy firms, including Own Energy, The Efficiency Network and VNG.co. He has also remained heavily involved in the campaign for government efficiency and strategic cost cutting through his work with entities such as Government Sourcing Solutions and Public Financial Management.

He currently sits on several boards, supports multiple non-profit organizations and teaches government and politics courses at the University of Pennsylvania. An Army veteran, he holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from Villanova Law School.

Governor Rendell discussed his book A Nation of Wusses: How America’s Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great at The Common Good in 2012: Governor Ed Rendell on “A Nation of Wusses” – July 12, 2012. He was also a distinguished participant at The Common Good Forum & American Spirit Awards - May 27, 2016. He currently serves as a member of The Common Good Honorary Advisory Board.

Twitter:@GovEdRendell

Books:

• 2012:  A Nation of Wusses: How America’s Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great

Selected Media:

• Biden ally says president should take Fox News questions The Hill, 2020 

• Ed Rendell Still Has a Few Things to Say Philadelphia, 2020

• Rendell: Change begins with honest conversation on crime and police The Hill, 2020

Rendell: Feds have better things to do than go after supervised injection sitesThe Philadelphia Inquirer, 2019

Honorary Advisory Board Member: William J. Bratton

William “Bill'' Bratton is renowned as one of the nation’s top law enforcement officers and one of the world’s most respected and trusted experts on risk and security issues. He currently serves as Executive Chairman of Risk Advisory at Teneo Holdings, where he advises clients on risk identification, prevention, and response in key security areas, including: cyber risk management, counterterrorism, crisis anticipation, critical infrastructure, and health crisis advisory. He also serves as the Chairman of the Homeland Security Advisory Council, offering his experience and expertise to provide the Secretary real-time, real-world, and independent advice to support decision-making across the spectrum of homeland security operations.

 During his 46-year career in law enforcement, Bratton instituted progressive change while leading six police departments. He served two terms as the New York City Police Commissioner and seven years as chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, making him the only person to have led the police departments of the two largest cities in the U.S.. 

Bratton established an international reputation for re-engineering police departments and fighting crime in the 1990’s. As Chief of the New York City Transit Police, Boston Police Commissioner, and New York City Police Commissioner, he revitalized morale and cut crime, achieving the largest crime declines in New York City’s history. At the NYPD in 1994 and 1995, he led the development of Compstat, the internationally acclaimed command accountability system now in use by police departments nationwide. Bratton also implemented major reforms to the NYPD’s counterterrorism program by developing two new units—the Critical Response Command and the Strategic Response Group.

As Los Angeles Police Chief from 2002 to 2009, and in a city known for its entrenched gang culture and youth violence, he brought crime to historically low levels, greatly improved race relations, and reached out to young people with a range of innovative police programs. 

A noted author, commentator, and consultant, Commissioner Bratton was a Senior Executive Fellow in Criminal Justice and a member of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government National Executive Session on Policing. For his collaborative efforts in working with U.S. and British police forces, he was recognized by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II with the honorary title Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE). 

Bratton currently serves as a member of The Common Good Honorary Advisory Board, and he spoke at a Meet & Greet in 2014 at The Common Good.

Twitter: @CommissBratton

Selected Media: 

• Paging Bill Bratton - you're needed in Boston Boston Herald, 2019

• Bill Bratton says no prosecute policy will usher in ‘return to bad old days’ Boston Herald, 2019

• William Bratton, New York’s Influential Police Commissioner, Is Stepping Down 2016, New York Times 

• 'Broken windows' police pioneer Bill Bratton steps down as NYPD commissioner to take job in private sector The Independent, 2016 

• William Bratton on Being New York's Policeman and a New Controversy Wall Street Journal, 2014

• Bratton on City Journal podcast Policing on the Brink: A Conversation with William Bratton

• Bratton for Teneo Insights Webinar: US Election Update

• Bratton for Teneo Insights Webinar: COVID-19 and Crime in US Cities

• Bratton for Teneo: Insider Threats: How Do You Keep “Out” What Emerges From Within?

