Senior Advisor

In some countries, a Senior Advisor is an appointed position by the Head of State to advise on the highest levels of national and government policy. Sometimes a junior position to this is called a National Policy Advisor. In some instances, these advisors form a Council of State or a State Council. Senior Advisor also is a title for senior civil servants in several countries, and is also used in organisations.

Taiwan (Republic of China)

The President of the Republic of China can appoint Senior Advisors to the Office of the President of the Republic of China (中華民國總統府資政) and National Policy Advisors to the Office of the President of the Republic of China (中華民國總統府國策顧問), but they do not form a council.

United States

Senior advisor is a title used within the Executive Branch of the United States Government for various positions. The senior advisors to President Barack Obama have been David Plouffe, David Axelrod, Valerie Jarrett, and Daniel Pfeiffer.

Islamic Republic of Pakistan

Advisor to President of Pakistan is title mostly used for the member of advisory committee to President of Pakistan. Constitution of Pakistan allows President to keep advisors. The president is the ceremonial head of the state, is the civilian commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces with Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee as its principle military adviser. Abdul Qadir Patel was appointed as political advisor to president Asif Zardari after resignation of former adviser Faisal Raza Abidi.

Donald Trump

Donald John Trump, Sr. (born June 14, 1946) is an American businessperson and media personality. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's career, branding efforts, personal life, wealth, and outspoken manner have made him famous throughout the country. Since 2015, he is also a candidate for the Republican nomination for President of the United States in the 2016 election.

Trump is a native of New York City and a son of Fred Trump, who inspired him to enter real estate development. After two years at Fordham University and while studying at Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Trump worked for his father's firm, Elizabeth Trump & Son. Upon graduating in 1968 he joined the company, and in 1971 was given control, renaming the company "The Trump Organization". Since then he has built hotels, golf courses, and other properties, many of which bear his name. He is a major figure in the American business scene and has received prominent media exposure. The NBC reality show The Apprentice bolstered his fame, and his three marriages were extensively reported in tabloids.

Valerie Jarrett

Valerie June Bowman Jarrett (born November 14, 1956) is an American government official who is currently the Senior Advisor to the President of the United States and Assistant to the President for Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs in the Obama administration. She is a Chicago lawyer, businesswoman, and civic leader. Prior to that she served as a co-chair of the Obama–Biden Transition Project.

Personal life

Jarrett was born in Shiraz, Iran, to American parents James E. Bowman and Barbara Taylor Bowman. One of her maternal great-grandfathers, Robert Robinson Taylor, was an architect who is sometimes cited as the first accredited African American architect.

Her father, a pathologist and geneticist, ran a hospital for children in Shiraz in 1956 as part of a program where American physicians and agricultural experts sought to help developing countries' health and farming efforts. When she was five years old, the family moved to London for a year, later moving to Chicago in 1963. Her parents were both African-American; on the television series Finding Your Roots, genealogical research and DNA testing indicated that Jarrett also has French, Scottish, and Native American ancestry. One of her great-grandfathers was Jewish. As a child, Jarrett spoke Persian and French. In 1966, her mother was one of four child advocates that created the Erikson Institute. The Institute was established to provide collective knowledge in child development for teachers and other professionals working with young children.