John Hamre was elected president and CEO of CSIS in January 2000. Before joining CSIS, he served as the 26th U.S. deputy secretary of defense. Prior to holding that post, he was the under secretary of defense (comptroller) from 1993 to 1997. As comptroller, Dr. Hamre was the principal assistant to the secretary of defense for the preparation, presentation, and execution of the defense budget and management improvement programs. In 2007, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates appointed Dr. Hamre to serve as chairman of the Defense Policy Board, and he served in that capacity for four secretaries of defense.
Before serving in the Department of Defense, Dr. Hamre worked for 10 years as a professional staff member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. During that time, he was primarily responsible for the oversight and evaluation of procurement, research, and development programs, defense budget issues, and relations with the Senate Appropriations Committee. From 1978 to 1984, Dr. Hamre served in the Congressional Budget Office, where he became its deputy assistant director for national security and international affairs. In that position, he oversaw analysis and other support for committees in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Dr. Hamre received his Ph.D., with distinction, in 1978 from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, D.C., where his studies focused on international politics and economics and U.S. foreign policy. In 1972, he received his B.A., with high distinction, from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, emphasizing political science and economics. The following year he studied as a Rockefeller fellow at the Harvard Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
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Global Security Forum 2024: Gathering Strength in a Gathering Storm
Event — April 24, 2024
Global Security Forum 2023: Transatlantic Defense
Event — April 5, 2023
A Conversation with U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan on Defending the Arctic
Event — June 26, 2019
Inside the Five-Sided Box: A Conversation with the Hon. Ash Carter
Event — June 12, 2019
Meeting the China Challenge
Report by James Andrew Lewis, John J. Hamre, Matthew P. Goodman, Scott Kennedy, Scott Miller, John Schaus, Stephanie Segal, Andrew Philip Hunter, and Samm Sacks — January 29, 2018
Preparing Military Leadership for the Future
Event — November 13, 2017
Bringing the Air Force into its Centennial with Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson
Event — October 5, 2017
Assessing Progress and Identifying Future Opportunities in Defense Reform
Congressional Testimony by John J. Hamre — April 4, 2017
What are the main national security challenges facing the Trump administration?
Report by John J. Hamre — December 15, 2016
Implementing Innovation Series: Leading Innovative Organizations
Event — December 8, 2016