Caitlin Poling

Caitlin Poling serves as National Security Advisor to Senator David Perdue (R-GA). Her portfolio includes foreign relations, defense, cyber security, and international trade issues, for which Ms. Poling drafts all of the senator’s speeches, legislation, and hearing materials for the Armed Services Committee. Last Congress, she managed the Senator’s subcommittee on State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development and staffed the senator for his work on the Foreign Relations Committee. Previously, Ms. Poling served as Director of Government Relations at the Foreign Policy Initiative, a DC-based think tank, where she also wrote on Africa and terrorism policy. Her work has been published in U.S. News and World Report, The Weekly Standard, Huffington Post, and e-International Relations. She also contributed a chapter on Boko Haram to Counterterrorism: Bridging Operations and Theory: A Terrorism Research Center Book. She has also worked on foreign policy and immigration for Congressman Mike Pompeo (R-KS).

Ms. Poling graduated with honors from Georgetown University with a master’s degree in international security studies in 2012. She wrote her master’s thesis on Boko Haram and affiliated terrorist groups in the Sahel. Caitlin graduated summa cum laude from Ashland University in Ohio with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, International Studies, and French (minor: International Business) and was a John M. Ashbrook Scholar. Ms. Poling was featured in Diplomatic Courier’s “Top 99 Under 33 Foreign Policy Leaders” in 2013 and in Red Alert Politics’ “30 Under 30” in 2014. Ms. Poling participated in several foreign policy leadership programs, including Foreign Policy Initiative’s Future Leaders class of 2016-2017; Atlantik-Brüecke Young Leaders 2016; and Partnership for Secure America’s Congressional Partnership Program 2012.

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