Thomas E. Donilon
Thomas E. Donilon
Thomas E. Donilon is Vice Chairman of BlackRock. He is also Chairman of the BlackRock
Investment Institute. Previously, Mr. Donilon served as U.S. National Security Advisor to
President Barack Obama. In that capacity Mr. Donilon oversaw the U.S. National Security Council
staff, chaired the cabinet level National Security Principals Committee, provided the president’s
daily national security briefing, and was responsible for the coordination and integration of the
administration’s foreign policy, intelligence, and military efforts. Mr. Donilon also oversaw the
White House’s cybersecurity and international energy efforts. Mr. Donilon served as the
President’s personal emissary to a number of world leaders.
Mr. Donilon previously served as Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy National
Security Advisor. In that role, he was responsible for managing the U.S. government’s national
security policy development and crisis management process. Mr. Donilon chaired the ObamaBiden transition at the U.S. Department of State. During the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign, Mr.
Donilon headed President Obama’s general election debate preparation effort.
Mr. Donilon chaired the Presidential Commission to Enhance National Cybersecurity. Mr. Donilon
served as Co-Chair of the Foreign Policy Advisory Board at the US State Department. He also
served for eight years as a member of the Defense Policy Board and the CIA External Advisory
Board. Mr. Donilon is a member of the Board of Directors of the Council on Foreign Relations and
a non-resident senior fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and
International Affairs. He is a member of the Center on Global Energy Policy Advisory Board at
Columbia University, the Aspen Strategy Group, the Brookings Institution Board of Trustees, and
the Trilateral Commission. He has participated in and led numerous policy groups including CoChairing with Governor Mitch Daniels the Council on Foreign Relations Independent Task Force
on Noncommunicable Diseases.
Mr. Donilon has worked with and advised four U.S. presidents since his first position at the White
House in 1977, working with President Carter. He served as assistant secretary of state and chief
of staff at the U.S. Department of State during the Clinton administration. In this capacity, Mr.
Donilon was responsible for the development and implementation of the department’s major
policy initiatives, including NATO expansion, the Dayton Peace Accords, and the Middle East
peace process. Mr. Donilon has received the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award,
the National Intelligence Distinguished Public Service Medal, the Department of Defense Medal
for Distinguished Public Service, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Distinguished
Civilian Service Award, and the CIA’s Director’s Award.
Mr. Donilon received his undergraduate degree, summa cum laude, from Catholic University and
his law degree from the University of Virginia, where he was a member of the Virginia Law
Review. He lives in Washington, DC, with his spouse, Ambassador Cathy Russell. Ambassador
Russell was U.S. Ambassador for Global Women’s Issues at the State Department from 2013-
2017 and currently serves as UNICEF’s Executive Director.
