Sandy Berger | |
|---|---|
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| 18thUnited States National Security Advisor | |
| In office March 14, 1997 – January 20, 2001 | |
| President | Bill Clinton |
| Deputy | James Steinberg |
| Preceded by | Anthony Lake |
| Succeeded by | Condoleezza Rice |
| 19thUnited States Deputy National Security Advisor | |
| In office January 20, 1993 – March 14, 1997 | |
| President | Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by | Jonathan Howe |
| Succeeded by | James Steinberg |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Samuel Richard Berger (1945-10-28)October 28, 1945 Millerton, New York, U.S. |
| Died | December 2, 2015(2015-12-02) (aged 70) Washington, DC, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Susan Harrison |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Cornell University (BA) Harvard University (JD) |
Samuel Richard "Sandy" Berger (October 28, 1945 – December 2, 2015) was a Democratic attorney who served as the 18thUS National Security Advisor forU.S. PresidentBill Clinton from 1997 to 2001 after he had served as theDeputy National Security Advisor for theClinton administration from 1993 to 1997.
In 2005, he was fined and sentenced to two years of probation, plus community service, for the unauthorized removal of classified material from theNational Archives. When disbarment proceedings were initiated on account of his theft of documents, Berger gave up his license to practice law by conceding the truth of the material allegations of misconduct and consenting to his disbarment.
Berger was born to aJewish family inMillerton, New York, where his parents ran asurplus store.[1] He graduated from Webutuck High School in 1963, earned hisBachelor of Arts degree ingovernment fromCornell University in 1967, and his earnedJuris Doctor degree fromHarvard Law School in 1971.[2][3][4]
At Cornell, Berger was a member of theQuill and Dagger society withPaul Wolfowitz andStephen Hadley. Opposed to theVietnam War, Berger began working forSenatorGeorge McGovern's presidential campaign in 1972. While there, he metBill Clinton, forming a friendship that lasted for decades. Berger later urged Clinton to run for President of the United States.[5]
After the McGovern campaign, Berger gained experience working in a variety of government posts, including serving as Special Assistant toMayor of New York CityJohn Lindsay and Legislative Assistant to U.S. SenatorHarold Hughes ofIowa and CongressmanJoseph Resnick ofNew York. He was also DeputyDirector of Policy Planning for theU.S. Department of State from 1977 to 1980 underSecretary of StateCyrus Vance during theCarter administration.[6]
After leaving the State Department, Berger went on to join the law firmHogan & Hartson where he helped expand the firm'sinternational law practice. As a partner, he opened the firm's first two international offices, inLondon andBrussels.[5] "Sandy Berger",Nancy Pelosi said in 1997, "was the point-man at ... Hogan & Hartson ... for the trade office of theChinese government. He was a lawyer-lobbyist."[7]
Berger served as Senior Foreign Policy Advisor toGovernor Clinton during the campaign, and as Assistant Transition Director for National Security of the 1992 Clinton-Gore Transition. Berger served eight years on the National Security Council staff, first from 1993 to 1997 asdeputy national security advisor, underAnthony Lake, whom Berger had recommended for the role, and then succeeding Lake asAssistant to the President for National Security Affairs from 1997 to 2001.[citation needed]
Berger was a central figure in formulating theforeign policy of the Clinton Administration, and played an integral role advancing the administration's self-described objectives of advancing "democracy, shared prosperity, and peace."[8] In President Clinton's words, "Nobody was more knowledgeable about policy or smarter about how to formulate it. He was both great in analyzing a situation and figuring out what to do about it. His gifts proved invaluable time and time again, in Latin America, the Balkans, Northern Ireland, and the Middle East."[9]
Key achievements during Berger's NSC tenure included the 1995 peso recovery package in Mexico,NATO enlargement,Operation Desert Fox, theDayton Accords that ended the civil conflict in Bosnia, theNATO bombing campaign against Yugoslavia, theGood Friday Agreement that helped bring about peace in Northern Ireland, and the administration's policy of engagement with thePeople's Republic of China.[10] In a March 2005 oral history interview at theUniversity of Virginia's Miller Center, Berger noted, "I think during the '90s we took China from outside the international system and brought it inside the international system, partly through trade, and economics, and otherwise."[11]
