Thomas P. Bossert (born March 25, 1975) is an American lawyer and former
Homeland Security Advisor
The Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, commonly referred to as the Homeland Security Advisor and formerly the Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, is a senior aide in the ...
to
U.S. President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
. He is an
ABC News
ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
Homeland Security analyst.
Immediately before, he was a fellow at the
Atlantic Council
The Atlantic Council is an American think tank in the field of international affairs, favoring Atlanticism, founded in 1961. It manages sixteen regional centers and functional programs related to international security and global economic prosp ...
and prior to that he served as
Deputy Homeland Security Advisor to President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
. In that capacity, he co-authored the 2007
National Strategy for Homeland Security
The United States National Strategy for Homeland Security is a formal government response to the events of September 11, 2001 at the Pentagon and World Trade Center. The document issued by President George W. Bush outlines the overall strategic co ...
. Prior to that, Bossert held positions in the
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...
, the
Small Business Administration
The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and stren ...
, the
Office of the Independent Counsel
The Office of Special Counsel was an office of the United States Department of Justice established by provisions in the Ethics in Government Act that expired in 1999. The provisions were replaced by Department of Justice regulation 28 CFR Part ...
, and the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
. He also was appointed as the Director of Infrastructure Protection under Bush, overseeing the security of critical U.S. infrastructure, a post he held for two years.
Bossert was appointed the Senior Director for Preparedness Policy within the
Executive Office of the President
The Executive Office of the President (EOP) comprises the offices and agencies that support the work of the president at the center of the executive branch of the United States federal government. The EOP consists of several offices and agenc ...
.
Early life
Bossert was born and raised in
Quakertown, Pennsylvania
Quakertown is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of 2020, it had a population of 9,359. The borough is south of Allentown and Bethlehem and north of Philadelphia, making Quakertown a border town of both the Delaware Va ...
, where he graduated from
Quakertown Community High School in 1993. He attended the
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...
, where he earned a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in
Political Science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
and
Economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...
in 1997, and attended
George Washington University Law School
The George Washington University Law School (GW Law) is the law school of George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. Established in 1865, GW Law is the oldest top law school in the national capital. GW Law offers the largest range of cou ...
, earning his
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
in 2003.
Political career
![Hurricane Irma 170925-N-KW492-163](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Hurricane_Irma_170925-N-KW492-163.jpg)
Following the end of the Bush administration, Bossert was made a Nonresident Zurich Cyber Risk Fellow at the
Atlantic Council
The Atlantic Council is an American think tank in the field of international affairs, favoring Atlanticism, founded in 1961. It manages sixteen regional centers and functional programs related to international security and global economic prosp ...
's Cyber Security Initiative, a position he held until 2016. He also became president of the risk management
consulting firm
A consulting firm or simply consultancy is a professional service firm that provides expertise and specialised labour for a fee, through the use of consultants. Consulting firms may have one employee or thousands; they may consult in a broad rang ...
Civil Defense Solutions.
On December 27, 2016, the Trump transition team announced that then President-elect
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
intended to appoint Bossert to the post of
Homeland Security Advisor
The Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, commonly referred to as the Homeland Security Advisor and formerly the Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, is a senior aide in the ...
(officially titled the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism), a position that would not require
Senate confirmation
Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive branch of a government enacts something prev ...
. Bossert was officially appointed on January 20, 2017, the date of President Trump's entrance into office.
On July 20, 2017, Bossert called for a comprehensive bio-defense strategy against devastating pandemics and intentional attacks, and commented that retired Admiral
Tim Ziemer was contributing to the development of the strategy.
On July 27, 2017, British email prankster
James Linton,
spear-phished Bossert into thinking he was
Jared Kushner
Jared Corey Kushner (born January 10, 1981) is an American businessman and investor. He served as a senior advisor to 45th U.S. president Donald Trump, his father-in-law. Since leaving the White House, Kushner founded Affinity Partners, a pri ...
by sending an email to Bossert; he received Bossert's private email address without asking for it.
Bossert resigned on April 8, 2018, the day after
John R. Bolton
John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to 2006, and as the 26th United Stat ...
, the newly appointed
National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils.
National sec ...
, started his tenure. Bossert's departure corresponded with the dissolution of the global health security team that he oversaw.
On December 16, 2020, the New York Times published an opinion piece by Bossert warning that U.S. networks had been seriously compromised by Russia and had been for months.
See also
*
Trump–Ukraine scandal
The "Trump–Ukraine scandal" refers to efforts by U.S. President Donald Trump to coerce Ukraine and other countries into providing damaging narratives about 2020 Democratic Party presidential candidate Joe Biden, and giving misinformatio ...
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bossert, Tom
1970s births
Living people
University of Pittsburgh alumni
George Washington University Law School alumni
George W. Bush administration personnel
Trump administration personnel
United States presidential advisors
Atlantic Council