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Obama picks Leach for humanities post |
| Updated: June 04, 2009 |
By Thomas Beaumont, The Des Moines Register
June 3, 2009
President Obama today said he planned to nominate former U.S. Rep. Jim Leach of Iowa to be
chairman of the National Endowment of the Humanities.
Leach, a former 30-year congressman, has been teaching at his alma mater Princeton University and
has served as interim director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School
of Government.
Leach, a Republican, endorsed Obama last year and had a prime-time speaking slot at the Democratic
National Convention in Denver.
Leach had been considered a potential nominee for U.S. ambassador to China before Obama tapped
Utah Gov. John Huntsman for the post last month.
Leach is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, vice chairman of the Century Foundation
Board and has served on the boards of Social Sciences Research Council, ProPublica, the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace and the Kettering Foundation.
Leach, 66, served in the House from 1977 until he was defeated for re-election in 2006 by Democrat
Dave Loebsack of Mount Vernon.
“I am confident that with Jim as its head, the National Endowment for the Humanities will continue on its vital mission of supporting the humanities and giving the American public access to the rich resources of our culture," Obama said in a statement. "Jim is a valued and dedicated public servant and I look
forward to working with him in the months and years ahead.”
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