On July 4, 1999, in what South Asia expert Bruce Reidel called Berger's "finest hour,"[12] Berger advised President Clinton through a pivotal negotiation with Pakistan's prime ministerNawaz Sharif to pull that country's troops back fromKashmir, averting a potentially cataclysmic nuclear war with India.[13]
Berger also advised the President regarding theKhobar Towers bombing and responses to the terroristbombings of American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. In the final years of the Clinton administration, combating terrorism was the paramount foreign policy priority; Berger said in his March 2005 oral history interview at UVA's Miller Center, "I said toCondoleezza Rice during the transition ... that the number-one issue that she would deal with as national security advisor was terrorism in general andal-Qaeda specifically."[11]
In November 1997, Berger paid a $23,000civil penalty to settleconflict of interest allegations stemming from his failure to sell hisstock ofAmoco Corporation as ordered by theWhite House. Berger was advised by the White House to sell the stock in early 1994. He said he had planned to sell the stock, but then forgot. He denied knowingly participating in decisions in which he had a financial interest. With no evidence that Berger intended to break the law, theUnited States Department of Justice determined a civil penalty was adequate for a "non-willful violation" of the conflict of interest law.[14]
In 1999, Berger was criticized for failing to promptly inform President Clinton of his knowledge that thePeople's Republic of China had managed to acquire the designs of a number of U.S.nuclear warheads. Berger was originally briefed of the espionage by theDepartment of Energy (DOE) in April 1996, but did not inform the president until July 1997.[15][16]
A number ofRepublicans, including then presidential hopefulLamar Alexander, called for Berger's resignation. They accused him of ignoring the allegations of Chinese espionage. "For his unwillingness to act on this serious matter, Mr. Berger should resign", Alexander said. "If he does not, he should be relieved of his duties by President Clinton."[17] President Clinton rejected the calls: "The record is that we acted aggressively," Clinton said. "Mr. Berger acted appropriately."[18]
I asked DOE to widen and deepen its investigation, to intensify as they were planning theircounterintelligence efforts to brief theCongress. Within several weeks theFBI had opened up a full investigation on the prime suspect. So I took the actions that I believe were appropriate. I get an awful lot of threat information every day. I have to make a judgment as to what I brief the president on and what I don't. In 1997, when this was clearly a pattern and a systemic problem, I thought it was essential for the president to know — Sandy Berger, May 29, 1999.[19]
On July 19, 2004, it was revealed that theUnited States Department of Justice was investigating Berger for unauthorized removal ofclassified documents in October 2003 from aNational Archives reading room prior to testifying before the9/11 Commission. The documents were five classified copies of a single report commissioned fromRichard Clarke covering internal assessments of the Clinton Administration's handling of the unsuccessful2000 millennium attack plots. An associate of Berger said Berger took one copy in September 2003 and four copies in October 2003, allegedly by stuffing the documents into hissocks and pants.[20][21] Berger subsequently lied to investigators when questioned about the removal of the documents.[22]
In April 2005, Berger pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified material from theNational Archives in Washington, D.C.[23]
Berger was fined $50,000,[24] sentenced to serve two years ofprobation and 100 hours of community service, and stripped of his security clearance for three years.[22][25] The Justice Department initially said Berger only stole copies of classified documents and not originals,[26] but the House Government Reform Committee later revealed that an unsupervised Berger had been given access to classified files of original, uncopied, uninventoried documents on terrorism. During the House Government Reform Committee hearings, Nancy Kegan Smith — who was the director of the presidential documents staff at theNational Archives and Records Administration — acknowledged that she had granted Berger access to original materials in her office.[27]
On December 20, 2006, Inspector General Paul Brachfeld reported that Berger took a break to go outside without an escort. "In total, during this visit, he removed four documents ... Mr. Berger said he placed the documents under a trailer in an accessible construction area outside Archives 1 (the main Archives building)". Berger acknowledged having later retrieved the documents from the construction area and returned with them to his office.[28][29]
