Dan Senor

Senor was born in Utica, New York, and grew up in Toronto, Ontario, the youngest of four children. His father, Jim, worked for Israel Bonds; his mother, Helen, was from Košice, now in Slovakia, where she and her mother hid from the Nazis during the Holocaust.{{cite news|title=Campbell Brown and Dan Senor|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/09/fashion/weddings/09vows.html|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 17, 2013|date=April 9, 2006}} Helen Senor's father was murdered at the Auschwitz concentration camp. After the war, Helen and her mother fled to Paris, then via New York to Montreal. Senor said that his mother's post-Holocaust trauma "was very heavy for us growing up".{{cite web|last=Hoffman|first=Allison|title=Romney's Jewish Connector How Dan Senor became the GOP candidate's key emissary to Israel's intelligentsia and the Washington policy scene|url=http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/107589/romneys-jewish-connector?all=1|work=Tablet|access-date=October 16, 2013|date=July 27, 2012}} Senor graduated from Forest Hill Collegiate Institute and then studied at the University of Western Ontario before moving onto Hebrew University and Harvard Business School.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/us-politics/with-roots-in-canada-a-key-advisor-helps-romney-push-for-the-presidency/article4450946/|title = With roots in Canada, a key advisor helps Romney push for the presidency}}

Senor spent much of the 1990s working as a staffer on Spencer Abraham's (R-MI) 1994 Senate campaign and then in his Capitol Hill office. He later worked for Senator Connie Mack III (R-FL) and at AIPAC. During that time, he caught the attention of Weekly Standard editor William Kristol, who introduced him to the neoconservative group affiliated with George W. Bush.

From 2001 to 2003, he was an investment banker at the Carlyle Group.{{cite news|title=The Washington Monthly's Who's: Who Special Baghdad Edition|url=http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2003/0312.whoswho.html|work=The Washington Monthly|access-date=October 17, 2013|last1=Marshall|first1=Joshua Micah|last2=Rozen|first2=Laura|last3=Soloway|first3=Colin|date=December 2003|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140220104657/http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2003/0312.whoswho.html|archive-date=February 20, 2014}}

In the lead-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and during the fighting, Senor was a Pentagon and White House adviser based in Doha, Qatar, at U.S. Central Command Forward; he was subsequently based in Kuwait, working with General Jay Garner during the final days of the invasion and was in southern Iraq when the Saddam Hussein regime fell.

According to Rajiv Chandrasekaran, the author of Imperial Life in the Emerald City, Senor was known for the zealous spin that put a good face on the disaster unfolding in Baghdad (the Iraq War did not end until December 2011). Some statements he made to the press did not reflect the actual situation in the city.{{cite book|last=Rajiv|first=Chandrasekaranl|title=Imperial Life in the Emerald City|publisher= New York Vintage Books|pages=144–147, 151–153, 229–230}}{{cite news|last=Barrett |first=Wayne |title=Why Is Failed Iraq Neocon Dan Senor Dictating Romney's Foreign Policy? |url=http://washingtonspectator.org/index.php/Spoils-of-War/wayne-barrett.html#.Ul9w6hZsRlI |work=The Washington Spectator |access-date=October 17, 2013 |date=October 15, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017112848/http://washingtonspectator.org/index.php/Spoils-of-War/wayne-barrett.html |archive-date=October 17, 2013 }} Wrote Maureen Dowd, "As the spokesman for Paul Bremer during the Iraq occupation, Mr. Senor helped perpetrate one of the biggest foreign policy bungles in U.S. history. The clueless desert viceroys summarily disbanded the Iraqi Army, forced de-Baathification, stood frozen in denial as thugs looted ministries and museums, deluded themselves about the growing insurgency and misled reporters with their Panglossian scenarios of progress. 'Off the record, Paris is burning,' Mr. Senor told a group of reporters a year into the war. 'On the record, security and stability are returning to Iraq.'"Dowd, Maureen (September 16, 2012) [http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/opinion/perspectives/maureen-dowd-neocons-slither-back-romney-and-ryan-are-taking-their-cues-from-hawks-who-got-it-wrong-the-last-time-653672/#ixzz26l12P0H7 "Neocons slither back: Romney and Ryan are taking their cues from hawks who got it wrong the last time."] Washington Post. (Retrieved 9-17-12).

