Welcome to the Homepage of
George Charles Bruno
Ambassador of the United States of America, Ret.
George Bruno is a lawyer concentrating on business and immigration law.
Ambassador Bruno is also the Managing Director of USA GROUP INTERNATIONAL, an international consulting firm serving businesses and governments, with offices in Manchester, New Hampshire.
He manages Partners for Peace dealing with democracy strenghening and civil-military emergency preparedness for the Pentagon in cooperation with the University of NH.
He has been an advisor to the War Crimes Tribunal, Sarajevo, HiB, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (Ft Benning, GA), and the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies (Ft McNair) at the National Defense University.
He has a BA from Hartwick College, Oneonta, NY, a JD from George Washington University, and a fellowship from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
During law school, he served as a volunteer aide to Senator Robert F. Kennedy. His first job after law school was as an anti-poverty lawyer with Newark (NJ) Legal Services Project in 1967. His first client was the cab driver whose arrest sparked the Newark riots that turbulent summer. In 1971, he was named Executive Director of NH Legal Assistance, which under his leadership became an aggressive advocate for the poor. In 1977, he was appointed Assistant Director, Executive Office of US Attorneys, Department of Justice where he prosecuted drug and firearm cases. Later, he founded a law publishing company, winning an ABA award for excellence. Beginning in 1980, he managed his own law firm until being named by President Clinton and sworn in by Vice President AL Gore as US Ambassador to Belize in 1994.
In 1971 he worked as a civil rights lawyer in Jackson, MS. At the age of 29, he won a case before the US Supreme Court resulting in a landmark opinion by Justice William O. Douglas protecting Social Security benefits from creditors.
Active in civic affairs, in 1978, Atty. Bruno was appointed by Gov. Hugh Gallen as first Chairman of The NH Appellate Board to hear unemployment compensation appeals and in 1993 as a Mediator for the NH Superior Court. He served as President of the Friends of the Norris Cotton Cancer Center, and the NH Social Welfare Council; and as a founder of the Downtown Manchester Business Council. He has produced a weekly TV show, served as a radio host, and is a co-author of Democracy, Human Rights and Rule of Law, a book published in 2000 in honor of Nani Palkhivala, an Indian jurist noted for his strong stand on human rights. December 2000, he wrote a scholarly article appearing in Military Review, entitled Nuevo Rol para las Fuerzas Armadas de EE.UU.: Fortaleciendo la Democracia y la Proteccion de los Derechos Humanos. He has written a series of op-ed pieces on the India-Pakistan Kashmir dispute that appeared in national media.
He was Chairman of the NH Democratic Party (1983-87), member of the Democratic National Committee (1983-96), NH Co-Chair of the 1988 Al Gore for President campaign, and NH Co-Chair of the 1992 Clinton for President campaign. During the hard-fought 1992 NH Primary, he made numerous appearances with Gov. Clinton and served as one of his leading advocates in NH. In 2000, he coordinated surrogate speakers for Al Gore, worked on national security issues, and participated in the infamous Florida recount. In 2004, he was NH Co-Chair of General Wesley Clark's presidential campaign.
His honors include a Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Hartwick College in 1996, and awards for service to his Town of Merrimack, NH; the NH Democratic Party; NH Legal Assistance; and in 1998 by the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law for courage in the fight for equal rights. He is a Life Member of the India Assn of NH.
He has traveled to over 50 countries in Asia, the Subcontinent, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, the Middle East, Americas and Caribbean as diplomat and lecturer. He has served on election observation missions in Kosovo, Pakistan, and Romania, and in world forums on trade, human rights, democracy, military affairs, and administration of justice. In 1998-9, as a senior member of the US team, he made monthly visits to Panama to facilitate fulfillment of the 1977 Canal Treaty. In 1999-00, he represented the US in Bulgaria, Croatia, and Romania to promote civil protection and cooperation among the Balkan nations. In Spring 2002, he traveled to Indonesia and Korea for the State Dept to discuss democracy, foreign policy and 9.11 before government, student and business audiences.
As US Ambassador to Belize 1994-98, he worked to increase trade, strengthen Belize’s democratic traditions, stem the flow of illegal drugs and aliens, and promote friendly relations. After his tour as ambassador, he served as Senior Advisor in the Army's international office at the Pentagon. There, in addition to his Panama duties, he worked with NATO Allies and Partners for Peace in Eastern Europe to establish cooperation and civil military emergency planning systems and thereby strengthen democracy and stability in the region. Since 2003, under contract with the Pentagon, he has worked with leaders in Macedonia, Belarus, Latvia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Georgia to promote their transition to democracy.
He is the immediate past chair of the NH Bar Association Section on International Law.
8/08
