Matthew Whitaker
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Matthew George Whitaker (born October 29, 1969) is an American lawyer, lobbyist and politician who served as acting United States attorney general from November 2018 to February 2019. He was appointed to that position by President Donald Trump after Jeff Sessions resigned at Trump's request. Whitaker had previously served as Chief of Staff for Sessions from October 2017 to November 2018.
While attending the University of Iowa, Whitaker played tight end for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes football team, including in the 1991 Rose Bowl.
In 2002, Whitaker was the candidate of the Republican Party for Treasurer of Iowa. From 2004 to 2009, he served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa, where he was known for aggressively prosecuting drug traffickers. Whitaker ran in the 2014 Iowa Republican primary for the United States Senate. He later wrote opinion pieces and appeared on talk-radio shows and cable news as the executive director of the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), a conservative advocacy group.
On December 7, 2018, Trump nominated William Barr for Attorney General. The legality of Whitaker's appointment as acting U.S. Attorney General was challenged in multiple lawsuits, and questioned by legal scholars, commentators, and politicians. On February 15, 2019, after Barr was sworn in on the previous day, Whitaker became a senior counselor in the Office of the Associate Attorney General; he resigned from the Justice Department on March 2, 2019. After leaving the Justice Department, Whitaker became a guest on news and analysis shows including as a CNN contributor, and was affiliated with the law firm of Graves Garrett. In August 2019, he became a managing director at Axiom Strategies and Clout Public Affairs.
On November 20, 2024, Whitaker was announced as the nominee to serve as the United States ambassador to NATO by then- President-elect Donald Trump.
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