

President and CEO
John P. Walters is president and chief executive officer of Hudson Institute.
John P. Walters is president and chief executive officer of Hudson Institute.
From 2009 through 2020, Mr. Walters served as chief operating officer of Hudson, in which role he oversaw Hudson’s research staff and operations. He was appointed president and CEO in January 2021.
Mr. Walters also directs Hudson Institute Political Studies—an undergraduate summer fellowship program—and Hudson’s Center for Substance Abuse Policy Research. In addition, he was a member of the Independent Review Committee, hosted by Hudson Institute from 2019 to 2022 and established to advise the Attorney General and Congress on the implementation of criminal justice reform under the First Step Act.
From December 2001 to January 2009, Mr. Walters was director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and a cabinet member during the Bush administration. As the nation’s “drug czar,” Mr. Walters guided all aspects of federal drug policy and programs—supporting efforts that drove down teen drug use 25 percent, increased substance abuse treatment and screening in the healthcare system, and dramatically dropped the availability of cocaine and methamphetamine in the US.
From 1996 until 2001, Mr. Walters served as president of the Philanthropy Roundtable, a national association of charitable foundations and individual donors. His prior government service included work at ONDCP, at its founding in 1989 as chief of staff, and later as deputy director of supply reduction. He was assistant to the secretary and chief of staff at the US Department of Education during the Reagan administration. He also served in the Division of Education Programs at the National Endowment for the Humanities from 1982 to 1985.
Mr. Walters has taught political science at Michigan State University’s James Madison College and at Boston College. He holds a BA from Michigan State University and an MA from the University of Toronto.
Join Hudson Institute for a discussion on how the United States and its allies can continue their vital support for Ukraine with Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova, Commander of the Georgian Legion Mamuka Mamulashvili, former Commanding General of US Army Europe Ben Hodges, and other experts.
This event will premiere on this page at 12:00 p.m. EST, Monday, January 31. Register for the event here.
Please be advised: This event will premiere on this page at 12:00 p.m. EST, Monday, December 13. Register for the event here.
Please be advised: This event will premiere on this page at 10:00 a.m. EDT, Friday, November 19. Register for the event here.
Please be advised: This event will premiere on this page at 12:00 p.m. EDT, Tuesday, November 9. Register for the event here.
Please be advised: This event will premiere on this page at 12:00 p.m. EDT, Monday, October 4. Register for the event here.
Please be advised: This event will premiere on this page at 9:45 a.m. EDT, Monday, September 20. Register for the event here.
Please be advised: This event will premiere on this page at 12:00 p.m. EDT, Thursday, September 16. Register for the event here.
Please join Hudson Institute President and CEO John Walters and India’s Ambassador to the U.S. Taranjit Singh Sandhu for a discussion on U.S.-India
Please be advised: This event will premiere on this page at 9:00 a.m. EDT, Wednesday, May 26. Register for the event here or via the register button.
Experts discuss Xinjiang
DHS Acting Secretary Elaine Duke, Jim McDonnell and John Walters on terrorism, WMD, and the direction of DHS
The Foreign Ministers of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania discuss NATO, the EU, and the U.S.-Baltic relationship
Former president and current Sen. Álvaro Uribe of Colombia and John P. Walters on the Colombian peace process and the latest agreement with the FARC.
Arthur Herman, Jim Campbell, John Walters, and John Hudak discuss an upcoming Hudson report on the broken international postal package system.
Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) speaks on the current trends in criminal justice policy.
Senator Bill Cassidy and Tevi Troy discuss the fate of the ACA in relation to King v. Burwell and alternative plans including the Patient Freedom Act.
On September 12, 2013, Hudson Institute's "Initiative on Future Innovation(Initiative on Future Innovation)":http://dev.hudson.org/policycenters/16-in
On April 8, 2013, Hudson Institute’s "Initiative on Future Innovation(Intiative on Future Innovation)":http://dev.hudson.org/policycenters/16-initia
On September 12, 2013, Hudson Institute’s "Initiative on Future Innovation(Initiative on Future Innovation)":http://dev.hudson.org/policycenters/16-
The January suicide attack on Moscow’s largest airport, leaving 35 dead and over 180 injured, is the latest example of the unrest troubling Russia.