Cam Henderson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 33rd Chief of Protocol of the United States | |
| In office August 12, 2019 –January 20, 2021 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Sean Lawler |
| Succeeded by | Rufus Gifford |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Katherine Camille Henderson Chattanooga,Tennessee,U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Education | American University (BA) |
Katherine Camille "Cam" Henderson is an American diplomat who served as Chief of Protocol of the United States from August 12,2019 to January 20,2021.
Henderson was born in Chattanooga,Tennessee,and graduated from American University. At the beginning of her career,she worked for President George W. Bush in the White House Presidential Personnel Office,on Bush's re-election campaign in 2004,and at the Republican National Committee. [1]
From 2010 to 2012,Henderson served as New Jersey first lady Mary Pat Christie's chief of staff and director of protocol. In 2013,she became the executive director of the Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund,which was created by Christie's wife. [1]
Henderson went on to serve as former New Jersey governor Chris Christie's finance director during his presidential campaign in 2016. Christie lost the campaign to Donald Trump,who won the election. After Trump's inauguration,she joined his administration as Special Assistant to the President in the White House Presidential Personnel Office. [1]
Henderson joined the U.S. State Department in mid-2017 as Deputy Chief of Protocol under Sean Lawler. As Deputy Chief of Protocol,Henderson was publicly thanked by Ireland's Ambassador to the United States Daniel Mulhall. [2] Henderson left the U.S. State Department in January 2019. [3]
On August 12,2019,Henderson returned to the U.S. State Department and took office as Chief of Protocol of the United States. [1] As part of her work,Henderson led the Office of Protocol at the U.S. State Department to welcome visiting dignitaries to the United States. She also traveled with the president to facilitate foreign trips.
On March 5,2020,Henderson was nominated to the United States Senate for the rank of Ambassador during her tenure of service as Chief of Protocol. [4] On January 3,2021,her nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI,Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. [5]
On September 15,2020,Henderson organized the signing of the Abraham Accords on the South Lawn of the White House with U.S. President Donald Trump,Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bahrain Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani,Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Foreign Affairs for the United Arab Emirates Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. [6]
In October 2020, The Huffington Post alleged that an unpublished report claimed unnamed employees anonymously expressed concerns to the State Department OIG hotline about alcohol consumption during representational events. Top U.S. State Department Official Ulrich Brechbuhl responded on behalf of the department calling the claims "particularly egregious" and added,"The world would be a better place if organizations like the Huffington Post and the person responsible for leaking internal documents had the character and heart displayed daily by Ms. Henderson." [7]
The United States secretary of state (SecState) is a member of the executive branch of the federal government and the head of the Department of State. The office holder is the second-highest-ranking member of the president's Cabinet,after the vice president,and ranks fourth in the presidential line of succession;first amongst cabinet secretaries.
The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the principal forum used by the president of the United States for consideration of national security,military,and foreign policy matters. Based in the White House,it is part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States,and composed of senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials.
The United States order of precedence is an advisory document maintained by the Ceremonials Division of the Office of the Chief of Protocol of the United States which lists the ceremonial order,or relative preeminence,for domestic and foreign government officials at diplomatic,ceremonial,and social events within the United States and abroad. The list is used to mitigate miscommunication and embarrassment in diplomacy,and offer a distinct and concrete spectrum of preeminence for ceremonies. Often the document is used to advise diplomatic and ceremonial event planners on seating charts and order of introduction. Former presidents,vice presidents,first ladies,second ladies,and secretaries of state and retired Supreme Court justices are also included in the list.
Joseph Edward Schmitz is an American lawyer,former inspector general of the United States Department of Defense and a former executive with Blackwater Worldwide. After working as a watchdog at the Pentagon for three and a half years,Schmitz resigned to return to the private sector. Although allegations questioning his stewardship of the inspector general's office surfaced nine months after his resignation,a high-level review board,the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency,cleared him of wrongdoing in 2006. He was named one of Donald Trump's foreign policy advisors for his 2016 presidential campaign.
Christopher James Christie is an American politician and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party,he was the United States Attorney for New Jersey from 2002 to 2008 and a Morris County commissioner from 1995 to 1997. He was a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 and 2024.
William Stepien is an American political consultant who served as the campaign manager for Donald Trump's 2020 presidential campaign beginning in July of that year. A member of the Republican Party,he was the White House Director of Political Affairs in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2018.
