REPORT FOR THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS
UNITED STATES SENATE
SUBJECT: Ambassadorial Nomination: Certificate of Demonstrated Competence — Foreign Service Act, Section 304(a)(4)
POST: Association of Southeast Asian Nations
CANDIDATE: John E. Linder
John Linder was a nine-term U.S. Representative from Georgia, serving in Congress from 1993 to 2011. During his time in Congress, Representative Linder served eight years on the Rules Committee and was a member of the Ways and Means Committee serving as the Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Income and Family Security and on the Subcommittee on Oversight as well as the Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures. He also served on the House Committee on Homeland Security where he chaired the Subcommittee to Prevent Nuclear or Biological Attack. He was selected by his colleagues to serve on the Republican Steering Committee for 16 of his 18 years. In addition to his leadership role at the national level, Representative Linder served in the Georgia House of Representatives for 14 years (1975-1981 and 1983-1991). Mr. Linder’s extensive leadership experience at the state and national levels and his broad exposure to a wide range of public policy issues and concerns make him well qualified to serve as the Representative of the United States to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, with the rank and status of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
Earlier, Representative Linder served in the United States Air Force as a dental officer with the rank of Captain from 1967-1969. Following his honorable discharge he opened a private dental practice in Atlanta, Georgia (1969-1982) and also gained experience in the world of small business as the owner of Linder Financial Corporation, Dunwoody, Georgia (1977-1995).
Representative Linder received his B.S. from the University of Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, in 1963 and his D.D.S. from the University of Minnesota Dental School in 1967.