Howard Gutman
| Howard Gutman | |
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 Howard Gutman |
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| Born | 8 July 1956 [1] Bronx, New York City, New York, USA |
| Occupation | Ambassador, Actor, Attorney |
Howard Gutman is the United States Ambassador to Belgium. After being nominated as Ambassador by United States President Barack Obama, Gutman was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on July 29, 2009 and sworn in as Ambassador on August 14, 2009.[2]
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[edit] Early life and education
Gutman is the son of Polish immigrant and Holocaust survivor Max Gutman, who worked in New York’s garment district. He attended public elementary schools and then the Bronx High School of Science in New York. Gutman is a summa cum laude graduate of Columbia University (1977) and a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School (1980).
[edit] Career
Gutman clerked for Judge Irving Loeb Goldberg on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (1980–1981). After that, he joined the law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore. He left the firm to clerk for Justice Potter Stewart on the United States Supreme Court.
After clerking, in 1982, Gutman joined the Washington D.C. law firm of Williams & Connolly LLP. He left the firm in 1985 to become Special Assistant to F.B.I. Director William H. Webster, focusing on counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism.[3] Gutman rejoined Williams & Connolly in 1986, and in 1988, Gutman became a partner at the firm, where he focused on commercial litigation, including securities, contracts, antitrust, labor, banking, real estate, intellectual property, insurance coverage, international law, and partnership disputes.
Gutman represented a wide variety of clients during his 25-year career, including acting Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger and many states’ attorney generals in suits against Microsoft Corporation. Gutman also once represented Susan Rosenberg, a former member of the Weather Underground accused, but never indicted or convicted, in the 1981 Brinks robbery in post-conviction, constitutional litigation. Gutman also provided representation to Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, a former Bolivian president, and José Carlos Sánchez Berzain, a defense minister, who were sued in American courts by Bolivians following an attempted coup in Bolivia. The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently dismissed the case against Sánchez de Lozada and Sánchez Berzain.[4]
[edit] Ambassadorship to Belgium
Gutman has been dubbed by one Belgian newspaper as “the most popular ambassador ever in Belgium.”[5] The Belgian municipality of Buggenhout erected a monument marking the Ambassador’s visit to the municipality. U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt) placed Gutman’s speech on Memorial Day at Flanders Field into the Congressional Record.[6] Among his nearly 100 television appearances in Belgium, Gutman was chosen to present the final award at the Belgian Music Industry Awards. On September 7, 2011, Le Soir, a leading Belgian newspaper, ran a major profile entitled: “The Ambassador Who Makes Us Love America Again.”[7]
[edit] Antisemitism Speech
Speaking at a legal conference on antisemitism organized by the European Jewish Union on 30 November 2011, Gutman talked about historic antisemitism, as well as a trend he described as "a tension and perhaps hatred largely born of and reflecting the tension...in the Middle East over the continuing Israeli-Palestinian problem". He added that "an Israeli-Palestinian peace treaty will significantly diminish Muslim anti-Semitism."[8] The comments were inaccurately quoted by a number of news outlets based on an initial account from newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, after which Gutman received high-profile criticism from a number of rival politicians, including Republican presidential candidates Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney and Rick Perry.[9] Gutman issued a statement saying "I deeply regret if my comments were taken the wrong way", highlighting his history of condemning and combating anti-semitism, and making reference to his background as the son of a Holocaust survivor.[10]
[edit] Relationship to the Democratic Party and Obama administration
Gutman has long been active in Democratic politics, working on policy issues, speech writing, constituency work, legal representation, and media. He also has helped raise money for Democratic presidential, gubernatorial, and congressional candidates, including Al Gore’s presidential campaign in 2000. Gutman served on the legal team representing Gore in the Supreme Court case Bush v. Gore.
According to OpenSecrets.org, in 2008, Gutman was part of the Obama National Finance Committee and later a trustee on the Presidential Inauguration Committee. Gutman and his wife, Michelle Loewinger, have contributed at least $86,150 to Democratic candidates, parties and committees since 1989. Gutman contributed the legal maximum of $2300 to Bill Clinton’s presidential bid. Both he and his wife contributed the legal maximum of $4600 a piece to Obama’s presidential run. Gutman bundled at least half a million for Obama’s campaign committee and another $275,000 for his inauguration.[11]
[edit] Media appearances and popular culture
Among the media work Gutman performed during the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign, Gutman was a frequent contributor to Fox News. On one appearance, in September 2008, on the Laura Ingraham radio show, when asked whether the media was being unduly harsh on Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, because she was a woman, Gutman said, “This has nothing to do with gender, whether Todd Palin was the nominee or Sarah Palin was the nominee. If my daughter had just come home at 17 years old and said, ‘Mom, Dad, I’m pregnant, we have a family problem, ‘I wouldn’t say, ‘You know what we’re going to do? We’re going to take this private family problem...and you know what I’m going to do? I’m going to go on the international stage and broadcast this to the world.…This wasn’t a working mother issue, this was a parent issue.”[12]
Gutman also acted in several episodes of the HBO series K Street, the Tim Robbins’ film Noise and the 2009 film Fame.[2][13]
[edit] References
- ^ Brinkerhoff, Noel. "Ambassador to Belgium: Who is Howard Gutman?". AllGov.com. http://www.allgov.com/ViewNews/Ambassador_to_Belgium__Who_is_Howard_Gutman_908031956. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
- ^ a b "Biography:Howard W. Gutman". U.S. Department of State. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/128684.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
- ^ "Dr. Loewinger Is Bride Of Howard W. Gutman". New York Times. October 4, 1981. http://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/04/style/dr-loewinger-is-bride-of-howard-w-gutman.html. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
- ^ "Eleventh Circuit Dismisses ATS Suit Against Senior Bolivian Officials". InterAmerican Security Watch. September 2, 2011. http://interamericansecuritywatch.com/eleventh-circuit-dismisses-ats-suit-against-senior-bolivian-officials/. Retrieved 2011-10-01.
- ^ Hans Vandeweghe (December 23, 2010). "Belgium is a Strong Brand". Het Nieuwsblad.
- ^ United States Congress (June 7, 2011). "Congressional Record".
- ^ Le Soir Magazine (September 7, 2011).
- ^ Menachem Gantz (3 December 2011). "'Jew-hate stems from conflict'". YnetNews. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4156355,00.html. Retrieved 3 December 2011.
- ^ "Quote on Anti-Semitism Misattributed to U.S. Ambassador Doesn't Ease Criticism". FoxNews.com. December 6, 2011. http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/12/06/quote-on-anti-semitism-misattributed-to-us-ambassador-doesnt-ease-criticism/.
- ^ U.S. Embassy Brussels. "Press Release". Statement by Ambassador Howard Gutman. http://belgium.usembassy.gov/pr-120311.html.
- ^ Michael Beckel (June 18, 2009). "Obama's New Ambassador Nominees Gave Big -- and Bundled Bigger". Open Secrets.
- ^ Noel Brinkerhoff (August 3, 2009). "Ambassador to Belgium: Who is Howard Gutman?". AllGov.com. http://www.allgov.com/ViewNews/Ambassador_to_Belgium__Who_is_Howard_Gutman_90803. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
- ^ "Howard Gutman". IMDB. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1496215/. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Department of State document "Biography:Howard W. Gutman".
