Press Release - President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

•      Adam J. Szubin – Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, Department of the Treasury

•      Jeffrey J. Hawkins, Jr. – Ambassador to the Central African Republic, Department of State

President Obama also announced his intent to appoint the following individual to a key Administration post:

•      Victoria Esser – Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Department of the Treasury

President Obama said,"I am honored that these talented individuals have decided to serve our country. They bring their years of experience and expertise to this Administration, and I look forward to working with them."

President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

Adam J. Szubin, Nominee for Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, Department of the Treasury

Adam J. Szubin serves as the Director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence at the Department of the Treasury, a position he has held since 2006. Concurrently, he serves as the Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes at Treasury, a position to which he was designated in February 2015. Prior to his time at OFAC, he served as the Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes from 2004 to 2006. From 2003 to 2004, he was Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice. Previously, from 2000 to 2003, he was a Trial Attorney in the Federal Programs Branch of the Civil Division at the Department of Justice. Mr. Szubin was a Judicial Clerk for Hon. Ronald L. Gilman of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 1999 to 2000. Mr. Szubin received a A.B. from Harvard College and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Jeffrey J. Hawkins, Jr., Nominee for Ambassador to the Central African Republic, Department of State

Jeffrey J. Hawkins, Jr., a career member of the Foreign Service, class of Counselor, currently serves as Consul General at the U.S. Consulate in Lagos, Nigeria, a position he has held since 2012. Mr. Hawkins served as Director of the Department of State's Office of South and Central Asian Affairs in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor from 2010 to 2012. He was Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Luanda, Angola from 2008 to 2010, Consul at the American Presence Post in Lille, France from 2006 to 2008, and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei from 2004 to 2006. Prior to that, Mr. Hawkins served as Political and Economic Chief at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan from 2003 to 2004 and Desk Officer for Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan in the Department's Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs from 2002 to 2003. His earlier assignments with the Department of State include posts in Cote d'Ivoire, India, and Pakistan. Before joining the Foreign Service in 1994, Mr. Hawkins was a Desk Officer with the International Trade Administration at the Department of Commerce. Mr. Hawkins also served in the U.S. Navy Reserve from 2002 to 2010. Mr. Hawkins received a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley and an M.A. from the University of California, Los Angeles.

President Obama announced his intent to appoint the following individual to a key Administration post:

Victoria Esser, Appointee for Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Department of the Treasury

Victoria Esser is Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of Public Affairs at the Treasury Department, a position she has held since 2013. Since December 2014, she has also served as the Acting Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at Treasury. From 2011 to 2013, she served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Digital Strategy in the Bureau of Public Affairs at the Department of State. Ms. Esser held various positions at The Glover Park Group from 2004 to 2011, first as Vice President, then as Senior Vice President, and finally as a Managing Director. Prior to that, from 2000 to 2004, Ms. Esser worked at Robinson, Lerer & Montgomery, where she last served as a Vice President. Ms. Esser began her career working in Paris, France as Assistant Manager at the Centre International Des Enterprises à Succursale from 1994 to 1996. Ms. Esser received a B.A. from Colby College and an M.A. from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.