Author Archive

A TRIBUTE TO MY MENTOR AND FRIEND – GENERAL COLIN POWELL (1937 – 2021)

The tributes have poured in from around the world – posted on social media, printed in the op-ed pages, heard on the cable news channels – anyone who had worked with or was associated with General Colin Powell knew they were part of something special. Over the past two decades, I was one of those lucky ones.

We first met when he became Secretary of State, and upon retiring from public service General Powell agreed to serve as

01/15/21

Our founders always imagined America as the shining city on a hill. Near the end of his life, James Madison, one of our earliest diplomats, stated, “Our country, if it does justice to itself, will be the workshop of liberty to the civilized world.” As the horrific scenes at the Capitol unfolded, I was heartbroken as the world watched an attack on this noble vision.

The reactions from across the globe were swift and overwhelming. Even before the lawless riots finished, the confidence of our allies was shaken with calls for

03/05/21

As Congress moved this week to quickly approve critical federal funding to combat coronavirus that has been spreading at a voracious speed, the sad truth is that the United States and the world are woefully unprepared for the next and potentially even more deadly pandemic threat.

Late last year, I visited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and asked the director, Robert Redfield, what keeps him up at night. Even with all the other biothreats, he said what he fears most is the current global lack of preparedness for a

What do former Secretaries of State Condi Rice and Hillary Clinton, UN Ambassadors Samantha Power and Susan Rice, National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley, and Special Envoy Steve Biegun all have in common? Not only are they all experts on diplomacy – but they are all participating in the season launch of the Weiser Diplomacy Center at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. I couldn’t have been prouder to have participated in the inauguration event just a few weeks ago.

Start with the fact that the power

Like all Americans, I’m heartbroken by the recent incidents of gun violence that have shaken our country. The statistics are well known: Americans are 20 times more likely to be killed by a gun than people in other developed countries and nearly 12,000 Americans die each year, ripping apart families and communities. But in today’s divisive political climate, gun violence prevention has become all too difficult to achieve. That is why my colleagues and I are honored to partner with former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords and Americans for Responsible Solutions (ARS)