Marc Thiessen

Marc Thiessen is a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) where he studies and writes about American presidential leadership and counterterrorism. He also addresses general US foreign and defense policy issues and contributes to the AEIdeas blog. Thiessen's engagement with the realm of policy and governance is further evidenced by his role as a former White House chief speechwriter and his contributions as a Fox News contributor.

A member of the White House senior staff under President George W. Bush, Thiessen served as chief speechwriter to the president and to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. He was the lead writer for two State of the Union addresses during his tenure. Before joining the Bush administration, Thiessen spent more than six years as spokesman and senior policy adviser to Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jesse Helms (R-NC).

Thiessen is a biweekly columnist for The Washington Post, with his columns reaching 6.3 million readers. He frequently appears on "The Story with Martha MacCallum," "America’s Newsroom," and as a regular guest on "The Kelly File." His book on the Central Intelligence Agency’s interrogation program, "Courting Disaster," is a New York Times bestseller. Thiessen co-authored "Unintimidated" with Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and has been recognized as one of the "100 most influential conservatives in America" by The Daily Telegraph. Thiessen has completed postgraduate studies at the Naval War College and holds a B.A. from Vassar College.