Steven G. Bradbury facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Steven G. Bradbury
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Official portrait, 2025
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| 14th United States Deputy Secretary of Transportation | |
| Assumed office March 13, 2025 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Polly Trottenberg |
| Acting September 10, 2019 – January 20, 2021 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Jeffrey A. Rosen |
| Succeeded by | Polly Trottenberg |
| United States Secretary of Transportation | |
| Acting January 12, 2021 – January 20, 2021 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Elaine Chao |
| Succeeded by | Lana Hurdle (acting) |
| General Counsel of the United States Department of Transportation | |
| In office November 28, 2017 – January 20, 2021 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Kathryn Thomson |
| Succeeded by | John Putnam (acting) |
| United States Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel | |
| Acting February 1, 2005 – January 20, 2009 |
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| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Daniel Levin (acting) |
| Succeeded by | David J. Barron (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Steven Dean Bradbury
September 12, 1958 Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Hilde Kahn
(m. 1988) |
| Education | |
| Awards | Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service |
Steven Gill Bradbury (born September 12, 1958) is an American lawyer and government official. He currently serves as the 14th Deputy Secretary of Transportation. This important role involves helping to lead the United States Department of Transportation.
Before this, he worked as the General Counsel for the Department of Transportation during the first Trump Administration. He also held a key position in the U.S. Department of Justice. There, he was the Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) from 2005 to 2009.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Steven Bradbury was born on September 12, 1958, in Portland, Oregon. He was the youngest of four children. His father passed away when Steven was very young. His mother worked hard to support the family.
He grew up in the Sunnyside neighborhood of Portland. He attended Washington High School. He was even the student body president in his senior year. Steven was the first person in his family to go to college. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Stanford University in 1980. He studied English there.
After college, he worked in publishing and as a legal assistant. He then went to the University of Michigan Law School. He earned his law degree (J.D.) in 1988. He was a top student and an editor for the Michigan Law Review. In October 1988, he married Hilde Kahn, who was also a law school classmate.
Legal Career
Steven Bradbury started his legal career at a law firm in Washington, D.C. From 1990 to 1993, he worked as a law clerk for important judges. He clerked for Judge James L. Buckley and later for Justice Clarence Thomas at the Supreme Court of the United States.
After his clerkships, Bradbury worked as a lawyer at Kirkland & Ellis. He became a partner there in 1994. He focused on different types of business law cases. These included issues about competition between companies and legal problems related to investments. He was recognized as one of the top young lawyers in Washington.
Role at the Office of Legal Counsel
In 2004, Bradbury joined the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC). This office provides legal advice to the President and other parts of the government. He became the Acting Assistant Attorney General for OLC in 2005. President George W. Bush nominated him to lead the OLC permanently.
However, his nomination faced challenges in the Senate. Some Senators had concerns about legal opinions he wrote. These opinions were about certain interrogation methods used during the War on Terror. Because of these concerns, the Senate did not vote on his nomination. He continued to serve as the acting head of OLC until the end of the Bush Administration in 2009.
During his time at OLC, Bradbury also wrote legal opinions on other topics. One opinion in 2004 supported the individual right to keep and bear arms under the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution. In 2007, he approved an opinion that supported social security benefits for children in same-sex unions. He received several awards for his service at OLC.
Interrogation Memos Controversy
In 2005, Steven Bradbury wrote several legal memos for the CIA. These memos discussed whether certain "enhanced interrogation techniques" were legal. These techniques were used to question high-value detainees. His memos concluded that these methods were lawful if used under specific conditions.
These memos caused a lot of debate. Critics argued that the methods described were a form of torture. They believed the memos tried to get around anti-torture laws. In 2009, the Obama Administration released these memos to the public. Later, a Justice Department report raised concerns about some of his legal analysis in these memos.
Return to Private Law Practice
After leaving the OLC in 2009, Bradbury returned to working as a lawyer. He became a partner at Dechert LLP in Washington, D.C. He continued to work on business law cases.
He also advised Mitt Romney's presidential campaign in 2012. He gave advice on national security law. He also spoke to Congress and wrote articles defending government surveillance programs. While at Dechert, he represented Takata Corporation during negotiations about a recall of their airbags.
U.S. Department of Transportation
In June 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Steven Bradbury to be the General Counsel for the United States Department of Transportation. This role involves being the chief lawyer for the department. Some human rights groups opposed his nomination because of his past legal opinions on interrogation methods.
Despite the opposition, the Senate confirmed his nomination in November 2017. He was sworn into office later that month. In September 2019, he also began serving as the Acting Deputy Secretary of Transportation.
In January 2021, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao resigned. This happened after the January 6 Capitol attack. As the Acting Deputy Secretary, Bradbury became the acting Secretary of Transportation. He held this position until the new administration took office on January 20, 2021.
On March 13, 2025, Steven Bradbury was sworn in as the 14th U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation. This was part of the second Trump administration.
Policy Work
Since December 2022, Bradbury has been a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation. This is a research organization that develops policy ideas. He worked on their "2025 Presidential Transition Project." He helped write the section about the Department of Transportation for their publication Mandate for Leadership. He also taught at their Presidential Administration Academy.
See also
- List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Seat 10)