Books:

• 1998: The Turnaround : How America’s Top Cop Reversed the Crime Epidemic 

• 2012: Collaborate or Perish! Reaching Across Boundaries in a Networked World 

Upcoming: The Profession A Memoir of Community, Race, and the Arc of Policing in America, coming June 2021

Rick Hertzberg

RICK HERTZBERG

Award-winning journalist

Rick Hertzberg is an award-winning journalist, best known as the principal political commentator for The New Yorker magazine. He is credited with helping to redesign and revitalize the magazine. He is an accomplished writer and believes that America’s system of winner-take-all elections, federalism, and separation of powers is out of date and damaging to political responsibility and democratic accountability.

He previously served as the editor of The New Republic where under his editorship the magazine twice won the National Magazine Award for General Excellence, the magazine world’s highest honor. He went on to serve as the chief speechwriter for President Jimmy Carter where he wrote speeches that at one point increased the president's approval rating by 11 points. Forbes credited Hertzberg as " one of the "25 Most Influential Liberals in the U.S. Media." 

Rick Hertzberg participated in Should the People Pick Our President? With Jesse Wegman and Rick Hertzberg, on January 25, 2021.

Jesse Wegman

JESSE WEGMAN

Journalist and Member of the New York Times Editorial Board

Jesse Wegman serves on the editorial board for The New York Times where he has written about the Supreme Court and legal affairs since 2013. He was previously a senior editor at The Daily Beast and Newsweek, a legal news editor at Reuters, and the managing editor of The New York Observer.

His recent book has been heavily praised with Publishers Weekly saying "Wegman combines in-depth historical analysis and insight into contemporary politics to present a cogent argument that the Electoral College violates America’s ‘core democratic principles’ and should be done away with…" The New York Times wrote, "People have been arguing against the Electoral College from the beginning. But no one… has laid out the case as comprehensively and as readably as Jesse Wegman does.”

Jesse Wegman participated in Should the People Pick Our President? With Jesse Wegman and Rick Hertzberg, on January 25, 2021.

Honorary Advisory Board Member: Alan Patricof

Alan Patricof is a legendary venture capital investor who has founded multiple leading firms in the arena, including Apax Partners, Greycroft LLC, and Primetime Partners. 

One of the first leaders in the industry, he has become one of the country’s pre-eminent authorities on public and private venture capital. A longtime innovator and advocate for venture capital, Patricof entered the venture capital industry in its formative days with the creation of Patricof & Co. Ventures Inc. in 1969. Patricof & Co. was a predecessor to Apax Partners which today is one of the world’s foremost private equity firms with $41 billion under management. His most recent venture, Primetime Partners, is focused on backing technology designed for people in their later stages of life, and investing in mature entrepreneurs.

Patricof has been instrumental in facilitating the seed funding of many major global companies, including Apple Computer, America Online, Office Depot, and Audible. After many years of large-scale investing, in 2004 he stepped back from the daily administration and operational aspects of Apax Partners, LP to concentrate on a smaller investment business model, focusing on a group of small venture deals. In 2006, he founded Greycroft Partners, a venture capital firm, to invest in early and expansion stage investments in digital media. With offices in New York and Los Angeles, Greycroft is currently investing from its fifth Fund as well as its second Growth Fund, and has over $1 billion under management.

With a 40-plus year career in venture capital, Patricof has been instrumental in growing the venture capital field from a base of high net-worth individuals to its position today with broad institutional backing, as well as playing a key role in the essential legislative initiatives that have guided its evolution. He was also a founder and chairman of the board of New York magazine, which later acquired the Village Voice and New West magazine.

Patricof graduated from Ohio State University and received his MBA from Columbia University School of Business.

He serves on a number of boards including  Columbia Graduate School of Business, and Northside Center for Child Development in Harlem, and is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He has previously served as a member of the President’s Global Development Council, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, TechnoServe, Trickle Up Program, Global Advisory Board of Endeavor, and the World Bank. 

