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White House Author

Grant T. Harris

Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for African Affairs

Grant T. Harris currently serves as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council. Prior to this position, Mr. Harris was Deputy Chief of Staff and Counselor to Susan E. Rice, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and a member of President Obama’s Cabinet. Mr. Harris also served as Senior Policy Advisor to Ambassador Rice and was a member of the Obama/Biden Transition Team. Previously, Mr. Harris was an associate at the law firm of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, where he focused on international financings and business transactions. Prior to that, Mr. Harris served in the African Affairs Directorate at the National Security Council at the White House and at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations during the Clinton Administration.

Mr. Harris is a graduate of Yale Law School, where he served on the Journal of International Law and was awarded the Ambrose Gherini Prize for best paper in the field of international law. Mr. Harris also received a Master’s in Public Affairs, with Distinction, from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. He received a B.A. in Political Science, with Highest Honors, from the University of California, Berkeley, where he was president of the student body. His writings have appeared in such publications as Yale Journal of Law & Policy, Berkeley Journal of International Law, Israel Law Review (peer-reviewed), and The San Francisco Chronicle. He received the Francis Lieber Prize from the American Society of International Law for outstanding scholarship in the field of the law of armed conflict.

Grant T. Harris's Posts

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Ambassador Rice Meets with Governors from Nigeria

National Security Advisor Susan E. Rice welcomed 12 governors and one deputy-governor from Nigeria to the White House to discuss areas of strategic importance to both the United States and Nigeria.
March 19, 2014 at 11:07 AM ET

Protecting Iconic Species for Future Generations: A New National Strategy for Combating Wildlife Trafficking

To protect threatened species like elephants and rhinoceroses for future generations, the President approves a new National Strategy for Combating Wildlife Trafficking.
February 11, 2014 at 3:30 PM ET

Urging Peace in South Sudan

Reinforcing President Obama’s strong message encouraging South Sudan’s leaders to choose peace, National Security Advisor Susan Rice records an audio message for the people of South Sudan.
December 20, 2013 at 7:17 PM ET

President Obama's Message to the People of the Central African Republic

In an audio message taped in Dakar, Senegal, today, President Obama sent a clear and important message to the people of the Central African Republic: that they should reject the violence currently threatening their country, and move together toward a future of security, dignity, and peace.
December 9, 2013 at 6:46 PM ET

White House Hosts Forum to Counter Wildlife Trafficking and Announces Advisory Council

Tune in on Monday from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. at http://www.wh.gov/live as the White House hosts a Forum to Counter Wildlife Trafficking featuring Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
September 6, 2013 at 1:00 PM ET

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