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NEWS RELEASE

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Iowa State University
www.las.iastate.edu

4-2-09

Contacts:
James McCormick, Political Science, (515) 294-8682 (jmmcc@iastate.edu)
Steve Jones, Liberal Arts & Sciences Communications, (515) 294-0461 (jones@iastate.edu)

ISU POLITICAL SCIENCE ALUMNUS NOMINATED BY
PRESIDENT OBAMA FOR POSITION TO COMBAT TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

AMES, Iowa – A 1990 Iowa State University political science graduate has been nominated by President Obama for a key State Department post.

Louis C. de Baca has been tabbed at the State Department as Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. His nomination must yet be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

de Baca is counsel to the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, on detail from the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. On the committee, he works in the areas of national security, intelligence, immigration, civil rights and modern slavery issues. At the Justice Department, de Baca served as chief counsel of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.

In a statement by the White House Office of the Press Secretary, President Obama said, “I’m grateful that this fine public servant has agreed to join my administration, and I am confident that with Secretary Clinton he will be an indispensable part of our team as we work tirelessly to stand up for human rights and the rule of law. I am confident that his unique experiences and proven ability will make him a strong advocate for our values and for justice around the globe.”

During the Clinton Administration, de Baca was the Department of Justice’s Involuntary Servitude and Slavery Coordinator. According to the White House statement, he was instrumental in developing the United States’ victim-centered approach to combating modern slavery. He has investigated and prosecuted human trafficking cases in which victims were held for prostitution and other forms of sexual exploitation, farm labor, domestic service and factory work.

“Lou de Baca was an outstanding ISU political science student almost two decades ago, and he has gone on to a distinguished career in government,” said James McCormick, professor and chair of political science at ISU. “His latest appointment by President Obama only confirms what an outstanding individual and civil servant he is. ISU and political science are extremely proud to count him among our alumni.”

De Baca received the leading honor given by the national trafficking victim service provider community, the Freedom Network’s Paul and Sheila Wellstone Award in 2005.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) issued the following statement in support of de Baca’s nomination:

“Mr. de Baca is an internationally recognized prosecutor with extensive national security and law enforcement expertise who has devoted himself to fighting the exploitation of women and children. Mr. de Baca’s years of experience prosecuting human traffickers clearly demonstrates President Obama’s dedication to the global fight against human trafficking and slavery. I have had the pleasure of working with Mr. de Baca during his service with the staff of the House Judiciary Committee, where he played a key role in ensuring the unanimous passage of last year’s trafficking reauthorization bill in both Houses of Congress. Lou de Baca is the right person to continue America’s fight against human trafficking and slavery, and I strongly support his confirmation.”

de Baca is a 1985 graduate of Ballard High School in Huxley, Iowa, and he also earned a law degree from the University of Michigan in 1992. He went to the Department of Justice immediately after law school.

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