FORMER COUNCIL PROGRAMS DIRECTOR THOMAS ZIMMERMAN JOINS BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
On December 30, President-elect Joe Biden appointed Thomas Zimmerman as a Special Assistant to the President for Presidential Personnel. Zimmerman previously served as Deputy Lead for National Security Personnel on the Biden-Harris Transition team and as Director of Programs at the Pacific Council on International Policy.
At the Pacific Council, Zimmerman oversaw programming for Council members and the general public.
Prior to those positions, he worked at the Center on International Cooperation. He started his career working in Kabul, Afghanistan, with American Councils for International Education. After working on Barack Obama’s 2008 Presidential campaign, Thomas joined the Pakistan Desk at the Department of Defense before moving to the White House to serve as Special Assistant to the National Security Advisor. In 2012, he managed the national security and foreign policy research portfolio for President Obama’s reelection campaign.
Most recently, Thomas worked at the Center on International Cooperation and as a visiting scholar at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, focusing on Afghanistan, Somalia, and Chinese regional policy. He specializes in the facilitation of Track II dialogues.
Thomas holds a BA from Williams College and an MALD from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He is originally from Austin, Texas, and currently lives in Alexandria, VA, with his partner.