Senor formally re-located to Baghdad on April 20, 2003. He traveled with General Garner's team in the first American post-war civilian protection unit, becoming one of the first American civilians to enter Baghdad after the fall of the regime. In Iraq, Senor served as Chief Spokesperson for the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), as Senior Advisor to Ambassador L. Paul Bremer, and as adviser to the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance. In the U.S., he was "a regular television fixture in the immediate aftermath of the 2003 Iraq invasion", thus becoming "the face of the Bush Administration's efforts in Iraq".

Senor remained in Iraq until the summer of 2004. His 15 months working for the CPA from Baghdad made him one of the longest-serving American civilians in Iraq at the time. For his service, he was awarded the Department of Defense Distinguished Civilian Service Award, one of the Pentagon's highest civilian honors.

Senor is the co-author, with his brother-in-law, Jerusalem Post columnist Saul Singer, of Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle. The book, published in November 2009, examines the entrepreneurial economy of Israel and the cultural and social environment that supports this economy.{{cite book|last=Senor|first=Dan|title=Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle|year=2009|publisher=Hachette Books}} "It's a book about Israel that's not for Jews," Senor has said. "I didn't want it to be in the Judaica section of the bookstore, or the Israel or the Middle East section." Instead, the book is typically found in the Business section of the bookstore. The book has provoked a wide range of responses, from reviews that hail its research and its portrayal of often-neglected facets of Israeli society, to reviews that claim the book implicitly justifies never-ending conflict in the region. Senor and Singer have been praised for the effectiveness with which they have "translat[ed] Israel's own image of itself for an international audience"; their book's title has entered the language as shorthand descriptive term for Israel. The book inspired the creation of Start-Up Nation Central, a non-profit organization based in Tel-Aviv.{{cite web |title=Start-up Nation teams up with African NGO to help African Farmers |date=2 August 2018 |url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Startup-nation-teams-up-with-African-NGO-to-help-African-Farmers-563973 |publisher=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=16 July 2019}}

Senor was an Adjunct Senior Fellow for Middle East Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.[http://www.cfr.org/bios/14206/daniel_senor.html Daniel Senor biography], Council on Foreign Relations, retrieved March 11, 2010 He hosted two investigative documentaries on Iraq and Iran for Fox News, where he is a contributor. He has written work published by The Wall Street Journal, and has authored pieces for The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Post, and The Weekly Standard. He currently serves on the advisory board for nonprofit America Abroad Media.{{citation needed|reason=uncited material|date=September 2015}}

Senor was a member of the honorary delegation that accompanied President George W. Bush to Jerusalem in May 2008 for the celebration of Israel's 60th anniversary.{{cite news|last=Lake|first=Eli|title=Bush Visit May Boost Olmert|newspaper=New York Sun|date=May 13, 2008}}

In March 2010, national Republican leaders encouraged Senor to run against freshman New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in the 2010 United States Senate election in New York. Senor was reported to be seriously considering a challenge,{{cite news|last=Barbaro|first=Michael|title=Another Republican Is Encouraged to Join the Race for Senate|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/11/nyregion/11senor.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 10, 2010}} but ultimately decided against it. He said in a statement it "wasn't the right time in my family and business life for me to run."{{cite news|last=Royzar|first=Chris|title=Dan Senor Won't Run Against Kirsten Gillibrand|url=http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2010/03/dan_senor_wont_run_against_kir.html|newspaper=New York|date=March 24, 2010}} Instead, he established a new think tank, the Foreign Policy Initiative, along with William Kristol and Robert Kagan.{{cite news|last=Beckerman|first=Gal|title=Senor Decides Against Running for Senate, Citing Family and Business|url=http://forward.com/articles/126843/senor-decides-against-running-for-senate-citing-fa/|work=The Jewish Daily Forward|access-date=October 17, 2013|date=March 24, 2010}}

