Lee Hamilton, the retired longtime Indiana Democratic congressman and former co-chair of the independent 9/11 commission, told staff today that he will step down as president of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, two associates of the think tank tell POLITICO.
Hamilton, 79, has headed the think tank for 12 years, since retiring from Congress. As the former chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Hamilton hired many of the staff now at the center of Barack Obama's foreign policy team – Obama foreign policy advisor and deputy national security advisor Denis McDonough, NSC Latin America hand Dan Restrepo, Mara Rudman, now chief of staff to Middle East peace envoy George Mitchell, NSC Senior Director for the Middle East Dan Shapiro, Obama campaign foreign policy speechwriter turned Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes, among others.
As a midwestern pragmatist and one of Washington's most trusted "wise men" on national security issues, Hamilton has been consulted to provide advice on appointments and intelligence matters to the Obama team, as he has done for many other presidents. In December, Hamilton was named a member of Obama's President's Intelligence Advisory Board.
A source close to Hamilton previously told POLITICO that Hamilton has had a long relationship with Obama, that dates back to Hamilton's former law partner in Chicago introducing him to this "amazing" young Obama years ago, long before Obama had entered national politics.
Just a few days before Obama's inauguration, Secret Service agents swept through the center as Hamilton discreetly convened a dinner meeting for Obama and some of his incoming national security team -- humanitarian expert Samantha Power, incoming White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, Darfur envoy Scot Gration -- with a group of outside foreign policy experts including Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid, Pepsico's Indian CEO Indra Nooyi, and Iran expert Haleh Esfandiari.
"From what I understand, the president-elect wants to be able to have access to different ideas and opinions," the source close to Hamilton said at the time of the Obama-Hamilton-think tank dinner. "What better person than Lee? ... He's very congenial, very decent, he's willing to listen to everybody ... he treats everybody with dignity and respect. ... And that is what Hamilton said he likes about Senator Obama. Obama listens. He goes around the table. Lee has been in numerous meetings with him, and Obama listens to what people have to say. Hamilton has a great deal of respect for him."
It's not clear who will succeed Hamilton as the head of the Woodrow Wilson center, which like other Washington think tanks has been doing some belt-tightening in the down economy. One source thought there would be a formal search. Noting that Hamilton said he'd be "stepping down" and not retiring, some staff speculated that Hamilton would just like to slow down a bit. He's expected to stay on as president for a few more months.