Shelley Greenspan named new White House Liaison to the Jewish community

WASHINGTON – Shelley Greenspan, a policy advisor for Partnerships and Global Engagement at the National Security Council, was named the new White House Jewish liaison, a White House spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday.

She is expected to replace Chanan Weissman, the current liaison, who announced that he will return to the State Department on July 29.

“This Friday, July 29, will mark my last day on the job before I transition back to the Department of State,” Weissman wrote in an email to his mailing list. “I am honored beyond words to have served in this capacity on behalf of an administration I so deeply admire and as a link to a community with whom I so deeply identify.”

Before working at the NSC, Greenspan served as a foreign affairs officer at the US Department of State. She also worked as a senior partnerships manager for the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs, a US government program championing female entrepreneurs.

During the 2016 election, she served on Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and later spearheaded Jewish Women for Joe Biden during the 2020 campaign.

US PRESIDENT Joe Biden delivers remarks on Friday at Augusta Victoria Hospital in Jerusalem, pledging support for the East Jerusalem Hospitals Network. (credit: EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/REUTERS)

Greenspan also covered the Senate Foreign Relations and House Foreign Affairs Committees for three years with AIPAC, and has served on the boards of the Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Women International and the Jewish National Fund.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) said in a statement that Greenspan brings “impeccable Capitol Hill, foreign policy, and private sector experience to this critical position.”

“Even in my own office, I saw early on the tremendous interpersonal and political skills she possesses, which are essential to building and solidifying relationships with the American Jewish community, especially amid rising antisemitism and global tensions,” she said.

ADL praises 'terrific' choice

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League said that Greenspan is “extremely well-qualified and a terrific choice for White House Liaison to the Jewish community.”

“She is a longtime partner with ADL,” he said, and added that “her extensive and strong leadership in the Jewish community, as well as the public and private sectors, makes her a natural fit for this crucial role.”