Leading Authorities

Leading Authorities, Inc. (LAI) is a speakers bureau and marketing firm, based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1990 by President and CEO Mark D. French. LAI represents professional speakers including journalists, authors, former politicians, inspirational speakers, comedians and MusicAL acts. The company also provides event marketing, production and design.

Speakers exclusively represented by LAI include:

Name

Background

Dan Bartlett

Former Counsel to President George W. Bush

Peter Beinart

Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations

Gordon Bethune

Former Chairman and CEO of Continental Airlines

Tony Blankley

EVP for Global Affairs with Edelman

Donna Brazile

Political Commentator

John Breaux

Former Senator of Louisiana

Ron Brownstein

Political Commentator

Nick Burns

Former Under Secretary of State

Leroy Chiao

U.S. Astronaut

Jean Chrétien

Former Prime Minister of Canada

Charles Cook

Political Analyst

Christopher Cox

Former Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

Jim Donald

Former CEO of Starbucks

Ed Gillespie

Former Counsel to President George W. Bush

Carlos Gutierrez

Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce

John Harris

Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of The Politico

Michael Hayden

Former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency

Amy Holmes

Political Commentator

Trent Lott

Former Senate Majority Leader

Terry McAuliffe

Former Chairman of the Democratic National Committee

Peter Morici

Notable Economist

Dana Perino

Former White House Press Secretary

Stuart Rothenberg

Political Analyst

Jamal Simmons

CNN Correspondent

Jeff Skiles

Co-Pilot of US Airways Flight 1549

Margaret Spellings

Former United States Secretary of Education

John E. Sununu

Former Senator from New Hampshire

Chuck Todd

NBC News Political Director

Jim VandeHei

Political Reporter and Co-founder of the The Politico

Amy Walter

Editor-in-chief of The Hotline