New York | Preet Bharara and Frances Townsend, who served in numerous positions in the Bush and Obama administrations, are among the legal and diplomatic leaders in the DC chapter of the International Law Association (ILA) who will be involved in presenting a panel on “A US President’s Ability to Select an Attorney General” at a ILA talk on 24 October in Washington, DC. ILA offers “comprehensive legal training, judicial consulting and important lobbying at the local, state and federal levels”. As a multi-disciplinary organization, its services focus on human rights, labor, women’s, women’s political participation, diplomacy, international development, and human rights.
Bharara will share his extensive experience on the legal and diplomatic policymaking processes with the panelists and a wide range of students and community members on the importance of a US president’s ability to select an attorney general. A graduate of Harvard Law School, Bharara first entered public service in 2001 as an Assistant US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Between 2007 and 2010, Bharara served as US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, which included monitoring corruption cases in the New York City Police Department. He left the country in 2014 and was appointed U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York in November 2015, after he had been dismissed by President Barack Obama for what he claimed were improper recusal decisions. Bharara was fired by President Donald Trump in November 2017.
A leading crisis manager, Townsend served as Deputy National Security Advisor to President George W. Bush from 2005 to 2007. Prior to serving in the Bush administration, Townsend worked in Republican and Democratic administrations, including the Clinton administration. She served as the Senior Foreign Policy Advisor and Chief of Staff for Defense Secretary William Perry from 1993 to 1995. From 1999 to 2002, Townsend served as the Chief of Staff to Governor George Pataki of New York State. She also served as the National Security Council Coordinator for Policy Planning from 1991 to 1994. Townsend has degrees from both Yale University and Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
Bharara is the author of two books: The Rise of White Collar Crime and The Emperor’s New Clothes: How The White House Press Corps And The Federal Bureau Of Investigation Are Covering Up Corruption. In addition to writing two very popular legal blogs, Bharara is a best-selling author. Bharara has also authored a series of articles about Clinton’s dealings with the FBI and Justice Department as Director from 1993 to 1994, most recently published in Politico and in the New York Times. Bharara has also been featured on Bill Maher’s television show Real Time.
The panelists for “A US President’s Ability to Select an Attorney General” include former Justice Department General John Ashcroft, former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, former FBI Director Robert Mueller III, Solicitor General Noel Francisco, President of the Council of Foreign Relations Richard Haass, Matthew Olsen, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, Ann Marie Petriello of the National Security Archive, and Chris Foresman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.