Raymond P. Martinez was a Senior Advisor at the U.S. Department of Transportation and the former Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. From 2010 to 2018,Martinez served as the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission Chair and Chief Administrator in the Cabinet of Governor Chris Christie. He previously served as Deputy Chief of Protocol for the United States Department of State and as Commissioner of the New York Department of Motor Vehicles in the Cabinet of Governor George Pataki.
Richard Allen Grenell is an American political operative,diplomat,TV personality,and public relations consultant who served as Acting Director of National Intelligence in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet in 2020. A member of the Republican Party,Grenell served as the United States Ambassador to Germany from 2018 to 2020 and as the Special Presidential Envoy for Serbia and Kosovo Peace Negotiations from 2019 to 2021.
Philip Seth Goldberg is an American diplomat and government official who has served as United States ambassador to South Korea since 2022. He served previously as ambassador to the Philippines,Bolivia and Colombia and chief of the U.S. mission in UN-administered Kosovo during the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations. He has served in Washington as assistant secretary of state for intelligence and research. In 2022,he was nominated by President Joe Biden to be the U.S. ambassador to South Korea and was confirmed on May 5,2022 by the United States Senate through a voice vote.
John Joseph Sullivan is an American attorney and government official who served as the United States Ambassador to Russia from 2020 to 2022,and who previously served as the 19th United States Deputy Secretary of State from 2017 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party,Sullivan served as Acting United States Secretary of State from April 1,2018,to April 26,2018,following President Donald Trump's dismissal of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on March 13,2018,until Tillerson's official successor,Mike Pompeo,was sworn in. Tillerson did not officially leave office until March 31,2018. Sullivan,however,was delegated all responsibilities of the Secretary of State beginning March 13.
Peter A. Selfridge is a former U.S. public servant who served as the United States Chief of Protocol from 2014 to 2017. In this role,he served as the link between the White House and foreign ambassadors and visiting dignitaries. In addition,his office managed Blair House,the official guesthouse of the President of the United States.
Planning for the presidential transition of Donald Trump,led by then vice president-elect,former governor Mike Pence of Indiana,began before Trump won the United States presidential election on November 8,2016,and became the president-elect. Trump was formally elected by the Electoral College on December 19,2016. The transition was formerly led by Chris Christie until he and a number of his supporters were replaced or demoted on November 11. The results were certified by a joint session of Congress on January 6,2017,and the transition ended when Trump was inaugurated on January 20,2017.
Mary-Kate Fisher is a former political appointee who served as Acting Chief of Protocol of the United States from June 24,2019,to August 12,2019. She previously served as Assistant Chief of Protocol for Visits.
Michael J. Fitzpatrick is an American diplomat who served as the United States ambassador to Ecuador from 2019 to 2024.
Robert Stuart Gilchrist is an American diplomat who has served as the principal deputy assistant secretary of state for democracy,human rights,and labor since September 2023. He served as the United States ambassador to Lithuania from February 2020 to August 2023. He is a career Foreign Service Officer with the rank of minister counselor. He was appointed by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the United States Senate on December 20,2019. Gilchrist was the fifth US ambassador from the LGBT community nominated to serve by the Trump administration.
Sandra Eliane Clark is an American diplomat who served as the United States ambassador to Burkina Faso between 2020-2023.
Dorothy C. Shea is an American career diplomat who had served as the United States Ambassador to Lebanon from 2020 to 2023. On December 7,2022,she received the Distinguished Presidential Rank Award for sustained extraordinary accomplishment. On January 3,2023,President Biden announced his intention to nominate her as Deputy Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations,with the rank and status of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary,and Deputy Representative of the United States of America in the Security Council of the United Nations as well as Representative of the United States of America to the Sessions of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
The presidential transition of Joe Biden began on November 7,2020,and ended on January 20,2021. Unlike previous presidential transitions,which normally take place during the roughly 10-week period between the election in the first week of November and the inauguration on January 20,Biden's presidential transition was shortened somewhat because the General Services Administration under the outgoing Trump administration did not recognize Biden as the "apparent winner" until November 23.
Robert William Forden is an American diplomat who served as the United States' Chargéd'affaires to China from 2020 to 2021. He previously served as the deputy chief of mission to the American Institute in Taiwan and the deputy chief of mission to the Embassy of the United States in Beijing. He is the current nominee to be the next United States Ambassador to Cambodia.
Kathleen Ann Kavalec is an American diplomat who has served as the United States ambassador to Romania since February 2023. She is a former nominee to be the United States ambassador to Albania under President Donald Trump.
