Who is Antony Blinken - Secretary of State: Biography, Profile, Life and Career
 |
| Antony Blinken-Biden's-pick-for-Secretary-of-State - Photo: Edition.cnn.com |
Who is Antony Blinken?
Antony John Blinken (born April 16, 1962) is an American government official and diplomat. He served as Deputy National Security Advisor from 2013 to 2015 and Deputy Secretary of State from 2015 to 2017 under President Barack Obama.
Biden's pick for Secretary of State
U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has reportedly chosen his longtime aide and foreign policy advisor Antony J. Blinken to be America's top diplomat, U.S. media revealed on Sunday.
The 58-year-old foreign policy veteran is seen as a "pragmatic" and moderate candidate, unlike incumbent U.S. State Secretary Mike Pompeo whose cold-war mentality has caused bilateral relations to dramatically deteriorate in recent years.
"I think Blinken serving as Secretary of State would provide a window of opportunity for both sides to have a dialogue," said Lü Xiang, a research fellow on U.S. affairs at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing.
 |
| Photo: Politico.com |
| Blinken has followed Biden for almost 20 years. His most notable job titles include serving as the Deputy National Security Advisor and Deputy Secretary of State under President Barack Obama. During this time, he mainly focused on the Middle East, including crafting U.S. policies in Syria, Afghanistan and the nuclear deal with Iran, according to News.cgtn. |
*If you want to find out more about Biden's list of Cabinet members, click here.
Education of Antony Blinken
Blinken, 58, is no stranger to foreign diplomacy, having served in various capacities under two different administrations for two decades.
Born in New York City to Jewish parents, Blinken moved with his mother to France, where he attended the prestigious Ecole Jeannine Manuel high school. Upon graduation, he earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University and a law degree at Columbia Law School in 1988 and practiced law in New York and Paris, Aa News noted.
Previous Positions of Antony Blinken
From 2015 to 2017, Blinken served as Deputy Secretary of State under the Obama-Biden administration. In that role, Blinken helped to lead diplomacy in the fight against ISIL, the rebalance to Asia, and the global refugee crisis, while building bridges to the innovation community.
 |
| Photo: Ft.com |
Before that, Blinken served as Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy National Security Advisor to President Obama. He chaired the Deputies Committee, the administration’s principal forum for formulating foreign policy. During the first Obama term, he was National Security Advisor to Vice President Biden.
Blinken served as Democratic Staff Director for the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 2002 to 2008 and was a member of President Clinton’s National Security Council staff from 1994 to 2001, Buildbackbetter regarded.
Public service as family business of Antony Blinken
 |
| Photo: Thelist.com |
Government service is the Blinken family business. He met his future wife, Evan Ryan, in 1995 when he was working at the White House as a speechwriter on the National Security Council, and she was a scheduler for First Lady Hillary Clinton. Ryan went on to work for Clinton during her campaign for Senate, and later worked for Biden when he was vice president as assistant for intergovernmental affairs and, from 2013 to 2017, as assistant secretary of state for educational and cultural affairs.
Hillary Clinton was a guest at the Blinken-Ryan wedding in 2002, and Blinken gave a toast thanking the 40 million Americans who voted for Bill Clinton because the election led to the marriage (Blinken and Ryan now have two very young children, which his Obama administration colleague, former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power, noted could make the couple an inspiration to working parents).
Blinken’s half-sister, Leah Pisar, also worked at the State Department and as communications director at the National Security Council during the Clinton administration. Blinken’s uncle, meanwhile, served as U.S. ambassador to Belgium, at the same time that Blinken’s father was ambassador to Hungary. And Blinken’s stepfather was an adviser to President John F. Kennedy as well as French presidents, Politico noted.
Fun Fact: A music-talented businessman
Blinken plays the guitar and he likes to jam. In his younger days, he sometimes played jazz gigs. “Patience” and “Lip Service” might be subliminal hints at the kind of foreign policy Blinken will promote if he is confirmed as secretary of state, and they are also the titles of his band’s two singles released on Spotify. He even had “Follow ABlinken on Spotify” at the end of his Twitter bio before updating it Monday. “Lip Service” is manifestly about an unlucky evening encounter, with lyrics such as “and then I came onto you but you said let’s just be friends/baby, baby lip service tonight.”
Years ago, Blinken used to play football — the European kind — every Sunday in Washington with some of his closest friends in foreign policy, including now Congressman Tom Malinowski, Robert Malley, former Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Philip Gordon, and others. Here’s photographic proof of their (sweaty) exploits, trophies and all.
*Check out Full List of Biden's Cabinet HERE!
 Who is Isabel Guzman – Biden's pick to head Small Business Administration Who is Isabel Guzman, Biden's pick to head Small Business Administration among a number of potential candidates? Let's find out the answer by reading the ... |
 Who is Cathy Russell: Biden's pick for Director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel? Cathy Russell is new appointee for Director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel. President-elect Joe Biden named her and experienced officials to support ... |
 Who is Jeff Zients - Biden's pick for Coronavirus Czar Jeff Zients (Jeffrey Dunston Zients in full) is an American business executive and former government official. Recently he has been chosen for the position White ... |
