The Gallanter-Winograd Policy Center Launch

Jeremy Ben-Ami is the President of J Street, bringing to the role both deep experience in American politics and government and a passionate commitment to the state of Israel. Ben-Ami’s family connection to Israel goes back 140 years to the first aliyah when his great-grandparents were among the first settlers in Petah Tikva. His grandparents were one of the founding families of Tel Aviv, and his father was an activist and leader in the Irgun, working for Israel’s independence and on the rescue of European Jews before and during World War II. His political resume includes serving in the mid-1990s as the Deputy Domestic Policy Advisor in the White House to President Bill Clinton and working on seven Presidential and numerous state and local campaigns including helping to manage a Mayoral campaign in New York City in 2001. For nearly three years in the late 90s, Jeremy lived in Israel, where he started a consulting firm working with Israeli non-profit organizations and politicians. Ben-Ami received a law degree from New York University and is a graduate of the School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University.

Ilan Goldenberg is Senior Vice President and Chief Policy Officer at J Street. He is a seasoned foreign policy and national security expert with two decades of experience advising American leaders on the Middle East, US-Israel relations, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Iran.During the October 7 Hamas attacks and the early months of the war in Gaza, he served as Special Advisor to Vice President Kamala Harris on the Middle East. Subsequently, he became the National Director for Jewish Outreach and Policy Advisor on Harris’s 2024 Presidential campaign.Ilan previously served at the State Department as part of the small negotiating team supporting Secretary of State John Kerry’s initiative to conduct permanent status peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. At the Department of Defense, he was the Iran Team Chief, advising department leaders on all issues pertaining to Iran’s nuclear program and regional behavior.A prolific writer and commentator, Ilan has authored 15 reports on US policy in the Middle East when he served as the Director of the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. His writing has been featured in leading publications, including The Washington Post, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Politico, The Atlantic, and Haaretz. He has also appeared as a commentator on CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, and CBS. He is currently the author of the Dialogue and Dissonance Substack Newsletter.Born in Jerusalem to American parents who made Aliyah after meeting at Jewish summer camp, Ilan moved to New Jersey at age eight.

Jennifer Gavito is a national security and strategic communications executive who served over 25 years at the intersection of international and economic policy on the staff of the National Security Council, as a senior advisor to the Department of Defense, and in senior diplomatic positions in Washington and throughout the Middle East and Europe. She is, since 2024, a Senior Advisor with the Cohen Group where she co-leads the firm’s Middle East practice and is concurrently a Non-Resident Senior Fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative. She has extensive experience in crisis management and in developing and executing multi-million dollar budgets and programs. Gavito is a frequent contributor to U.S. and international media. Throughout her career in the U.S. Foreign Service (retiring in 2024 with the rank of Minister‐Counselor), Gavito held a number of senior roles including Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, and as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iraq, Iran, Press and Public Diplomacy. In 2024, was nominated by President Biden to serve as US Ambassador to Libya. Other overseas assignments include senior diplomatic positions in London, Jerusalem, Dubai, and Beirut, as well as US Consul General to Bavaria and Foreign Policy Advisor to the U.S. Africa Command. She also served previously on the staff of the White House’s National Security Council as Director for Syria, Lebanon, and North Africa. Gavito’s current focus lies in leveraging her deep regional knowledge to advise governments, companies and the media on Middle East security, geopolitics, and strategic communications.