Science Advisor to the President
The Science Advisor to the President is an individual charged with providing advisory opinions and analysis on science and technology matters to the President of the United States. The first Science Advisor, Vannevar Bush, chairman of the Office of Scientific Research and Development, served Presidents Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman from 1941 to 1951. President Truman created the President's Science Advisory Committee in 1951, establishing the chairman of this committee as the President's Science Advisor. This committee continued under Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard M. Nixon until 1973. Nixon terminated the committee rather than appointing a replacement for his advisor who had resigned. The US Congress established the Office of Science and Technology Policy in 1976, re-establishing Presidential Science Advisors to the present day.
In July 2018, President Donald Trump nominated meteorologist Kelvin Droegemeier for the position.[1] Droegemeier was confirmed by the Senate on January 2, 2019, the final day of the 115th United States Congress.[2][3] He was sworn in by Vice President Mike Pence on February 11, 2019.[4]
President Joe Biden has elevated the position to Cabinet-level during his administration.[5][6]
History
World War II
The OSTP evolved out of the Office of Scientific Research and Development created in 1941 during World War II by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Vannevar Bush chaired this office through Roosevelt's death in 1945, and continued under Roosevelt's successor Harry S. Truman until 1951.
PSAC
After the war, President Harry S. Truman replaced the OSRD with the Science Advisory Committee in 1951. The office was moved to the White House on November 21, 1957, by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to provide advice and recommendation in response to the Space Race started by the USSR's launch of the first artificial Earth satellite, Sputnik 1.
OSTP
President Richard M. Nixon eliminated the PSAC in 1973, rather than appointing a replacement for his second Science Advisor, Edward E. David Jr., who resigned. The United States Congress established the OSTP in 1976 with a broad mandate to advise the President and others within the Executive Office of the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs. The 1976 Act also authorizes OSTP to lead inter-agency efforts to develop and to implement sound science and technology policies and budgets and to work with the private sector, state and local governments, the science and higher education communities, and other nations toward this end.
Science Advisors
| Name | Agency | President | Term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Vannevar Bush | OSRD | Franklin D. Roosevelt | June 28, 1941 – December 31, 1947 |
| Harry S. Truman | ||||
|
Oliver Buckley | PSAC | April 20, 1951 – June 15, 1952 | |
|
Lee DuBridge | 1952–1956 | ||
| Dwight D. Eisenhower | ||||
|
Isidor Rabi | 1956–1957 | ||
|
James Killian | November 7, 1957 – July 1959 | ||
|
George Kistiakowsky | July 1959 – January 20, 1961 | ||
|
Jerome Wiesner | OST | John F. Kennedy | January 20, 1961 – January 24, 1964 |
| Lyndon B. Johnson | ||||
|
|
Donald Hornig | January 24, 1964 – January 20, 1969 | ||
|
Lee DuBridge | Richard Nixon | January 20, 1969 – August 31, 1970 | |
|
|
Ed David | August 31, 1970 – January 26, 1973 | ||
|
Guyford Stever | OSTP | Gerald Ford | August 9, 1976 – January 20, 1977 |
|
Frank Press | Jimmy Carter | January 20, 1977 – February 1981 | |
|
|
Benjamin Huberman (acting) | Ronald Reagan | February 1981 – August 1981 | |
|
Jay Keyworth | August 1981 – December 1985 | ||
|
|
John McTague (acting) | January 1986 – May 23, 1986 | ||
|
|
Richard Johnson (acting) | May 24, 1986 – October 1, 1986 | ||
|
William Graham | October 2, 1986 – June 1989 | ||
|
|
Thomas Rona (acting) | June 1989 – August 1989 | ||
|
|
William Wells (acting) | George H. W. Bush | August 1989 | |
| Allan Bromley | August 1989 – January 20, 1993 | |||
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|
Jack Gibbons | Bill Clinton | January 20, 1993 – April 3, 1998 | |
|
Kerri-Ann Jones (acting) | April 4, 1998 – August 3, 1998 | ||
|
Neal Lane | August 4, 1998 – October 11, 2001 | ||
|
Rosina Bierbaum (acting) | George W. Bush | January 21, 2001 – September 30, 2001 | |
|
|
Clifford Gabriel (acting) | October 1, 2001 – October 28, 2001 | ||
|
Jack Marburger | October 29, 2001 – January 20, 2009 | ||
|
|
Ted Wackler (acting) | Barack Obama | January 20, 2009 – March 19, 2009 | |
|
John Holdren | March 19, 2009 – January 20, 2017 | ||
|
|
Ted Wackler (acting) | Donald Trump | January 20, 2017 – January 11, 2019 | |
|
Kelvin Droegemeier | January 11, 2019 – January 15, 2021 | ||
|
Eric Lander (nominee) | Joe Biden | 2021 | |
References
- ^ Reardon, Sara; Witze, Alexandra (31 July 2018). "The wait is over: Trump taps meteorologist as White House science adviser". Nature.
- ^ Wingerter, Justin (January 2, 2019). "OU meteorologist Kelvin Droegemeier approved to be Trump's science adviser". NewsOK.com. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
- ^ Morello, Lauren (January 3, 2019). "Donald Trump finally has a White House science adviser". Nature. doi:10.1038/d41586-019-00015-1. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
- ^ Smith, Marcia (February 11, 2019). "Droegemeier officially sworn in as OSTP director". Space Policy. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
- ^ Biden-Harris Transition (15 January 2021). "President-elect Biden Announces Key Members of his White House Science Team". Build Back Better. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- ^ Carl Zimmer (15 January 2021). "Biden to Elevate Science Adviser to His Cabinet". The New York TImes.
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