The ACLU of New Jersey today announced the election of its newest board member, David Litt, a bestselling author, political pundit, and career communicator. Litt’s appointment to the board comes at a critical time as Donald Trump begins his second presidential term and brings unprecedented threats to democracy.
“We are thrilled to have David join our board,” said ACLU-NJ Board of Trustees President Marc Beebe. “His experience will be invaluable to our organization, especially as our nation grapples with renewed attacks on fundamental freedoms.”
Litt is a New York Times bestselling author and a semi-finalist for the James Thurber Prize for American Humor. A former senior speechwriter for President Barack Obama, David was described as "the comic muse for the president" for his work on the White House Correspondents' Dinner. Since leaving the White House, he's written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, TIME, and The Guardian, among others, and served as a fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice.
“I am proud to welcome David to our Board of Trustees at a time when we are facing unprecedented threats to civil rights and liberties,” said ACLU-NJ Executive Director Amol Sinha. “As the nation faces another Trump administration, I look forward to working with David to ensure the ACLU-NJ is best positioned to meet the moment and New Jersey leads the nation by example in defending democracy.”
Litt appears frequently on CNN and MSNBC, and he continues to write speeches and jokes for major political figures and leading philanthropists. In addition to his prose writing, speechwriting, and political commentary, David was the head writer and producer for Funny Or Die D.C. from 2016 to 2018 and has toured dozens of cities as a live storyteller with The Moth.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve on the board of the ACLU of New Jersey,” said ACLU-NJ Board of Trustees member David Litt. “For 65 years, the ACLU-NJ has defended liberty and justice guided by the vision of a fair and equitable New Jersey for all – I've long admired that mission and am excited to help make it reality.”
As a member of the ACLU-NJ Board of Trustees, Litt will support the organization’s mission to preserve, advance, and extend the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every New Jerseyan by the state and federal constitutions in courts, in the legislature, and in their communities.