Robert C. O’Brien Bio
Robert Charles O’Brien Jr. (born June 18, 1966) is an American attorney, government official, and diplomat who served as the twenty-seventh United States National Security Advisor from September 2019 to January 2021 under President Donald Trump. A Republican figure with deep experience in foreign policy and national security, O’Brien previously served as Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs from 2018 to 2019. After leaving government, he founded the consulting firm American Global Strategies in 2021 and has continued to influence U.S. international policy through writing, board service, and advisory roles.
Earlier in his career, O’Brien practiced law at Arent Fox LLP and co-founded the Los Angeles boutique firm Larson O’Brien LLP. A former major in the United States Army Reserve Judge Advocate General’s Corps, he holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Juris Doctor from the UC Berkeley School of Law.
Early Life and Background
Robert Charles O’Brien Jr. was born on June 18, 1966, in Los Angeles, California. He was raised in Santa Rosa, California, where he attended Cardinal Newman High School. His upbringing in Northern California exposed him to a wide range of civic and cultural influences that would later shape his career in law and government.
In 1987, O’Brien won a Rotary scholarship that allowed him to study at the University of the Free State in South Africa. The experience gave him early international exposure and a fluency in Afrikaans that has remained part of his personal profile. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1989, followed by a Juris Doctor from the UC Berkeley School of Law in 1992.
Raised in a Catholic household, O’Brien converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in his twenties. His academic record and overseas study laid a foundation for a career that blended legal practice, military service, and international affairs.
Path to US Politics
O’Brien’s entry into public service began in the legal sphere. From 1996 to 1998, he served as a legal officer with the United Nations Compensation Commission in Geneva, Switzerland. He also served as a major in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps of the United States Army Reserve, giving him formal military legal training alongside his civilian practice.
In 2005, President George W. Bush nominated O’Brien as the United States alternate representative to the sixtieth session of the United Nations General Assembly. He later co-chaired the U.S. Department of State’s Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan, a program launched in December 2007 to train judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys. In 2008, President Bush announced his intent to appoint O’Brien to the Cultural Property Advisory Committee.
By the early 2010s, O’Brien had become an active voice in Republican foreign policy circles. In October 2011, he was named co-chair of the International Organizations Work Group on Mitt Romney’s advisory team. He later advised Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s 2016 presidential campaign and then the presidential campaign of Senator Ted Cruz, establishing himself as a sought-after national security commentator within the party.
Robert C. O’Brien Career
Early Career (1992–2017)
After law school, O’Brien built a career in private practice. He served as the California managing partner of the law firm Arent Fox LLP for seven years, overseeing a significant expansion of the firm’s West Coast presence. In January 2016, he co-founded the Los Angeles boutique law firm Larson O’Brien LLP with former federal judge Stephen Larson. O’Brien retired from the firm when he was called to serve in the Trump administration.
Alongside his legal work, he remained engaged in policy and advisory roles. He advised Republican presidential campaigns and continued his service with the U.S. Army Reserve. By 2017, his blend of legal, military, and foreign policy credentials had made him a leading candidate for senior administration positions.
Special Presidential Envoy Era (2018–2019)
In 2017, O’Brien was under consideration by President Donald Trump to serve as Secretary of the Navy, earning the endorsement of the Orange County Register editorial board. On May 25, 2018, he was appointed Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, a role he held until October 3, 2019. He was given the rank of ambassador one year into his appointment.
In this role, O’Brien helped secure the release of several Americans held abroad. He assisted in obtaining the freedom of American pastor Andrew Brunson, who had been detained in Turkey for two years, and helped secure the release of American oil worker Danny Burch from Yemen, who later met President Trump in the Oval Office. He also drew international attention by attending the assault trial of American rapper ASAP Rocky in Stockholm, Sweden. In June 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron awarded O’Brien the rank of Chevalier in the Legion of Honour in part for his role in helping rescue two French hostages kidnapped abroad.
National Security Advisor Era (2019–2021)
On September 18, 2019, O’Brien was sworn in as the twenty-seventh United States National Security Advisor, succeeding John Bolton. He was the fourth and final person to hold the position during the first Trump presidency. A few days after taking office, O’Brien named Matthew Pottinger as deputy national security advisor.
