John Barsa was an American government official who served as acting administrator of the United States Agency for International Development in 2020. He became acting deputy administrator on November 7, 2020, to circumvent the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, which required him to step down, and the administrator's position was left vacant.

Early life and education

The son of a Cuban refugee, Barsa was raised in Miami, Florida. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in international affairs from Florida International University and a graduate diploma from the

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

National Security Management Fellows Program at the

Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs (Maxwell School) is the professional public policy school of Syracuse University, a private research university in Syracuse, New York. The school is organized in 11 academic departments and 13 ...

Career

Barsa began his career working in the defense sector. Barsa enlisted in the United States Army Reserve as a Corporal and served on the staff of U.S. Representative Lincoln Díaz-Balart. During the George W. Bush Administration, Barsa worked as a legislative affairs special assistant at NASA. After the Department of Homeland Security was established, Barsa worked in the department's Office of Public Liaison. In 2011, Barsa was a Republican candidate for the Virginia House of Delegates, losing to incumbent Democrat Scott Surovell.

Trump administration

Barsa was on the Donald Trump transition team and later an assistant to then-DHS director

John F. Kelly John Francis Kelly (born May 11, 1950) is an American former political advisor and retired U.S. Marine Corps general who served as White House chief of staff for President Donald Trump from July 31, 2017, to January 2, 2019. He had previousl ...

. Barsa was later transferred to the United States Agency for International Development where he became Assistant Administrator for the Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean. Barsa became acting administrator on April 13, 2020, after the resignation of

Mark Andrew Green Mark Andrew Green (born June 1, 1960) is an American politician and diplomat who is the president, director and CEO of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Before joining the Wilson Center on March 15, 2021, he served as the exe ...

. Under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, he was required to step down after 210 days unless he was nominated for the position and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. He was not nominated for the role. Instead, on November 6, 2020, after losing the election, Trump fired Deputy Administrator

Bonnie Glick Bonnie Glick is an American diplomat and businesswoman who served as the Deputy Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development from 2019 to 2020. Nominated for the post by President Donald Trump in April 2018, she was conf ...

in order to allow Barsa to take her position in an acting capacity.

Personal life

Barsa is married to Lisa Piraneo Barsa, a lobbyist for

ACT! for America ACT for America, founded in 2007, is a U.S.-based anti-Muslim advocacy group that opposes what it calls "the threat of radical Islam" to Americans. Critics of the group, including the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Center for American Pr ...

. The couple have two children. In 2019, Piraneo's relationship with Barsa was scrutinized after an

poster featuring Congresswoman

Ilhan Omar Ilhan Abdullahi Omar (born October 4, 1982) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2019. She is a member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. Before her election to Congress, Omar served in the Minnesota ...

superimposed over a picture of the Twin Towers falling was hung in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barsa, John Living people Trump administration personnel Virginia Republicans People of the United States Agency for International Development Administrators of the United States Agency for International Development Florida International University alumni Syracuse University alumni Year of birth missing (living people)