The Board on Professional Responsibility of the Bar of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals commenced a professional-misconduct disciplinary proceeding against Berger, based on his conviction for theft of classified documents. On May 17, 2007, Berger was disbarred from the practice of law upon consenting to his disbarment, conceding that the material allegations of misconduct were true and he knew that he could not successfully defend against the disciplinary proceeding.[30] He released a statement which said, in part, "I have decided to voluntarily relinquish my license. ... While I derived great satisfaction from years of practicing law, I have not done so for 15 years and do not envision returning to the profession. I am very sorry for what I did, and I deeply apologize." By consenting to disbarment, Berger avoided cross-examination by the Bar Counsel regarding details of his thefts.[31]
After leaving the Clinton Administration, Berger became chairman ofStonebridge International, an international advisory firm he co-founded in 2001 which focused on aiding companies in their expansion into emerging markets such asBrazil, China,India, andRussia.[6] Stonebridge International merged in 2009 with The Albright Group, a similar firm founded by formerU.S. Secretary of StateMadeleine Albright, to formAlbright Stonebridge Group, a global strategy andcommercial diplomacy firm[32][33] acquired byDentons in 2021.[34]
Berger was also chairman of the D.B. Zwirn Global Advisory Board, an international investment fund and merchant capital provider founded in 2001 and with offices throughout North America, Europe and Asia.[35]
In late 2003, Berger was called to testify before the9/11 Commission regarding steps taken againstterrorism during his tenure and the information he provided to his successor, Condoleezza Rice. At the time, he was also acting as an informal foreign policy advisor to SenatorJohn Kerry during his campaign for the presidency, resigning from the role amid controversy regarding his preparations for testifying before the 9/11 Commission.[36] Berger served as a foreign policy adviser to SenatorHillary Clinton in her 2008 presidential campaign.[37]
He was an advisory board member for thePartnership for a Secure America, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to recreating the bipartisan center in American national security and foreign policy. He also served on the International Advisory Council of theBrookings Doha Center.[38] He served on the board of directors of theInternational Crisis Group andWorld Food Program USA, and also on the advisory boards of theNational Security Network, andAmerica Abroad Media.[39]
Berger lived in theAmerican University Park neighborhood ofWashington, D.C., was married to Susan Harrison Berger, and had three children.[40][41]
Berger died of cancer in Washington, D.C., on December 2, 2015, at the age of 70, more than a year after being diagnosed.[40][41][42]
PresidentBarack Obama released the following statement on learning of Berger's death:[43]
Sandy Berger was one of our nation's foremost national security leaders. From his service in President Carter's State Department to President Clinton's National Security Advisor, Sandy devoted himself to strengthening American leadership in an uncertain world. Today, his legacy can be seen in a peaceful Balkans, our strong alliance with Japan, our deeper relationships with India and China. Around the globe, families and children are living healthier, more secure lives because, as a private citizen, Sandy was a humanitarian who helped the world respond to crises and feed the hungry. With his trademark passion, wisdom and good humor, he is remembered fondly within the ranks of the National Security Council, where those he mentored carry on his work. I'm grateful to Sandy because, as President, I've benefited personally from his advice and counsel.
In November 2015, Berger was awarded theGrand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun by the Japanese government for his contributions to promotion of a strong and friendly relationship between the United States and Japan, particularly in his role as National Security Adviser to President Clinton.[44][45] He also provided legal and commercial advice to theEmbassy of Japan in Washington, D.C.
On December 1, 2015,World Food Program USA announced that it has given its inaugural Global Humanitarian Award to Samuel R. Berger in recognition of his decades of leadership helping families in need across the globe.[40] Additionally, the World Food Program USA established the Samuel R. Berger Humanitarian Fund, which will support humanitarian organizations as they work to eradicate hunger around the world.[44]
In 2000, Berger was presented with an honorary degree[46] fromTel Aviv University inIsrael.
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Deputy National Security Advisor 1993–1997 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | National Security Advisor 1997–2001 | Succeeded by |
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