Stephen J. Yates is an American

political advisor Political consulting is a form of consulting that consists primarily of advising and assisting political campaigns. Although the most important role of political consultants is arguably the development and production of mass media (largely tele ...

and

government official An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority, (either their own or that of their su ...

who last served as the president of Radio Free Asia. He previously served as the deputy national security adviser to the Vice President to Dick Cheney from 2001 to 2005 and chairman of the

Idaho Republican Party The Idaho Republican Party (IDGOP) is the Idaho state affiliate of the United States Republican Party, headquartered in Boise. It is currently the dominant party in the state, controlling both of Idaho's U.S. House seats, both U.S. Senate seat ...

from 2014 to 2017.John Sowell, Idaho Statesman. "Idaho Republican Party Chairman Will Step down, May Run for Lieutenant Governor." ''Idaho Statesman, The (Boise, ID)'', 2017. He is the CEO of consulting firm, DC International Advisory and has been in that position since 2006.

Early life and education

Yates attended

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...

and served as a Mormon missionary in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

from 1987 to 1989. He speaks fluent Mandarin and his Chinese name is "葉望輝" (''Yè Wànghuī''). He obtained 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 year ...

degree in Chinese language and literature from the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

in Chinese studies from the

Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) is a graduate school of Johns Hopkins University based in Washington, D.C., United States, with campuses in Bologna, Italy, and Nanjing, China. It is consistently ranked one of th ...

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consi ...

Career

Yates worked for the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collect ...

under the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national sec ...

; he served as a liaison officer to the Department of Commerce.Bill Dentzer, Idaho Statesman. "Steve Yates' Curious Journey from Taiwan to Idaho Falls, via the White House." ''Idaho Statesman, The (Boise, ID)'', 2016. He was a senior policy analyst at

The Heritage Foundation The Heritage Foundation (abbreviated to Heritage) is an American conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. that is primarily geared toward public policy. The foundation took a leading role in the conservative movement during the presiden ...

from 1996 to 2001; and served as deputy national security advisor to the Vice President to Dick Cheney from 2001 to 2005. From 2005 to 2006, Yates served has a lobbyist and vice president of the global affairs practice for Barbour Griffith & Rogers, whose clients included; Taiwan, The Indonesian National Shipowners' Association, Moneygram International, Lebanon's National Dialogue Party, The Republic of India British Nuclear Fuels, Plc. (via a contract with Sutherland Asbill & Brennan). Yates is the founder and CEO at DC International Advisory since 2006, a consulting firm advises on managing international political risk and business opportunity. He is also a professor of the practice with the International Business Program at

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a Public university, public research university in Boise, Idaho. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding ...

. Currently, he is a distinguished Fellow at the Hamilton Foundation. Yates serves as a senior fellow and chair of the China Policy Initiative at the America First Policy Institute as of 2022.

Political career

Yates advised the 2000 Bush-Cheney campaign's Asia team. He served in the 2008 Rudy Giuliani presidential campaign as a senior Asia adviser. He served in the 2012 Newt Gingrich presidential campaign as a part of the National Security Advisory team and director. He briefly ran for

national committeeman at the July 2020 convention.

Idaho Republican Party chair

Yates was elected chairman of the

in August 2014 and was re elected in 2016; he stepped down on April 24, 2017, to pursue the 2018 Idaho lieutenant gubernatorial primary election. David Johnston (2014–2017) and Lyndel Strong (2017) were the executive directors.

Idaho Lieutenant Governor primary election, 2018

Yates sought and lost narrowly the 2018 Republican nomination for

Lieutenant Governor of Idaho The lieutenant governor of Idaho is a constitutional statewide elected office in the U.S. state of Idaho. According to the Idaho Constitution, the officeholder is elected to a four-year term. The current lieutenant governor of Idaho is Republican ...

Janice McGeachin Janice K. McGeachin (; born January 18, 1963) is an American far-right politician and businesswoman serving as the 43rd lieutenant governor of Idaho since January 2019. A member of the Republican Party, she was previously a member of the Idaho Hou ...

. Days before the election, a flyer attacking Yates was mailed to Idaho voters, claiming hidden foreign influence and conflating support from democratic Taiwan with that from communist China. The flyer mailing was sourced to a PAC funded by three political opponents from Yates' past.

Radio Free Asia

In December 2020, Yates was appointed by

Michael Pack Michael Pack is an American documentary filmmaker who was CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) from June 2020 to January 2021. Pack was nominated by President Donald Trump and took office at USAGM in June 2020 after Senate confirmation. ...

as the president of Radio Free Asia, a government–funded, nonprofit international broadcasting corporation. In January 2021, he and other leaders associated with the prior presidential administration were fired by Pack's successor, acting CEO of U.S. Agency for Global Media, Kelu Chao.

Personal life

Yates and his ex-wife Diana Kilbourn adopted two children.

Election history

References

External links

* *
Yates for Idaho
campaign website
D.C. International Advisory
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yates, Stephen J. Living people Brigham Young University alumni University of Maryland, College Park alumni Johns Hopkins University alumni Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies alumni Boise State University faculty Idaho Republicans 21st-century American politicians 20th-century Mormon missionaries American Mormon missionaries in Taiwan Latter Day Saints from Maryland Latter Day Saints from Idaho Year of birth missing (living people)