Early in his tenure, O’Brien accompanied Vice President Mike Pence to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in efforts to secure a ceasefire between Turkey and Kurdish forces in Syria. He defended the January 2020 drone strike that killed Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Qasem Soleimani, arguing that Soleimani had been planning attacks on U.S. installations.
Under O’Brien, the National Security Council focused heavily on China. He threatened sanctions over Hong Kong’s national security law, criticized China’s territorial actions in the South China Sea, and oversaw expanded U.S. and allied military activity to guarantee freedom of navigation. He also played a central role in brokering the Abraham Accords, the agreements under which the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Oman, and Sudan normalized diplomatic relations with Israel. O’Brien served on the first commercial flight from Israel to the United Arab Emirates on August 31, 2020. He also co-hosted, with Richard Grenell, the September 2020 Kosovo–Serbia talks at the White House, which produced signed agreements between President Aleksandar Vučić and Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, O’Brien advised President Trump to halt travel from Europe in early March 2020 and later compared China’s handling of the outbreak to Chernobyl. He was awarded the National Security Medal by President Trump for his work on the Abraham Accords. In January 2021, China imposed sanctions on O’Brien and 27 other Trump administration officials.
Post-Government and Return to Public Service
In 2021, O’Brien founded the consulting firm American Global Strategies, advising companies on international and U.S. politics. In July 2022, he was elected chairman of the board of directors of the Richard Nixon Foundation, which operates the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum. In 2023, the firm announced a partnership with Skyline Capitol, headed by former Utah Representative Chris Stewart.
O’Brien remained politically active, supporting JD Vance in his successful 2022 Senate bid. In late 2020 and 2021, he was viewed by some commentators as a possible contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, though he later endorsed President Trump on the first day of his 2024 campaign. On March 21, 2023, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen presented him with the Order of Brilliant Star with Special Grand Cordon for his contributions to Taiwan–U.S. relations. On February 11, 2025, President Trump appointed O’Brien to the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board. He also became a board member of the National Endowment for Democracy in 2025.
Notable Events and Milestones
O’Brien is the author of the 2016 book While America Slept: Restoring American Leadership to a World in Crisis, which drew both praise and criticism for its assessment of Obama-era foreign policy. While serving as National Security Advisor, he edited the manuscript Trump on China: Putting America First. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Merit by Kosovo in 2020 for his role in the Kosovo–Serbia talks, the National Security Medal in 2020 for the Abraham Accords, the Chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 2022, and the Order of Brilliant Star with Special Grand Cordon from Taiwan in 2023.
Robert C. O’Brien Career Wins
Robert C. O’Brien’s career is marked by a series of verified diplomatic accomplishments and policy outcomes across two decades of public service.
Diplomatic Achievements
As Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, O’Brien helped secure the release of American pastor Andrew Brunson from Turkey in 2018 and American oil worker Danny Burch from Yemen, the latter of whom later met President Trump in the Oval Office. He also supported efforts to free two French hostages abroad, for which France awarded him the Chevalier in the Legion of Honour in 2022.
National Security Achievements
As National Security Advisor, O’Brien played a central role in brokering the Abraham Accords, the diplomatic agreements that normalized relations between Israel and several Arab and Muslim states. He co-hosted the Kosovo–Serbia talks at the White House in September 2020 and received the National Security Medal in 2020 and the Kosovo Presidential Medal of Merit in 2020 for these efforts. He received Taiwan’s Order of Brilliant Star with Special Grand Cordon in 2023.
Other Honors
O’Brien is the author of While America Slept (2016) and the editor of Trump on China: Putting America First. He chaired the Richard Nixon Foundation from 2022 and was appointed to the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board in 2025. He also serves as chairman of American Global Strategies, the consulting firm he founded in 2021.
Robert C. O’Brien Family
Family Background and Personal Lineage
Robert Charles O’Brien Jr. was raised in a Catholic household in Santa Rosa, California, before converting to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in his twenties. His wife, Lo-Mari O’Brien, is of Afrikaner descent, and O’Brien reportedly speaks Afrikaans fluently, a skill he first developed during his 1987 Rotary scholarship at the University of the Free State in South Africa.
Personal Life
O’Brien and his wife, Lo-Mari O’Brien, raised three children: Margaret, Robert, and Lauren. The couple’s son Robert died in an accidental drowning in 2015. O’Brien’s family life has remained largely private, though his family has accompanied him during key diplomatic events, including the historic first commercial flight from Israel to the United Arab Emirates in August 2020.