Patricof has participated in many TCG programs and events, including Social Impact - Change and Investing in the Wake of the Coronavirus with Sir Ronald Cohen, and most recently First Friends: The Powerful, Unsung (and Unelected) People Who Shaped Our President's on October 21, 2021.

He currently serves as a member of The Common Good Honorary Advisory Board.

Twitter: @alanjpatricof 

Selected Media:

Latest appearance on CNBC: Greycroft's Alan Patricof: Social media companies have effectively become utilities 

Patricof, New York Times Op-Ed Stopping Start-Ups 

Patricof for Business Insider Confessions Of A VC Raising Money During Financial Armageddon 

Patricof for The Hill: Say what you will about the presidential candidates, as long as it isn't 'They're too old' 

My American Story: Alan Patricof — The Common Good

Honorary Advisory Board Member: Ambassador Nicholas Burns

As a distinguished Foreign Service officer, Ambassador Nicholas Burns is recognized as one of the most effective and thoughtful diplomats of his generation.  He is also a renowned columnist, lecturer, professor, and foreign policy advisor, and has been associated with Harvard University for many years. 

Burns started his foreign service career in Egypt and Mauritania, before serving in the American Consulate General in Jerusalem, where he coordinated U.S. economic assistance to the Palestinian people in the West Bank. He went on to serve on the National Security Council, as Director for Soviet Affairs in the Administration of President George H.W. Bush and later as Senior Director for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia Affairs and Special Assistant to President Clinton.  He capped his twenty-seven year career with the State Department for President George W. Bush as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, making him the third-ranking official at the State Department. He led negotiations on the U.S.–India Civil Nuclear Agreement, a $30 billion long-term military assistance agreement with Israel, and served as the lead U.S. negotiator on Iran’s nuclear program. At the State Department, Burns also served as the U.S. Ambassador to NATO, the Ambassador to Greece, and as the State Department Spokesman. From 2014-2017, he was a member of Secretary of State John Kerry’s Foreign Affairs Policy Board. 

Burns, center, with Lieutenant General D. Petraeus, left, and NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop de Scheffer.

President Bush, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, Representative to NATO Burns, and Secretary Powell at the North Atlantic Council meeting in Istanbul.

Burns interviews Hillary Clinton at Harvard

A widely respected expert on foreign affairs and negotiation, he currently teaches at the Harvard Kennedy School as the Roy and Barbara Goodman Family Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, one of the world’s top university-affiliated think tanks which serves as the center of the Kennedy School’s research, teaching, and training in international security and diplomacy, environmental and resource issues, and science and technology policy. Burns is also the founder and Faculty Chair of the Belfer Center’s Future of Diplomacy Project and Faculty Chair of the Center’s Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship. At the university, he is a Faculty Affiliate of the Middle East Initiative, and is a Faculty Associate at Harvard’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. 

Former Secretaries of State Madeleine Albright, left, and Condoleezza Rice, right, with Burns at the Aspen Institute 

In addition to his work at Harvard, Burns is Senior Counselor for the Cohen Group, serves on the Board of Directors of Entegris, Inc, the Executive Director of the Aspen Strategy Group and the Aspen Security Forum, and is Chairman of the Board of Our Generation Speaks, a start-up incubator which seeks to bring together young entrepreneurial Palestinians and Israelis in common purpose.  Burns is vice chairman of the American Ditchley Foundation and serves on the Panel of Senior Advisors at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Atlantic Council.

Burns with Chancellor Angela Merkel at Harvard’s 2019 Commencement.

He serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations, including the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, Refugees International, and the NATO Cyber Center of Excellence. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the Committee on Conscience of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Order of Saint John. He is a Fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society, and a life-long member of Red Sox Nation.

