David Pressman

David Pressman (born 1977) is the United States Ambassador to the United Nations for Special Political Affairs. He was nominated by President Obama, and confirmed by the Senate on September 17, 2014. Ambassador Pressman represents the United States at the United Nations Security Council and in related negotiations.

Raised in a Jewish family, Pressman received his B.A. from Brown University and his J.D. from New York University School of Law in 2004, where he graduated magna cum laude and Order of the Coif. He clerked for the Supreme Court of Rwanda - where he evaluated post-genocide transitional justice initiatives - and at the Southern Poverty Law Center. He then served as a press lead for the Clinton Administration.

Pressman is an American human rights lawyer and former aide to United States Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright. He has advised a number of highly visible individuals on foreign policy and related advocacy strategies. In 2008 Los Angeles Times referred to him as George Clooney's "consigliere." With George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, and Jerry Weintraub, Pressman co-founded Not On Our Watch Project, a leading advocacy and grant-making organization focused on raising awareness about mass-atrocities.

Pressman served as the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security responsible for policy development on global criminal justice issues at DHS. He also served as the Director for War Crimes and Atrocities on the National Security Council at the White House, where he coordinated the Government's efforts to prevent and respond to mass atrocities, genocide, and war crimes. Pressman was a member of President Obama's Atrocities Prevention Board.