Andrew Cochran, Founder & Editor Emeritus, is a business consulting and government affairs specialist in Washington, DC. Mr. Cochran advises clients and lobbies Congress and the Executive Branch on proposed legislation affecting plaintiffs' and victims' rights. Clients include the American Association for Justice, headquartered in Washington, DC, and the Motley Rice law firm of Mt. Pleasant, SC. On behalf of terrorism victims represented by the Motley Rice firm, he persuaded Congressional committees to initiate investigations into selected terrorist financing methods and networks; secured legislation releasing information on outdated airline and airport security procedures and equipment; and secured changes to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure which assisted the parties in lawsuits related to the September 11 terrorist attacks. Mr. Cochran founded the Counterterrorism Blog in January 2005; he designed the website, recruited the Contributing Experts, and co-edited the website with Douglas Farah until April 2009. Mr. Cochran has appeared in numerous media outlets, including CBS News, MSNBC, the Fox News Channel, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, BBC Radio, Congressional Quarterly, and Roll Call to discuss terrorism issues and events.

From early 2001 through 2003, Mr. Cochran was senior oversight counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Financial Services, chaired by Rep. Michael Oxley (R-OH). He conducted oversight activities covering the Committee’s jurisdiction over federal regulation of banking, securities, insurance, and housing, with his investigations ranging from major identity theft and housing fraud cases to federal money laundering and anti-terrorist financing issues. He also led investigations into the corporate accounting scandals, including the first Congressional hearings on Enron, Global Crossing, and WorldCom.

Prior to his service on the committee, Mr. Cochran served for 11 years at the Commerce Department’s Office of Inspector General and served for almost five years during the Reagan Administration as a Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Commerce and to the Under Secretary for Expert Administration. Mr. Cochran also was a CPA in Ohio with a nationally known firm in the early 1980s, prior to his government service, and he briefly practiced law with a firm in Washington, DC. He earned a B.S. in Accounting (cum laude) from Miami University (Ohio) and a J.D. and M.B.A. (magna cum laude) from the University of Notre Dame.

You can write to Mr. Cochran at acochran@gmail.com