WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:
Ricardo A. Aguilera – Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management, Department of Defense
Janine Davidson – Under Secretary of the Navy, Department of Defense
Lisa S. Disbrow – Under Secretary of the Air Force, Department of Defense
Eric K. Fanning – Secretary of the Army, Department of Defense
Shoshana Lew – Chief Financial Officer, Department of Transportation
Jennifer M. O’Connor – General Counsel, Department of Defense
Ambassador Thomas A. Shannon – Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Department of State
President Obama said, “These fine public servants bring a depth of experience and tremendous dedication to their important roles. I look forward to working with them.”
President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:
Ricardo A. Aguilera, Nominee for Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management, Department of Defense
Ricardo A. Aguilera is a Professor of Practice at the National Defense University, a position he has held since 2010. Mr. Aguilera previously served in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) as Special Assistant to the Deputy Comptroller for Program and Budget from 2008 to 2010, and as Associate Director of Contingencies and International Affairs from 2006 to 2008. From 1998 to 2006, Mr. Aguilera served as Deputy Branch Chief at the Office of Management and Budget, and from 1991 to 1998, he served as a Senior Evaluator at the Government Accountability Office. Mr. Aguilera received a B.A. from New York University and an M.A. from George Washington University.
Dr. Janine Davidson, Nominee for Under Secretary of the Navy, Department of Defense
Dr. Janine Davidson is a Senior Fellow for Defense Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, a position she has held since 2014. From 2013 to 2014, she served as a member of the National Commission on the Structure of the Air Force and as an Assistant Professor at George Mason University’s School of Public Policy. From 2009 to 2012, she served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Plans. From 2006 to 2008, she was a Director in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict. Dr. Davidson began her career in the U.S. Air Force, where she was an aircraft commander and senior pilot for the C-130 and the C-17 cargo aircraft. Dr. Davidson received a B.S. from the University of Colorado at Boulder and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina.
Lisa S. Disbrow, Nominee for Under Secretary of the Air Force, Department of Defense
Lisa S. Disbrow has served as Acting Under Secretary of the Air Force since April 2015 and as Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller since July 2014. From 2009 to 2014, Ms. Disbrow served as the Vice Director for Force Structure, Resources, and Assessment in the Joint Staff’s J-8 Directorate. From 2007 to 2009, she served as the Principal Deputy for Force Management at the J-8. From 2006 to 2007, Ms. Disbrow was detailed to the National Security Council as the Special Advisor for Policy Implementation and Execution to the President’s National Security Advisor. From 2003 to 2006, she served as Deputy Director for Wargaming, Simulation, and Analysis at the J-8. Prior to joining the J-8 in 1995, Ms. Disbrow served in the National Reconnaissance Office as a Senior Systems Engineer. Ms. Disbrow served on active duty in the Air Force from 1985 to 1992 in multiple capacities as an operational planner, electronic intelligence analyst, and programming officer. She retired as a Colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve. Ms. Disbrow received a B.A. from the University of Virginia, an M.A. from The George Washington University, and an M.A. from the National War College.
Eric K. Fanning, Nominee for Secretary of the Army, Department of Defense
Eric K. Fanning has served as Acting Under Secretary of the Army since June 2015. He has served as Special Assistant to Secretary of Defense Ash Carter since March 2015, including as Chief of Staff to the Secretary from March to June 2015. From 2013 to 2015, Mr. Fanning served as Under Secretary of the Air Force and as Acting Secretary of the Air Force in 2013. Mr. Fanning previously served as a Deputy Under Secretary of the Navy from 2009 to 2013. Prior to joining the Administration, he was Deputy Director of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism. Mr. Fanning worked for Business Executives for National Security (BENS), first as the Washington Regional Director in 2001 and then as Senior Vice President for Strategic Development from 2001 to 2007. Prior to joining BENS, Mr. Fanning held a number of positions, including Senior Associate at Robinson, Lerer & Montgomery in New York and Associate Producer at CBS News. He began his career in public service serving as an Associate Director of Political Affairs at The White House in 1996, Special Assistant in the Office of the Secretary of Defense from 1993 to 1996, and as a Research Assistant for the Committee on Armed Services in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1991 to 1993. Mr. Fanning received a B.A. from Dartmouth College.
Shoshana Lew, Nominee for Chief Financial Officer, Department of Transportation
Shoshana Lew serves as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy at the Department of Transportation, a position she has held since 2013. Prior to this role, she was a Senior Advisor for the Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management for the Department of the Interior from 2011 to 2013. From 2010 to 2011, Ms. Lew was a Policy Advisor and Senior Policy Director for Energy and Climate Change at the Domestic Policy Council at the White House. Previously, she served as a Policy Advisor and as a Special Assistant to the Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget from 2009 to 2011. From 2007 to 2009, Ms. Lew served as a Policy Analyst and Research and Policy Assistant at The Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program. Ms. Lew received an A.B. from Harvard College and an M.A. from Northwestern University.
Jennifer M. O’Connor, Nominee for General Counsel, Department of Defense
Jennifer M. O’Connor is Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy White House Counsel, a position she has held since May 2014. She was Senior Counsel at the Department of Health and Human Services from December 2013 to May 2014 and Counselor to the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service from May to November 2013. Ms. O’Connor worked at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr as a Partner from 2006 to 2013 and as a Counsel and an Associate from 2002 to 2006. Prior to that, she was a Litigation Associate at Baker Botts and Miller Cassidy Larroca & Lewin from 1998 to 2002. Ms. O’Connor worked in the Clinton Administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy at the Department of Labor from 1996 to 1997, Special Assistant to the President in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff from 1995 to 1996, Special Assistant to the President in the Office of Cabinet Affairs from 1993 to 1995, and Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Administration in 1993. Ms. O’Connor received an A.B. from Harvard College, an M.P.A. from Columbia University, and a J.D. from Georgetown University.
Ambassador Thomas A. Shannon, Nominee for Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Department of State
Ambassador Thomas A. Shannon, a career member of the Foreign Service, class of Career Ambassador, currently serves as Counselor of the Department of State, a position he has held since 2013. Ambassador Shannon also served as Senior Advisor to the Secretary in 2013, U.S. Ambassador to Brazil from 2010 to 2013, and Acting Under Secretary for Political Affairs in 2011. Prior to that, Ambassador Shannon served as Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs from 2005 to 2009. From 2003 to 2005, he was Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs on the National Security Council staff. Ambassador Shannon served in the Department’s Bureau for Western Hemisphere Affairs as Deputy Assistant Secretary from 2002 to 2003 and as Director of Andean Affairs from 2001 to 2002. From 2000 to 2001, he served as the United States Deputy Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States and from 1999 to 2000, he was the Director for Inter-American Affairs on the National Security Council staff. His career as a Foreign Service Officer has also included service in Brazil, Gabon, Guatemala, Sao Tome and Principe, South Africa, and Venezuela. Ambassador Shannon received a B.A. from the College of William and Mary and an M.Phil. and D.Phil. from Oxford University.