The Wall Street Journal ran an article in September 2009 in which Senor praised President Obama for having "doubled down his commitment" to the war in Afghanistan. "There should therefore be no stronger advocates for Mr. Obama's Afghanistan strategy than the GOP," he wrote.{{cite web|title=Afghanistan Is Not 'Obama's War{{'-}}|url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970204731804574390631037605374|work=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=October 16, 2013|author=Dan Senor|author2=Peter Wehner |date=September 3, 2009}} In a 2011 Journal op-ed, Senor accused Obama of having "built the most consistently one-sided diplomatic record against Israel of any American president in generations";[https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424053111904353504576568710341742174 Why Obama Is Losing the Jewish Vote], The Wall Street Journal he returned to the same theme in a Journal piece the next year.[https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970203986604577257191372525750 Why Israel Has Doubts About Obama], The Wall Street Journal

In May 2020, Senor started the podcast Call Me Back in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The podcast delves into global affairs, economics, culture, and technology, linking current events to their historical contexts.{{Cite web |last=Malter |first=Pierce |date=June 16, 2024 |title=Dan Senor Broadcasts Truth and Decency on Call Me Back Podcast |url=https://heschelhelios.org/1299/features/dan-senor-broadcasts-truth-and-decency-on-call-me-back-podcast/ |website=Helios}} The podcast is part of the Ark Media podcast network.{{Cite web |date=2024-12-16 |title=Call Me Back Podcast - with Dan Senor — Ark Media |url=https://arkmedia.org/episodes |access-date=2024-12-18 |website=Ark Media {{!}} Call me Back Podcast with Dan Senor |language=en-US}}

In 2012, Senor served as a foreign policy adviser to U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney.{{cite news|last=Acosta|first=Jim|title=Romney would 'respect' Israeli strike against Iran, Campaign Adviser Says|url=http://www.shebacss.com/en/media-center-84926.html|publisher=CNN|date=July 29, 2012}}{{cite news|title=Paul Ryan selection shrouded in secrecy|url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/paul-ryan-selection-shrouded-in-secrecy/|access-date=October 17, 2013|publisher=Fox News|agency=Associated Press|date=August 12, 2012}} "The two of them hit it off immediately," Romney chief of staff Beth Myers said. "I can't think of anyone who Mitt has ever met that he hit it off with so immediately as Dan Senor." Romney's July 2012 trip to Israel was described as the "brainchild" of Ron Dermer, Benjamin Netanyahu's chief strategist, "and, Dan Senor". Senor brought to the campaign a network of close ties to Israel, including his sister Wendy Singer, who runs the Jerusalem office of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Senor stirred controversy when he told journalists that if Israel launched a strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, Romney "would respect" the move.{{cite news|last=Slater|first=Joanna|title=With roots in Canada, a key advisor helps Romney push for the presidency|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/us-election/with-roots-in-canada-a-key-advisor-helps-romney-push-for-the-presidency/article4450946/|work=The Globe and Mail|location=Toronto|access-date=October 16, 2013|date=July 31, 2012}}

Senor praised Romney in an August 2012 op-ed for USA Today as "a longstanding supporter of the Jewish state" who "sees in Israel's heroic story a mirror of the heroism that America's Founding Fathers exhibited when, against all odds, they fought for independence and self-government".{{cite news|last=Senor|first=Dan|title=Opposing view: America is best when it lock arms with allies|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/opinion/story/2012-08-01/Mitt-Romney-Dan-Senor/56667954/1|work=USA Today News|access-date=October 16, 2013|date=August 2, 2012}} Senor said in September 2012 that Obama's failure to overthrow President Assad of Syria made the U.S. look "impotent".{{cite news|last=Robillard|first=Kevin|title=Dan Senor: U.S. 'looks impotent{{'-}}|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0912/81508.html|work=Politico|access-date=October 16, 2013|date=September 21, 2012}}