In recognition for his work both in the foreign service and since his retirement, Burns has received fifteen honorary degrees, the Presidential Distinguished Service Award, the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award, the 2017 Ignatian Award from Boston College, 2016 New Englander of the Year from the New England Council, the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service from the Johns Hopkins University, the Boston College Alumni Achievement Award, and the Jean Mayer Global Citizenship Award from Tufts University. He has a BA in History from Boston College, an MA from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, earned the Certificat Pratique de Langue Francaise at the University of Paris-Sorbonne, and, in 2020, was a Fulbright scholar at Queen Mary University of London.

The Common Good has been pleased to host Burns on several occasions, most recently for the The Common Good Forum & American Spirit Awards, 2019 where he participated on the “World View: Security Challenges & Opportunities” panel alongside Ambassador Bill Burns and Congresswoman Jane Harman, moderated by Edward Luce.

Burns currently serves as a member of The Common Good Honorary Advisory Board.

Twitter: @RNicholasBurns

Read More:

• Burns for Foreign Affairs The Diplomat as Gardener

• Burns for his column at The Boston Globe: Three myths about Putin's Russia

• Burns and Anja Manuel Op-Ed for The Hill: On India, the US must think bigger

• Burns and Frank Wisner Op-Ed for Washington Post: A planned Kosovo-Serbia meeting at the White House is falling apart. It was always a bad idea. 

• CNN on Burns’ potential appointment as Ambassador to China: Former top State Department official is Biden's leading contender to be US ambassador to China 

• Mediate article on Burns’ remarks: Nick Burns : 'Embarrassing' to Watch Trump's Trip in Britain

• The New York Times on Burns’ previous retirement from the Foreign Service No. 3 U.S. Diplomat, Lead Negotiator on Iran, Retires 

• Aspen Strategy Group publication on National Security:  Technology and National Security: Maintaining America's Edge

• Burns and Douglas Lute publication from Belfer Center: NATO at Seventy: An Alliance in Crisis

• Burns on The Guardian’s Politics Weekly Podcast: Biden makes friends with 'the west': Politics Weekly Extra 

CNN interview with Burns on the US-China Relationship, Biden’s foreign policy vision: U.S.-China Relationship Challenging, but Most Important

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Honorary Advisory Board Member: Former U.S. Representative Jane Harman

Jane Harman is an internationally recognized authority on U.S. and global security issues, foreign relations, and lawmaking. Among her many achievements, Harman is a Distinguished Fellow and President Emerita of the Wilson Center, one of the world’s most highly regarded think tanks.

Harman recently completed a decade as its first female President & CEO. Congresswoman Harman has long been a national expert at the nexus of security and public policy issues, and has received numerous awards for her distinguished service, including the Defense Department Medal for Distinguished Service, the CIA Agency Seal Medal, the CIA Director’s Award, and the Director of National Intelligence Distinguished Public Service Medal.

She began her political career as the staff director for Senator John Tunney, before joining the Carter White House as special counsel to the Department of Defense. 

In 1992, she was elected to represent the 36th district of California, one of the record-breaking 37 women to be elected to Congress that year - subsequently labeled the “Year of the Woman”.

She went on to become a nine-term member of Congress who served decades on all the major security committees in the House of Representatives: six years on Armed Services, eight years on Intelligence, and eight on Homeland Security. 

During her time in Congress, Harman also earned a reputation as a supporter of a diverse set of causes, from promoting information sharing across the federal government in the interest of national security, the creation of a Cabinet-level homeland security department, to a partial ban on semi-automatic weapons.

Drawing upon a career that included service as President Carter’s Secretary of the Cabinet and hundreds of diplomatic missions abroad, Harman holds posts on nearly a dozen governmental and non-governmental advisory boards and commissions.

