Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs

Summary

The Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs is the head of the Bureau of Consular Affairs within the United States Department of State. The Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs reports to the Under Secretary of State for Management. From 1953 to 1977, the position was called Administrator of the Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs. The bureau is "responsible for the welfare and protection of U.S. citizens abroad, for the issuance of passports and other documentation to citizens and nationals, and for the protection of U.S. border security and the facilitation of legitimate travel to the United States" as described by the bureau's website.[1]

United States
Assistant Secretary of State
for Consular Affairs
Seal of the United States Department of State
Incumbent
Rena Bitter
since August 12, 2021
Reports toThe Under Secretary of State for Management
NominatorThe President of the United States
Inaugural holderR. W. Scott McLeod
Formation1953
Websitetravel.state.gov

List of the Assistant Secretaries of State for Security and Consular Affairs, 1953—77 edit

Name Assumed office Left office President(s) served under
R. W. Scott McLeod March 3, 1953 March 9, 1957 Dwight D. Eisenhower
Roderic L. O'Connor May 28, 1957 December 29, 1958
John W. Hanes III January 1, 1959 October 4, 1962 Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy
Abba P. Schwartz October 5, 1962 March 6, 1966 John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson
Barbara M. Watson August 12, 1968 December 31, 1974 Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon
Leonard F. Walentynowicz January 2, 1975 March 7, 1977 Gerald Ford

List of the Assistant Secretaries of State for Consular Affairs, 1977–present edit

Name Assumed office Left office President(s) served under
Barbara M. Watson April 13, 1977 August 17, 1980 Jimmy Carter
Diego C. Asencio August 29, 1980 November 21, 1983 Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan
Joan M. Clark December 22, 1983 October 18, 1989 Ronald Reagan
Elizabeth M. Tamposi October 18, 1989 November 10, 1992 George H. W. Bush
Mary A. Ryan May 12, 1993 September 30, 2002 Bill Clinton and George W. Bush
Maura Harty November 20, 2002 February 29, 2008 George W. Bush
Janice L. Jacobs June 10, 2008 April 4, 2014 George W. Bush and Barack Obama
Michele T. Bond April 4, 2014 January 26, 2017 Barack Obama and Donald Trump
David T. Donahue (acting) January 26, 2017 August 11, 2017 Donald Trump
Carl Risch August 11, 2017 December 22, 2020
Mora Namdar (acting) December 22, 2020 January 20, 2021
Ian G. Brownlee (acting) January 20, 2021 August 12, 2021 Joe Biden
Rena Bitter August 12, 2021 Incumbent

References edit

  1. ^ "Bureau of Consular Affairs". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved October 24, 2021.

External links edit

  • Information about the Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs by the State Department Historian
  • Bureau of Consular Affairs Website