William “Mac” Thornberry, former Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee

Show Notes

Mac Thornberry served as the U.S. Representative for Texas’s 13th Congressional District from 1995 to 2021, with service on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and was Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) from 2015 to 2019. During his time in Congress, Thornberry developed a reputation for problem-solving and for his expertise in national and domestic security policy. He helped establish the Department of Homeland Security, prepared the military for new domains of warfare including space and cyber, and championed reforms to improve innovation and acquisition at the Department of Defense. Thornberry shares his perspectives on strengthening collaboration between DoD and the technology sector and how the Pentagon can work more effectively with startups.

What is Building The Base?

"Building the Base" - an in-depth series of conversations with top entrepreneurs and leaders from tech, financial, industrial, and public sectors.

Our special guests are weighing in on a broad selection of topics such as: shaping our future national security industrial base, leadership in challenging times, experiences related to the intersection of business and national security, and personal anecdotes related to their positions of influence.

Building the base is hosted by our own BENS member Lauren Bedula who is the Managing Director and National Security Technology Practice Lead at Beacon Global Strategies, and BENS Distinguished Fellow, Jim "Hondo" Geurts who retired from performing the duties of the Under Secretary of the Navy and former Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development & Acquisition.