[Cong. Jane Harman with Michael Chertoff at The Common Good]

Harman co-chairs the Homeland Security Experts Group with former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.  She serves on the board of Iridium Communication Inc, a NASDAQ traded satellite communications company, and is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group, the Advisory Board of the Munich Security Conference, the Executive Committee of the Trilateral Commission, the Presidential Debates Commission and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. She is a member of the Defense Policy Board, the State Department Foreign Policy Board, and the Homeland Security Advisory Committee. Harman is a Trustee of the Aspen Institute and an Honorary Trustee at the University of Southern California. 

Her upcoming book, Insanity Defense: Why Our Failure to Confront Hard National Security Problems Makes Us Less Safe, offers an insider's account of America's ineffectual approach to some of the hardest defense and intelligence issues in the three decades since the Cold War ended.

Originally from Los Angeles, she is a product of California public school, as well as a graduate of Smith College and Harvard Law School. 

Harman has participated in several events at The Common Good, including Combating Misinformation with Clint Watts and Cong. Jane Harman, and the “World View: Security Challenges & Opportunities” panel alongside Ambassadors Bill Burns and Nicholas Burns, moderated by Financial Times’ Edward Luce, at The Common Good Forum & American Spirit Awards, 2019 and in the National Security Threats event alongside Michael Chertoff.

Congresswoman Harman currently serves as a member of The Common Good Honorary Advisory Board.

Read More:

• Who is Giuliani hoping to get dirt on in a trip to Ukraine?

• Jane Harman on global politics & the Mueller Report

• Jane Harman writing for Foreign Affairs, December 2020: How Biden Can Restore Faith in US Spy Agencies

• February 2021, interview: Jane Harman Steps Down: A Look Back on a Decade of Leadership and Achievement

Ambassador Jane Hartley

Ambassador Jane Hartley

Former U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco

Jane Hartley served as Ambassador to the French Republic and the Principality of Monaco from 2014 – 2017 during some of the most difficult times for France. She was confirmed to both posts by the U.S. Senate in September 2014.

Previously, Jane Hartley was Chief Executive Officer and a Founding Principal of Observatory Group, an international economic and political advisory firm providing analysis of key government policies affecting the global capital markets. Before founding the Observatory Group, Ms. Hartley was Chief Executive Officer of the G7 Group. As CEO, Ms. Hartley built G7 Group into a premier research firm providing macroeconomic and political analysis to investors in the global market. The G7 Group put together a network of global policymakers and distributed analysis to most of the major central bankers and finance ministers as well as major financial institutions.

Jane currently serves as a member of the Visiting Committee at the Kennedy School at Harvard University as well as the Executive Committee and the Dean’s Council. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Jane is a member of the Board of Overseers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Sesame Workshop (Sesame Street) and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Center for American Progress.

Jane Hartley participated in U.S. - French Relations, on March 10 2021.

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Read more:

Tait Ryssdal, ‘Former French Ambassador Examines Current European Politics’, The Hoya, 3 October 2017

Jake Cigainero, ‘At U.S. Embassy in Paris, the Art is Welcome’, The New York Times, 6 October 2016

Maggie Bullock, ‘Ambassador Jane Hartley On Managing in a Time of Crisis’, Elle, 21 January 2016

Ambassador Robert Ford

Ambassador Robert Ford

Former U.S. Ambassador to Syria

Robert Ford finished a thirty year career with the U.S. Department of State in April 2014. He was the U.S. Ambassador to Syria from 2011-2014, receiving the Profile in Courage award in 2012 from the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston for his human rights work, and a Presidential Honor award in 2012 for his stewardship of the American Embassy in Damascus during a crisis period. He was also presented with the Distinguished Service award, the State Department’s highest award, by Secretary of State John Kerry in March 2014. Ford was the U.S. Ambassador in Algeria 2006-2008 and also served five years in Iraq helping the Iraqis establish their permanent government through three rounds of elections.

He is now a scholar at the Middle East Institute where he writes and speaks about Iraq, Syria and North Africa. He is also a fellow at Yale University Jackson Institute where he teaches about Arab politics and diplomacy.

