David Kenneth Schenker (born 1968) is an American diplomat who worked in the Department of Defense during the George W. Bush administration, and was nominated on April 9, 2018, to head the

Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (NEA), also known as the Bureau of Near East Asian Affairs, is an agency of the Department of State within the United States government that deals with U.S. foreign policy and diplomatic relations with the nati ...

in the

State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...

Early life

Schenker was born in 1968 to mother Linda and father Michael Schenker, both Jewish. He grew up in

Ridgewood, New Jersey Ridgewood is a Village (New Jersey), village in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Ridgewood is a suburban commuter town, bedroom community of New York City, located approximately northwest of Midtown M ...

, graduating from Ridgewood High School in 1986. Schenker earned a B.A. at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...

in 1990, then an M.A. at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

and Certificate, Center for Arabic Study Abroad (CASA), at the

American University in Cairo The American University in Cairo (AUC; ) is a private research university in New Cairo, Egypt. The university offers American-style learning programs at undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels, along with a continuing education program. ...

. Schenker has spent most of his career at the

Washington Institute for Near East Policy The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP), also known simply as The Washington Institute (TWI), is a pro-Israel American think tank based in Washington, D.C., focused on the foreign policy of the United States in the Near East. WINE ...

, starting as an analyst after graduate school. In 2002, Schenker temporarily left the Washington Institute to be Levant (Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel) country director in the Bush Defense Department under Secretary

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, businessman, and naval officer who served as United States Secretary of Defense, secretary of defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and again ...

. Schenker returned to the Washington Institute in 2006 and has been there since. At the time of his nomination to the

, Schenker was director of the institute's Program on Arab Politics. Schenker is a prolific writer, often on Hezbollah in Lebanon and about Syria. He has written two books, ''Dancing with Saddam: The Strategic Tango of Jordanian–Iraqi Relations'' (2003) and ''Palestinian Democracy and Governance: An Appraisal of the Legislative Council'' (2000).

References

External links

Who Is David Schenker, the newest Trump appointee for Middle East policy?

Situation in Iraq

Offer for Information on Hizballah’s Financial Networks Muhammad Kawtharani
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schenker, David 1968 births Living people United States assistant secretaries of state Assistant secretaries of state for Near Eastern affairs United States Foreign Service personnel People from Ridgewood, New Jersey Ridgewood High School (New Jersey) alumni University of Vermont alumni University of Michigan alumni The American University in Cairo alumni