Today (May 17, 2012) the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) announced it has selected Richard Fontaine as the Center's next president. He will assume the role immediately. Mr. Fontaine succeeds Dr. John Nagl, who was named as the Minerva Research Fellow at the US Naval Academy in December 2011 and remains a non-resident senior fellow at CNAS.
Before joining CNAS, Fontaine served as foreign policy advisor to Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) from 2004-2008 and then as a foreign policy advisor to the McCain 2008 presidential campaign.
He also worked at the National Security Council (NSC) and at the State Department with former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, who is on CNAS's Board of Directors.
The announcement comes a day after CNAS co-founder Michele Flournoy joined the Board of Directors. Flournoy served as Undersecretary of Defense for Policy from February 2009 to February 2012. Before joining DOD, she had served as CNAS's president.
A complete list of CNAS's Board of Directors can be found here. A list of CNAS donors/supporters can be found here.
CNAS is considered the 22nd best think tank in the US, based on the latest rankings. It is also considered the 35th best global think tank in terms of having the greatest impact on public policy.
Former CNAS President John Nagl received a base salary of $196,837, based on the latest publicly available documents.
CEO Nathaniel Fick received a base salary of $186,748.
Here is an interactive Muckety Map for CNAS, showing the various connections that the think tank has. Click around to explore various relationships.
Finally, here is an article about CNAS becoming a "top farm team" for the Obama Administration.