Ambassador Ford spoke at The Common Good in 2017: Syrian Civil War: End in Sight? : Ambassador Robert Ford. We are thrilled to announce Ambassador Ford joined The Common Good in Conference Call with Ambassador Robert Ford-- Syria, he briefed us on the withdrawal of the US troops in Syria. Twitter: @fordrs58

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Read more:

‘Turkish Troops Attack Kurdish Forces For A 2nd Day’, NPR, 10 October 2019

‘Former U.S. Diplomat Weighs In On U.S. Troop Withdrawal From Syria’, NPR, 25 December 2018

Tom O’Connor, ‘U.S. Will Lose Syria to Iran and Abandon Kurdish Allies’, Newsweek, 19 June 2017

John Avlon

John Avlon

Author, columnist, commentator

John Avlon is an author, columnist and commentator. He is a senior political analyst and anchor at CNN, appearing on New Day every morning.

From 2013 to 2018, he was the editor-in-chief and managing director of The Daily Beast. He is the author of the books Independent Nation: How Centrists Can Change American Politics, Wingnuts: How the Lunatic Fringe is Hijacking America, and Washington’s Farewell: the Founding Father’s Warning to Future Generations. He is also the co-editor of the acclaimed Deadline Artists journalism anthologies. Avlon served as chief speechwriter to New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and, in 2012, won the National Society of Newspaper Columnists award for best online column. Avlon is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln.

John Avlon spoke at The Common Good in 2018: Defending Democracy: John Avlon, Philip Bobbitt, Ian Kahn, Garry Kasparov, and Bret Stephens - November 29th, 2018, and moderated the panel “Rule of Law, Corruption, and Abuse of Power” featuring Bill Browder and Preet Bharara at The Common Good Forum & American Spirit Awards - May 10, 2019. Avlon was also a co-speaker at our The Rise of Lincoln & U.S. Division with author Sidney Blumenthal on September 24, 2019.

Avlon joined TCG again on September 30, 2020 for The First Presidential Debate Panel alongside Ed Rollins and Doug Sosnick. The panelists reviewed and analyzed the highs and lows of the face-off between the Democrat (Biden) and the Republican (Trump) nominees and how the debate may affect each ticket’s election fortunes.

Twitter: @JohnAvlon

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Read more:

John Avlon, ‘Trump’s absurd projection reveals his anxiety’, CNN, 24 September 2019

Chris Cillizza, ’Avlon on Trump’s witch-hunt’, CNN, 15 May 2019 

John Avlon, “9/11: ‘A gray cloud of debris rolled violently toward us…’”, CNN, 11 September 2018

Felix Rohatyn

Felix Rohatyn

Banker, diplomat

Felix George Rohatyn is an American investment banker known for his role in preventing the bankruptcy of New York City in the 1970’s and for serving as United States Ambassador to France. He was also a long term advisor to the U.S. Democratic Party.

Rohatyn became widely known in the 1970’s for successfully restructuring New York City’s debt and resolving the city’s fiscal crisis. While running MAC for the city of New York, Rohatyn continued his deal making at Lazard, and he completed such deals as Sony’s acquisition of Columbia. Rohatyn was United States Ambassador to France 1997-2000 during the second Clinton Administration and is a Commander in the French Legion of Honor.

In 1990, he received The Hundred Year Association of New York’s Gold Medal Award “in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York.” Rohatyn is also the recipient of The International Center in New York’s Award of Excellence. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a Trustee for the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

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Read more:

‘Felix Rohatyn- U.S. Ambassador to France, 1997-2000’, WNYC, 2019

‘Ex-Ambassador Rohatyn Joins Rothschild’, The New York Times, 13 October 2004

Bill Richardson

Bill Richardson

American politician

For more than 30 years, Bill Richardson has led a distinguished public-service career as a U.S. Congressman (1982-1996), U. S. Ambassador to the United Nations (1997-1998), Secretary of Energy under President Bill Clinton (1998-2000), and Governor of New Mexico (2003-2011). In December of 2012, Richardson became Chairman of the Board of Directors of Car Charging Group, the largest independent owner and operator of public electric vehicle charging stations in the United States. In 2013 Richardson joined the Board of Advisors for the Fuel Freedom Foundation, a nonprofit campaign that advocates for the end of the oil monopoly

