Mark Lippert

Why He Matters

Lippert interrupted his tour of duty on Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential race to head to Iraq as an intelligence officer for the Navy SEALs. He will again leave one of the top national security positions in the Obama administration to serve in Iraq. His job is guaranteed for him when he returns.Kamen, Al, "Obama to Announce Deputy National Security Adviser Will Leave White House," The Washington Post, October 1, 2009

Lippert was initially the only top foreign policy aide in the Democrat’s presidential campaign. Although the buzz-cut reservist went to Iraq at the height of the campaign battle, he has been a major influence in calling for a withdrawal of U.S. troops.

"It changes you. The place, the deployment changes you. To what extent and how, I'm still working through that," Lippert said in July 2008.Wolffe, Richard, "The Aide Who Went To War," Newsweek, July 28, 2008

He will serve as chief of staff of the National Security Council, working with Gen. James L. Jones and Antony J. Blinken.  In October 2009, he left his position temporarily to again serve in Iraq and will be temporarily replaced by Denis McDonough.Smith, Ben, "McDonough to be NSC chief of staff," Politico, Oct. 1, 2009

Path to Power

Lippert grew up in Cincinnati and watched many of his mother’s relatives serve in the military. He thought about enrolling in Officer Candidate School, but instead earned a master’s in international relations from Stanford University before moving to Washington to become a Hill staffer.Langley, Monica, "From the Campaign to the Battlefront," Wall Street Journal, Sept. 22, 2007

Lippert worked for Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) before moving to become an aide to Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). on the Foreign Operations subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations panel.

After the terrorist attacks of September 11, Lippert decided to take the plunge and join the Navy Reserves. He was commissioned in Jan. 2005, serving one weekend a month at the Office of Naval Intelligence in Suitland, Md.Langley, Monica, "From the Campaign to the Battlefront," Wall Street Journal, Sept. 22, 2007

When Obama was elected to the Senate in 2004 and nabbed a spot on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Lippert joined his staff as his only senior foreign policy aide. Lippert and Obama became close and traveled the globe together – to Russia on a weapons-inspection trip and in January 2006 to Iraq, where they bunked in Saddam Hussein’s pool hall. On their trips, they would play basketball together. They even occasionally shared their size 13 shoes.Langley, Monica, "From the Campaign to the Battlefront," Wall Street Journal, Sept. 22, 2007

Lippert ultimately became Obama’s top foreign policy aide on his presidential effort. In that role, he molded the campaign’s 300-person foreign policy network into a coherent unit.

The buzz-cut reservist served as a key link between Obama, his campaign and his Senate staff. Lippert accompanied the presidential candidate on three trips abroad and helped write every major foreign policy address.Sweet, Lynn, "Obama Taps Influential Foreign Policy Experts," Chicago Sun Times, May 10, 2007 He told Time magazine his favorite campaign moment was watching Obama shoot a three-pointer during his trip to Europe in July 2008.Tumulty, Karen, "In Their Words: Obama’s team on their favorite trail moments," Time Magazine, Nov. 17, 2008.

But Lippert was called up to active duty in the fall of 2007 and went to Iraq as an intelligence officer in the Navy SEALs. It was difficult to leave the campaign “at the time when ... you kind of want to rally around” Obama, he told Newsweek.Wolffe, Richard, "The Aide Who Went To War," Newsweek, July 28, 2008 Lippert recruited Denis McDonough to replace him while he was away.

When he returned in the fall of 2008, Lippert said his trip gave him a better sense of the tactical struggles in Iraq.

After Obama was elected, Lippert was named chief of staff for the National Security Council. In October 2009, he left his position temporarily to again serve in Iraq and will be replaced by Denis McDonough.Smith, Ben, "McDonough to be NSC chief of staff," Politico, Oct. 1, 2009

The Issues

Lippert helped Obama shape his foreign policies while in the Senate, where he focused on pushing humanitarian legislation like a bill that condemned violence by the Zimbabwe government and another that called on the administration to do more to reduce global poverty and to stop the Darfur genocide.Flaherty, Anne, "Obama’s Foreign Affairs Work Focused on Human Rights, Poverty, High-profile Trips," Associated Press, Feb. 26, 2008

The Network

As a member of Obama’s foreign policy inner circle, Lippert worked closely on the campaign trail with Denis McDonough and Ben Rhodes, as well as with Susan Rice, Greg Craig, Anthony Lake and Samantha Power. He is also very close to the President himself.

He is a former staffer for Sen. Leahy and former Senate Majority Leader Daschle (D-S.D.). Pete Rouse, Obama’s Senate chief of staff, recommended that Obama consider him for his campaign team.