Elections matter. Case in point: a recent post on the Gay & Lesbian Leadership Institute’s website that details its ongoing project to get “gay and lesbian leaders” appointed to positions in government, especially within the Obama Administration (see www.glli.org/presidential). The website goes on to provide a list of gay and lesbian leaders already in the Obama Administration. Imagine the impact they are having on policy direction and implementation as you review their list (with comments from the GLLI website included):
While Barack Obama lays out a broad agenda to move the country forward, his staff is actually undertaking the hard work of implementation. Appointed officials have the power to set or influence the policies of the many federal departments and administrative agencies that make up the executive branch of government.
The Project will ensure that qualified, committed and talented members of the LGBT community have a fair shot at being appointed to important federal positions.
For more answers to common questions about the Presidential Appointments Project, read our FAQ.
As of now, the following LGBT leaders have secured spots in the Obama administration:
* Mark Agrast- Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legislative Affairs at the Department of Justice
* Raul Alvillar- Congressional Relations Officer, Housing and Urban Development
* Judy Applebaum- Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legislative Affairs at the Department of Justice
* Cynthia Attwood- Member, Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission
* Vic Basile- Senior Counselor to the Director, Office of Personnel Management
* Anthony Bernal- Scheduler, Office of Dr. Jill Biden
* Jeremy Bernard- Director of White House and Congressional Affairs, National Endowment for the Humanities
* John Berry- Director, Office of Personnel Management
* Jeremy Bishop- Special Assistant to the Secretary, Office of Public Engagement at the Department of Labor
* Brian Bond- Deputy Director, White House Office of Public Engagement
* Raphael Bostic- Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research, Housing and Urban Development
* Ebs Burnough- Deputy Social Secretary, Office of the First Lady
* Michael Camunez- Assistant Secretary for Market Access and Compliance, Department of Commerce
* Lyle Canceko- Deputy Director, Center for Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Department of Commerce
* Jamison Citron- Confidential Assistant, Office of White House Liaison, Department of Health and Human Services
* Brook Colangelo- Chief Information Officer, White House Office of Administration
* John Connor- Director, Office of White House Liaison at the Department of Commerce
* John Coppola- Member of the National Museum and Library Services Board
* Jeffrey Crowley- Director, Office of National AIDS Policy
* Fred Davie- Member, President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
* Justin DeJong- Deputy Press Secretary, Department of Agriculture
* Marisa Demeo- Associate Judge, DC Superior Court
* Jenny Durkan- U.S. Attorney, Western District of Washington
* John Easton- Director, Institute of Education Sciences
* Eric Fanning- Deputy Under Secretary of the Navy
* Chai Feldblum- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
* Carl Fillichio- Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Labor for Public Affairs and Communications
* Daniel Gordon- Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy, OMB
* Kathy Greenlee- Assistant Secretary, Administration on Aging, Department of Health and Human Services
* Steve Gunderson- Member, President’s Commission on White House Fellows
* David Hansell- Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Administration for Children and Families
* Emily Hewitt- Chief Justice, U.S. Court of Federal Claims
* Jennifer Ho- Deputy Director, Accountability Management at the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness
* Fred Hochberg- Chairman, U.S. Export-Import Bank
* David Huebner- U.S. Ambassador to New Zealand
* Glenda Humiston- State Director for Rural Development in California
* Shin Inouye- Director, Specialty Media
* John Isa- Deputy Executive Director, Federal Office of Compliance
* Karine Jean-Pierre- Regional Director, Office of Political Affairs
* Kevin Jennings- Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools
* Kristina Johnson- Under Secretary, Department of Energy
* Jenn Jones- Special Assistant, Department of Housing and Urban Development
* Elaine Kaplan- General Counsel, Office of Personnel Management
* Brad Kiley- Director, White House Office of Management and Administration
* Harry Knox- Member, President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
* Kei Koizumi- Assistant Director for Federal Research and Development, Office of Science and Technology Policy
* Andy Lee- Chief of Staff, Office of Innovation and Improvement at the Department of Education
* Jeffrey Lerner- Regional Director, Office of Political Affairs
* Sara Lipscomb- General Counsel, Small Business Administration
* Zach Liscow- Staff Economist, Council of Economic Advisers
* Thomas Lopach- Senior Vice President, Congressional Affairs, U.S. Export-Import Bank
* Sharon Lubinski- U.S. Marshall
* John Marble- Public Affairs Specialist, Office of Personnel Management
* Jeffrey Marburg-Goodman- Special Counsel to the USAID Administrator
* Mercedes Marquez- Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development, Department of Housing and Urban Development
* Kathy Martinez- Assistant Secretary for Disability Employment Policy, Department of Labor
* Michael Martinez- Special Assistant, National Resources Conservation Division, USDA
* Mary Beth Maxwell- Senior Advisor, Department of Labor
* Philip McNamara- Executive Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
* David Medina- Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the First Lady
* David Mills- Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement, Department of Commerce
* Alison Nathan- Associate Counsel to the President, White House Counsels Office
* Jeffrey Neal- Chief Human Capital Officer, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
* Ven Neralla- Director of Priority Placement, Presidential Personnel
* Dave Noble- White House Liaison, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
* Matt Nosanchuk- Senior Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Department of Justice
* Dylan Orr- Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy
* Joseph Palacios- Board of Visitors for WHINSEC
* Paolo Palugod- Special Assistant to the Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division, DOJ
* Peter Pappas- Chief Communications Officer for the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Department of Commerce
* Raul Perea-Henze- Assistant Secretary of Policy and Planning, Department of Veterans Affairs
* Drew Perraut- Policy Analyst, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB
* Mark Perriello- Director of Priority Placement, Presidential Personnel
* Gautam Raghavan- Deputy White House Liaison at the Department of Defense
* Peter Roehrig- Special Assistant, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
* Constance L. Rogers- Deputy Solicitor for Energy and Mineral Resources at Interior
* Donna Ryu- U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
* Ellie Sue Schafer- Director, White House Visitors Office
* Tarak Shah- White House Council on Environmental Quality
* Amanda Simpson- Senior Technical Advisor to the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security
* Richard Sorian- Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, HHS
* Campbell Spencer- Regional Director, Office of Political Affairs
* Everette Stubbs- Deputy Director, White House Visitors Center
* Nancy Sutley- Chair, White House Council on Environmental Quality
* Jonathan Swain- Assistant Administrator, Small Business Administration
* Kenneth Tolson- Member, President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities
* Moe Vela- Director of Operations, Office of the Vice President
* Alex Wagner- Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs
* Douglas B. Wilson- Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, Department of Defense
* William Woolston- Staff Economist, Council of Economic Advisers