In 2008, he sought the Democratic nomination for President, dropping out after Iowa and New Hampshire. As a diplomat and Special Envoy, Richardson has received four Nobel Peace Prize nominations, and has successfully won the release of hostages and American servicemen in North Korea, Cuba, Iraq, and Sudan. He has authored three books including How to Sweet-Talk a Shark: Strategies and Stories from a Master Negotiator. He is active on the national and international speech circuit, and appears frequently on numerous television news programs, including CNN, FOX, Univision, Meet the Press, and This Week with George Stephanopoulos.

Before being elected Governor of New Mexico, Richardson was Chairman of Freedom House, a private nonpartisan organization that promotes democracy and human rights worldwide, and served on the boards of the National Resource Defense Council and United Way International. He was also given the National Hispanic Hero Award by the U.S. Hispanic Leadership Institute. Richardson has started two foundations: The Richardson Center for Global Engagement, focusing on conflict resolution and prisoner release, and the Foundation to Preserve New Mexico Wildlife with actor and conservationist Robert Redford, which has led the charge to protect wild horses and provide alternatives to horse slaughter. Recently, the Richardson Center for Global Engagement played an instrumental role in the successful release of Marine Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi from prison in Tijuana, Mexico.

Richardson spoke at The Common Good as part of the 2008 Democratic National Convention Panel.

Twitter: @GovRichardson

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Read more:

Jason Lemon, ‘Former U.S. Ambassador reminds FOX News “Kim Jong Un has done nothing” to denuclearize despite Trump meetings’, Newsweek, 1 July 2019

Christopher Ruddy

Christopher Ruddy

Businessman, journalist

Christopher Ruddy is the CEO of Newsmax Media, which publishes Newsmax.com and broadcasts the Newsmax TV network. Following Ruddy's work at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review in 1998, he started Newsmax with Richard Mellon Scaife, who owned the Tribune-Review. In April 2010, media-industry magazine Folio named Ruddy to its "FOLIO 40," an "annual list of magazine industry influencers and innovators".

A prominent conservative, Ruddy was an early donor to Donald Trump's presidential campaign. The Washington Post has referred to him as "the Trump Whisperer".

Ruddy spoke at The Common Good in 2017: The Press, Fake News and Politics: Chris Ruddy.

Twitter: @ChrisRuddyNMX

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Read more:

Cathy Burke, ‘Ruddy to Newsmax TV: Trump's NKorea Deal May Limit Nukes’, Newsmax, 1 July 2019

Callum Paton, ‘Trump family is “American Royalty,“ Trump friend Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy tells Brits: “They have their own ballrooms and palaces”’, Newsweek, 4 June 2019

Scott Reich

Scott Reich

Author, attorney

Scott Reich is the author of the acclaimed book, The Power of Citizenship: Why JFK Matters, and is in-house counsel at American Express, where he supports the company’s digital and mobile payments strategy and helps the business develop innovative ways to provide value to card members. He’s also an adjunct lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania, where he teaches a course on the American presidency. Prior to working at American Express, Reich practiced law at the international law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP and co-founded an online grocery business that aims to combat hunger while creating a healthier, more sustainable food system.

Reich serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations, including the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, and in 2010, he was appointed by the governor of New York to serve on the College Council of SUNY-Old Westbury. Reich has appeared on NBC, CBS, Fox, MSNBC, Bloomberg, WPIX, Larry King Now, and several national and local radio shows. He has also written for the Huffington Post.

Reich spoke at The Common Good in 2013: Exploring the Legacy of JFK: Citizenship and Public Service with Scott Reich.

Twitter: @ScottDReich

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