July 27, 2009

U.S. Ambassador-Designate Timothy J. Roemer Arrives in New Delhi, Friday July 27, 2009

New Delhi - Timothy J. Roemer, U.S. Ambassador-Designate has arrived in India with his family.  He was sworn in at the State Department’s Benjamin Franklin Room on July 23 by Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Bill Burns, surrounded by his family and friends, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and other friends from Congress.  He has assumed charge of the U.S. Mission in India, but remains Ambassador-Designate until he formally presents his credentials to President of India Pratibha Patil.
Testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on July 7, Ambassador-Designate Roemer said, "Our relationship with India is a good news story.  And while our relationship has gone through different stages, we are certainly moving ahead on an upward trajectory.  This is not a zero sum game with winners and losers but a positive sum game-with India as a strong, stable global democracy increasing peace and prosperity for all."
Prior to being nominated as Ambassador to India by U.S. President Barack Obama, Mr. Roemer was President of the Center for National Policy (CNP), a moderate think-tank in Washington, D.C.  He served in the U.S. Congress, representing the 3rd District of Indiana for 12 years, from 1991 to 2003.
Ambassador-Designate Roemer served as a member of the 9/11 Commission, as well as the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction, Proliferation and Terrorism.  He also served on the Washington Institute for Near East Policy's Presidential Task Force on Combating the Ideology of Radical Extremism, and the National Parks Second Century Commission.
As a Distinguished Scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, Ambassador-Designate Roemer worked with Members of Congress and staff to improve public policy outcomes by teaching on the legislative branch and policy analysis.
Ambassador-Designate Roemer holds a B.A. from the University of California, San Diego and a M.A. and PhD. from the University of Notre Dame.