On Tuesday 21st February, one month and a day after the inauguration of President Trump, the Politics Society welcomed an experienced Washington-insider to give a lunchtime talk, providing insight into relations between the Trump administration and the new 115th United States Congress. Mr Jeffrey Weinberg has served as a legislative attorney at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Executive Office of the President, for over 43 years under nine different US Presidents (Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump).
Mr Weinberg has been honoured with the Office of Management and Budget’s highest award, the Distinguished Service Award: “For outstanding contributions s in managing the legislative clearance process on behalf of the OMB Director and the President.” He has taught graduate courses on the Presidency and the Executive Branch at four universities in Washington D.C. In 2008, he was a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar, based at the University of London, where he served as a guest lecturer at universities throughout the United Kingdom including: Cambridge, Glasgow, the London School of Economics and Oxford.
It was a rare privilege to listen to and to question such a distinguished American public servant and to hear his insights on the current situation in the US Government and political system. Mr Weinberg’s visit also served as an opportunity to celebrate the ties between the United Kingdom and the United States, often known as the special relationship, as well as Haberdashers’ own relationships with academic partners in the US. We sincerely thank Mr Weinberg for giving so generously of his time and speaking to our students during his short visit to the UK.