Richard Jeffrey Danzig is an American lawyer who served as the 71st Secretary of the Navy under President Bill Clinton.
Background
Danzig was born in New York City, attended the Bronx High School of Science, received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Reed College, a Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School, and Bachelor of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar.
Education
Danzig was born in New York City, attended the Bronx High School of Science, received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Reed College, a Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School, and Bachelor of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. Upon his graduation from law school, Danzig served as a law clerk to United States Supreme Court Justice Byron White.
Career
He served as an advisor to President Barack Obama during his presidential campaign and was later the Chairman of the national security think-tank, the Center for a New American Security. Between 1972 and 1977, Danzig taught contract law at Stanford and Harvard Universities. He also was awarded a Prize Fellowship of the Harvard Society of Fellows, and a Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship.
From 1977 to 1981, he served in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), first as a Deputy Assistant Secretary and then as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower, Reserve Affairs and Logistics.
From 1981 to 1993, Danzig was a partner in the Washington, District of Columbia office of the international law firm Latham & Watkins. He served as Deputy Chair of the firm"s International Practice Group, and also as Director of its Japan Group.
He was also a Director of the National Semiconductor Corporation, a Trustee of Reed College, and interim Director of Litigation and then Vice Chairman of the International Human Rights Law Group. During this time, Mr.
Danzig was co-author, with the distinguished policy analyst Peter Szanton, of the book, National Service: What Would lieutenant Mean? A decade before, Szanton had been head of the New York City-Research and Development Institute, a joint venture of the City and the Research and Development Corporation when Danzig came to that office as a law student.
The book which Danzig and Szanton co-authored helped shape America"s current civilian National Service system. Danzig was sworn in as the 71st Secretary of the Navy on November 16, 1998. He served as Under Secretary of the Navy between November 1993 and May 1997.
He is currently Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Center for a New American Security, an independent think tank.
Membership
He is also a member of the Defense Policy Board, a federal advisory committee to the United States Department of Defense.