In August 2012, Politico said that if Romney were elected, Senor "would likely get a top West Wing job, perhaps deputy chief of staff or even national security adviser".{{cite news|last=Allen|first=Mike|title=Who's on the inside track for a Romney Cabinet|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0812/80233.html|work=Politico|access-date=October 17, 2013|author2=Jim Vandehei|date=August 28, 2012}} He gave "intensive coaching" to vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan for the latter's debate with Vice President Joe Biden in October 2012.{{cite news|last=Dowd|first=Maureen|title=An Irish Catholic Wake-Up|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/14/opinion/sunday/dowd-an-irish-catholic-wake-up.html|work=The New York Times|date=13 October 2012 |access-date=October 17, 2013}}

After Romney lost the November election to Obama, Senor's criticism of leading Republicans for being fair-weather friends to the candidate, cheering him as "iconic" before the election and "eviscerating" him afterward, was widely reported.{{cite news|last=Robillard|first=Kevin|title=Senor rips GOP officials on about-face|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/84127.html?hp=r2|work=Politico|access-date=October 16, 2013|date=November 21, 2012}}{{cite web|last1=Wing|first1=Nick|title=Dan Senor, Mitt Romney Adviser, Blasts Republicans For Deserting Candidate After Loss|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/21/dan-senor-mitt-romney-republicans_n_2170293.html|work=The Huffington Post|date=21 November 2012|access-date=26 July 2015}}

• Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle (2009)
• The Genius of Israel: The Surprising Resilience of a Divided Nation in a Turbulent World (2023)

In April 2006, Senor married Campbell Brown, editor in chief of The 74, a nonprofit education news website,{{Cite web|url=https://www.the74million.org/page/about-us|title=About Us|website=The74|access-date=2016-04-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150801185925/https://www.the74million.org/page/about-us|archive-date=2015-08-01|url-status=dead}} who was then weekend anchor of Today on NBCSilverman, Stephen M. (April 2, 2006). [https://web.archive.org/web/20070225083311/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1179281,00.html "NBC's Campbell Brown Gets Married"]. People. and host of Campbell Brown, formerly on CNN. They have two children.Dyball, Rennie (December 18, 2007). [https://web.archive.org/web/20080117055448/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20167012,00.html "CNN Anchor Campbell Brown Has a Baby Boy"]. People.[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/06/campbell-brown-welcomes-b_n_183767.html "Campbell Brown Welcomes Baby Asher Liam Senor"]. The Huffington Post. April 6, 2009. His father-in-law is former Louisiana Insurance Commissioner and Secretary of State James H. "Jim" Brown, a Democrat. His mother remains a resident of Toronto.

{{reflist|2}}

• [https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/government/senor-bio.html Dan Senor's Whitehouse.gov Page]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080209015218/http://www.rosemontsolebury.com/rs/home/investmentTeam_bio.php?id=DanielSenor Dan Senor - Rosemont Solebury Capital Management]
• [http://www.cfr.org/bios/14206/daniel_senor.html Dan Senor's Council on Foreign Relations Page]
• [https://twitter.com/dansenor Dan Senor on Twitter]
• {{C-SPAN|1008561}}

{{Neoconservatism}}

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Category:1971 births

Category:21st-century American Jews

Category:American columnists

Category:American expatriates in Canada

Category:American investment bankers

Category:American people of Slovak-Jewish descent

Category:American political writers

Category:American male non-fiction writers

Category:The Carlyle Group people

Category:Fox News people

Category:Harvard Business School alumni

Category:Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni

Category:Jewish American non-fiction writers

Category:Living people

Category:New York (state) Republicans

Category:Writers from Utica, New York

Category:University of Western Ontario alumni

Category:The Wall Street Journal people

Category:Writers from Toronto

Category:Writers on the Middle East

Category:Activists against antisemitism