ARNSF explores presidential decision making

The CGSC Foundation and Alumni Association and its Simons Center hosted an Arter-Rowland National Security Forum luncheon event on May 21, 2026, at the Carriage Club in Kansas City. The event featured a presentation entitled “Presidential Decision Making” by Jason J. Galui, director of the Endicott College Center for Civic Participation.

The CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center Director and ARNSF program leader Col. (Ret.) Todd Schmidt kicked off the Forum welcoming the ARNSF members and their guests. After lunch, he introduced Galui.

(Top photo and above) Jason J. Galui, director of the Endicott Center for Civic Participation, conducts a presentation and discussion about presidential decision making during the Arter-Rowland National Security Forum luncheon event at the Carriage Club in Kansas City on May 21, 2026.

During his presentation Galui discussed the various positions he had held in his Army career in which he was involved in the national security policy process. His duties included service on the National Security Council (NSC) for the Obama administration from September 2014 to January 2017, through the presidential transition to the first Trump administration on the NSC from January-May 2017, and later on the Council of Economic Advisors from August 2019 to July 2020.

Galui provided an overview of the NSC mission and the general process the NSC uses to develop policy to help drive presidential decisions. He also provided an overview of the NSC’s evolution and engagement with administrations going back to the Carter administration, hitting the high points of the various challenges each president faced and how they personally worked with the NSC.

After the presentation and an extensive question and answer period, Schmidt presented Galui with a small gift in appreciation for his time with the Forum. Schmidt also provided information about future ARNSF gatherings.

For more photos see the CGSC Foundation Flickr album

Jason J. Galui leads the Endicott College Center for Civic Participation and serves as the College Fellow for Civics. Originally from Beverly, Massachusetts, Jason returned to his hometown in early 2026 after more than 30 years of service to the country.

Most recently Galui was the director for Veterans and Military Families at the George W. Bush Institute and taught “Presidential Decision Making” at the John G. Tower Center for Public Policy and International Affairs at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.

Throughout a unique military career, Galui led soldiers into combat during the U.S. invasion of Iraq; deployed to Kabul from 2011 to 2012, where he served as a strategic adviser to the commanding general of the NATO Training Mission–Afghanistan; taught economics to two generations of West Point cadets; directly advised the 18th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon; and served in both the Obama and Trump White Houses.

As deputy executive secretary of the National Security Council and chief of staff to the national security adviser, Galui was a key point of continuity during the 2017 presidential transition. His final assignment in the U.S. Army was as senior adviser for national security at the White House Council of Economic Advisers from 2019 to 2020.

Galui earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a master’s degree in economics from the University of Texas at Austin. He and his wife, Samantha, also an Army combat veteran, have been married for more than 22 years and have two children.

The Arter-Rowland National Security Forum (ARNSF) is led by the CGSC Foundation and Alumni Association’s Simons Center and is an exclusive professional information sharing and networking forum for those interested in keeping abreast of relevant information about national security issues.

Members of the Forum and their guests meet periodically at guest speaker events in downtown Kansas City. National and regional guest speakers representing all elements of national power (Diplomatic, Informational, Military and Economic) highlight the meetings. The Forum is nonpartisan, but elected government officials may present from time to time.

The Forum is named after Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Robert Arter, Founding Chairman of the CGSC Foundation, and Mr. Landon Rowland, the Foundation’s first major donor who was well-known in Kansas City for his keen interest in national security issues and his leadership in business and philanthropy.

ARNSF events are only open to ARNSF members and their guests. If you are not a member but are interested in joining, contact the CGSC Foundation.

The Arter-Rowland National Security Forum is sponsored by: