Nate Snyder

National Security Leadership

Appointed to the Biden-Harris Administration, Nate most recently served as Chief of Staff for the Office of Partnership & Engagement at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Prior to that he served as a Senior Policy Advisor to the DHS Counterterrorism Coordinator, and Senior Advisor to the Deputy Secretary. In those roles, he developed partnerships with law enforcement, the tech industry, community organizations, and the faith-based community, to address a range of national security challenges such as counterterrorism, targeted violence, border security, transnational organized crime, cybersecurity, human trafficking, and child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Serving the Biden-Harris Administration, Nate transformed the Secretary’s Office of Partnership and Engagement by overseeing its reorganization, the operational establishment of the first DHS Tribal Advisory Council, reestablishment of the Department’s Faith-based Advisory Council, and was able to undo the dysfunction and mistrust that was spread during President Trump’s first Administration.  Prior to that, Nate provided his leadership to re-invigorate the Department’s counterterrorism efforts and to take a hard look at threats such as domestic terrorism.  Through those efforts, Nate was a key contributor to the National Strategy for Countering Domestic Terrorism.

His proudest work during the Biden-Harris Administration was his contributions to Operation Allies Welcome–the evacuation of approximately 100,000 of our Afghan allies.  During this mission, Nate recruited, deployed, and led a nation-wide interagency team of external affairs officers.  This team was the conduit between learning what our Afghan guests' needs were as it pertained, to communication, education, food, health needs, religious care, cultural, and how local and federal support was mobilized to meet those needs.  For his leadership, Nate was awarded the Secretary’s Meritorious Silver Medal.     

Previously, Nate held several senior positions within the Obama-Biden Administration at DHS, where he advised the Department of Justice, FBI, National Counterterrorism Center, and White House National Security Council on counterterrorism and cyber threat issues.  His work included developing strategies to combat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) and leading efforts to prevent violent extremism and targeted violence in the U.S. and abroad.  Early on, Nate represented DHS as a key contributor to the White House’s first Strategic Implementation Plan to Empower Local Partners to Prevent Violent Extremism in the United States, its updating in 2016, and led the  interagency effort to develop and host the Global Counterterrorism Forum’s workshop for Countering Violent Extremism Through Community Oriented Policing.  Through these efforts, Nate specialized in terrorist use of the internet regarding content and cyber tradecraft.  Further, he worked closely with Five Eyes (United Kingdom, Canada,  New Zealand, Australia) and European Union partners to develop information sharing standards and channels regarding terrorist based cyber threats and mitigation efforts.  He was a regular counterterrorism lecturer at the CIA Sherman Kent School for Intelligence Analysis; and gave lectures at the White House, National Counterterrorism Center, National Security Agency, U.S. Department of State, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Institute of Peace, and the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

Private Sector Leadership

During the first Trump Administration, Nate was Executive Vice President at Cambridge Global Advisors, LLC, a national security consulting firm. There, he advised clients on cybersecurity, counterterrorism, intelligence sharing, and law enforcement engagement. He supported the Voting Village’s election security assessment at DEFCON 2019, where current-use voting machines were evaluated for vulnerabilities. Nate also contributed to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center and provides expertise on counterterrorism and foreign influence to clients across government and private sectors.

It was also during this time that Nate regularly contributed to various outlets such as CBS News, CNN, MSNBC Live, Meet The Press Daily, C-SPAN, Hill TV, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Vanity Fair, Daily Beast, Huffington Post, and Yahoo News on national security, cybersecurity, counterterrorism, and law enforcement.  A key focus on these contributions were on the rise of domestic violent extremism.

Democratic Political Beginnings and Trajectory

Like his run for DNC Chair, Nate’s trajectory in his career has been somewhat improbable.  Bit by the campaign “bug” in 2000, Nate’s first race was with the successful election of his home state of Delaware’s first woman Governor, Ruth-Ann Minner.  Since then, Nate has worked on races across the country at all levels including Senator Tim Johnson’s 2002 re-election race that was won by 524 votes, John Kerry’s Presidential 2004 race, Jon Corzine’s 2005 race for NJ Governor, and Barack Obama’s 2008 race where he managed and supported the organizing efforts in MI, IN, OH, PA, WV, IL, and KY.  This led to his entry into the federal government and national security.  In 2016, he developed Emgage’s voter education and protection program for the American Muslim community in the greater Detroit-Metro area.  

In 2020, he was an early supporter of then Senator Harris’s bid for President, and connected the campaign to key leaders in IA, NH, and NV; he also served as an unpaid advisor to organizing efforts in IA.  When Harris withdrew from the early states, Nate deployed to Cedar Rapid, IA to oversee caucus efforts in the region for Vice President Biden.

During the off years, while in the private sector addressing national security challenges, or teaching the national security leaders of tomorrow, Nate found ways to be active in and contribute to Democratic races.  Such is the case with his advising of organizing and voter protection efforts in the 2018 congressional races of Elissa Slotkin (MI-8), Haley Stevens (MI-11), and Angie Craig (MN-2).     

Contributions to the Labor Movement

As the Field Director during a 2001 Mayoral race in Syracuse, NY, Nate worked hand-in-hand with upstate Labor leaders and learned of the importance and effectiveness of the Labor Movement.  From late 2002 to 2003, Nate proudly organized working families for SEIU Local 200United in Syracuse, NY.  There he contributed to organizing drives and led GOTV efforts in New Paltz, Poughkeepsie, and Albany.  Those efforts led to approximately 800 Head Start teachers and Arc Chapter workers successfully having their Union recognized. For the organizing drive in Albany, he successfully negotiated neutrality.  He left Local 200United to join the Kerry Presidential campaign in mid 2003.  However, he returned to the Labor Movement in late 2005 with SEIU International.  From 2005 to 2007, Nate served as the SEIU National Political Coordinator and Committee on Political Education Co-Campaign Director.  During his tenure at SEIU International, Nate developed a campaign focused on building member political power through political contributions and Member Political Organizer (MPO) mobilizations.  In 2006 he led the curriculum development and tri-lingual (English, Spanish, Mandarin) training of approximately 1,800 MPO’s in Baltimore, MD.  This curriculum and training was responsible for raising over $99 million in support of electing President Obama in 2008.

Academic Leadership

Nate is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Chicago, where he teaches a graduate course in threat risk management. He helped redesign the program to include elements on cybersecurity, election security, international relations, environmental security, and national security. 

Personal Background

Nate is a board member of the Obama Latino Appointee Alumni  Association–LATINOS44.  He served as Chairman during much of the first Trump Administration.  During which, he led efforts to build an infrastructure that allowed appointees to quickly mobilize to respond to changes in policy that affected communities such as the changes in asylum and immigration policies, and the 2019 horrific attack on the community in El Paso.  That same year, Nate was recognized as a New America Emerging Latino Leader in National Security.

Nate is a proud Delawarean.  President Biden, spoke at his high school graduation.  He also moonlights as defender who thinks he can play forward on the arguably best Washington, DC co-ed Division 2 recreational soccer team, Mayhem FC. 

He holds a Master’s Degree in National Security and Counterterrorism from the U.S. Naval War College and is a graduate of Syracuse University.