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David Halperin

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David Halperin advises clients, including non-profit organizations, on strategy, policy, politics, communications, and legal matters.

From 2004 to 2012, Halperin was Senior Vice President at the Center for American Progress and the founding Director of Campus Progress, the Center's dynamic effort to help young people make their voices heard on key issues and to empower new generations of progressive leaders. Under Halperin's leadership, Campus Progress became one of the nation’s leading youth advocacy and journalism programs. Campus Progress helped achieve federal, state, and local policy victories on issues from college access to civil rights to clean energy; supported 100 student publications and 60 local activism campaigns; drew millions of visitors to CampusProgress.org with investigative reporting and innovative multimedia content; held over 800 speaking events; ran national conferences with speakers including Barack Obama and Bill Clinton; involved leading activists and performing artists; and reached over 800 campuses and communities.

A former speechwriter for both President Bill Clinton and presidential candidate Howard Dean, Halperin has extensive experience researching, writing, speaking, litigating, and organizing on a wide range of issues, including national security policy, higher education, civil rights, technology and media policy, constitutional law, and legal ethics.

Before joining the Center for American Progress in June 2004, Halperin worked as a consultant and attorney, advising groups including Public Citizen, Greenpeace, and Democracy for America (2003-04); senior policy advisor and speechwriter for Howard Dean's presidential campaign (2003-04); founding executive director of the American Constitution Society (2001-03); special assistant to the president for national security affairs and director for speechwriting at the National Security Council in the Clinton White House (1997-2000); fellow of the Harvard Law School Berkman Center for Internet and Society (1997); legal and policy advisor to Ralph Nader (1995-97); solo legal practitioner and legal associate to Professor Laurence Tribe (1991, 1994-97); co-founder of the Internet company Progressive Networks (now RealNetworks) (1993-94); counsel to the Senate Intelligence Committee (1991-93); law clerk to U.S. District Judge Gerhard Gesell (1989-91); research assistant to Robert McNamara (1985-86); and research analyst at the Arms Control Association (1984-86).

Halperin's articles have appeared in the The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, Christian Science Monitor, The New York Times Magazine, The Nation, National Law Journal, The Hill, Foreign Policy, Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics, and other publications. Halperin serves on the board of directors of Public Citizen. He graduated from Yale College and Yale Law School.