Susan Eisenhower

Susan Elaine Eisenhower, born on December 31, 1951, is an American consultant, author, and expert in the fields of international security, space policy, energy, and U.S.-Russian relations. She is the daughter of John Eisenhower and the granddaughter of U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Early Life:

Eisenhower was born into a prominent American family with strong military and political ties. In 1970, following a family tradition, she was presented as a debutante at the International Debutante Ball held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City.

Career:

She is the President of the Eisenhower Group, Inc., an organization providing strategic counsel on political, business, and public affairs projects. Her consulting work includes advising Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 companies involved in the emerging markets of the former Soviet Union, particularly in the energy sector. Eisenhower is the Chairman of Leadership and Public Policy Programs and holds the title of Chairman Emeritus of the Eisenhower Institute, a think tank affiliated with Gettysburg College, based in Washington, D.C., and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. She has served as President of the Eisenhower Institute on two occasions and later as its Chair.

In governmental and policy advisory roles, Eisenhower was appointed in January 2010 by U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu to the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future. This commission was tasked with developing a long-term solution for managing nuclear waste. She has participated in several other Department of Energy studies, including evaluating nonproliferation programs in Russia and assessing nuclear terrorism threats and nuclear energy futures.

Her involvement in science and space policy includes a seat on the NASA Advisory Council from 2001, and participation in the International Space Station Management and Cost Evaluation Task Force, which analyzed issues related to the ISS. She currently serves on boards such as the Nuclear Threat Initiative, co-chaired by Senator Sam Nunn and Ted Turner; the Energy Future Coalition; the US Chamber of Commerce's Institute for 21st Century Energy; and the Air Force Academy’s Eisenhower Center for Space and Defense Studies. Additionally, she is an External Advisory Board Member of the MIT Energy Initiative and has affiliations with the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Johns Hopkins’ Nitze School of Advanced International Studies.

Eisenhower has testified before the Senate Armed Services and Budget Committees on policies regarding Russia and the former Soviet Union and was a longstanding member of the National Academy of Sciences’ Committee on International Security and Arms Control for eight years.

In the business sector, she advises organizations such as Thorium Power, IxReveal, and Foolproof. She is a Senior Director at Stonebridge International, a consulting firm based in Washington, D.C.

Media and Publications:

Eisenhower has appeared frequently on television news programs and documentaries, including CNN International, MSNBC’s The Situation Room, Fox News, and the BBC. She has delivered speeches at institutions such as Harvard University, the Smithsonian Institution, the National Archives, the French National Assembly, the Capitol Rotunda, and the White House. She has received four honorary doctorate degrees and the 2008 Dolibois History Prize from Miami University.

As an author, Eisenhower has written four books: "Breaking Free: A Memoir of Love," "Mrs. Ike: Memories and Reflections on the Life of Mamie Eisenhower," "Partners in Space: US-Russian Cooperation After the Cold War," and "How Ike Led." She co-authored "The Making of a Soviet Scientist" with Roald Sagdeev and edited multiple books on regional security issues, including "Partners in Space" (2004). She has contributed chapters to various volumes and authored numerous articles and op-eds for outlets such as the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and USA Today, and maintains a blog on her personal website.

Political and Personal Life:

Although a lifelong member of the Republican Party, Eisenhower endorsed Barack Obama for president in 2008 and re-endorsed him in 2012. She publicly announced her departure from the Republican Party in August 2008, becoming an Independent, and characterized herself as "an Eisenhower Republican." Her father, John Eisenhower, had also left the party in 2004 to become an Independent and endorsed Democrat John Kerry.

Family:

Eisenhower has been married three times. Her first husband was Alexander H. Bradshaw, a London-based barrister, with whom she has two daughters: Laura Magdalene Eisenhower and Caroline Eisenhower Bradshaw. Her second marriage was to John Mahon, an American lawyer, with whom she had a daughter named Amelia Eisenhower Mahon. Her third marriage was to Roald Sagdeev, a Russian space scientist and former director of the Russian Space Research Institute.

[Note: The "Family tree" section appears in the original but is not elaborated here.]