“While the statutory members of the NSC, in some cases, run departments that execute foreign policy, the NSC staff at the White House was intended to coordinate policy rather than run it.”

American attorney and national security adviser

Robert Charles O'Brien Jr. is an American attorney and policy adviser, best known for serving as the 27th United States national security adviser from 2019 to 2021. He was the fourth and final person to hold that post in Donald Trump’s first presidency. O'Brien later became chairman of the consulting firm American Global Strategies. His public profile is rooted in national security and foreign policy work, especially in senior government service and strategic advisory roles.