Every year the Matsui Center invites a distinguished former Member of Congress to the Berkeley campus for the Matsui Lectureship (alternating between Republicans and Democrats). During their residency, the Matsui Lecturer meets with students, faculty and researchers, speaks to classes, participates in the intellectual life of the Matsui Center and the Cal campus, and is the featured speaker at a major public event on critical issues of the day.
Past Matsui Lecturers
Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard
Lucille- Roybal-Allard’s extraordinary career of public service spans more than thirty-five years, first as a California Assembly Member (1987-1992), and then as a member of the U.S. Congress (1993-2023), where she distinguished herself as a dedicated advocate for the dignity and well-being of all Americans. Her tenure in Congress is full of firsts: She is the first Mexican-American woman elected to Congress, the first Latina to serve on the Appropriations Committee in the House of Representatives, as well as the first Latina to serve as one of the 12 “Cardinals,” or Chairs, of a House Appropriations Subcommittee. She is also the first woman to chair the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the first woman to chair the California Democratic congressional delegation. From her position on the House Appropriations Committee, the congresswoman spearheaded many federal projects that created jobs and improved the lives of her constituents. She is an original co-author of The Dream Act, which would allow certain U.S.-raised immigrant youth to earn lawful permanent residence and eventual American citizenship, and a strong advocate for fair and just immigration reform which recognizes the critical contributions immigrants make to our nation. As Vice chair of the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations Subcommittee, which oversees federal funding for public education, workforce training, and health care initiatives, she was at the forefront of the fight to improve the quality and affordability of health services and successfully secured funding for local needs including infant and childcare, prenatal health, dental care, HIV testing, substance abuse, diabetes treatment, and telehealth services. Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard is the eldest daughter of the late Congressman Edward R. Roybal and Lucille Beserra Roybal. She is married to Edward T. Allard III and together they have four children and nine grandchildren.
Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen was elected to represent Florida's 27th congressional district in 1989, becoming the first Cuban American elected to Congress. She served as Chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee from 2011 to 2013. A leading Republican moderate, Ros-Lehtinen was ranked the most bipartisan House Republican during the 115th United States Congress, according to The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy's Bipartisan Index. She chose not to seek re-election in 2018 and left office in 2019.
Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin
Stephanie Herseth Sandlin grew up on her family’s farm near Houghton, South Dakota. She attended college in Washington, D.C., earning undergraduate, graduate and law degrees from Georgetown University. During this time, she was a teaching fellow for university students and an instructor on the faculty of the law school. In 2004, she became the first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from South Dakota as well as the youngest woman serving in the House during that time. While in Congress, she specialized in developing policy important to South Dakota, including agriculture, renewable energy, veterans’ education and tribal affairs.
Senator Alan Simpson
Alan K. Simpson served 18 years in the United States Senate, representing the state of Wyoming. Sen. Simpson served 10 years as Assistant Republican Leader in the Senate, and served as Chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee and a member of the Judiciary and Finance Committees. After leaving the Senate, Sen. Simpson served as Co-Chair of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility, often referred to as the Simpson-Bowles Commission; as Co-Chair of the Continuity in Government Commission; and as a member of the Iraq Study Group and the Commission on Presidential Debates.
Congresswoman Jane Harman
Jane Harman is the Director, President and CEO of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. During nine terms in Congress, Harman served on all the major security committees—Armed Services, Intelligence, and Homeland Security. She has long been recognized as a national expert at the nexus of security and public policy issues, and has received numerous awards for distinguished service.
Co-sponsored by the Robert T. Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service, the Institute of Governmental Studies and the Institute of International Studies and the Blum Center for Developing Economies.
Congressman George Miller
Miller, a Democrat, served in the House of Representatives for 40 years, from 1975 until 2015, representing portions of California’s Solano and Contra Costa counties, which included his hometown of Richmond. During his tenure, Miller worked with seven sitting U.S. Presidents and became the fifth most senior member of the House of Representatives. In addition to labor issues, Miller was a force behind key education, environmental, and health care legislation. While in Congress, he served as Chairman on the House Committee on Natural Resources and established and chaired the Select Committee on Children, Youth and Families.
Congressman Howard Berman
Howard Berman was as a member of the California State Assembly from 1973 to 1983. In 1974, he became the youngest Majority Leader in the Assmebly’s history. Berman was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1983, where he served until 2013. While in Congress, he served as the Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, as well as a member on both the Committee on the Judiciary and the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet.
Congresswoman Ellen O'Kane Tauscher
The Honorable Ellen O'Kane Tauscher is a former Democratic Member of the United States House of Representatives, representing California's 10th Congressional district (Walnut Creek, CA) first elected in 1996 until her resignation in her seventh term on June, 26, 2009. Nominated by President Barack Obama in March 2009 and confirmed by the United State Senate as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs on June 25, 2009, she served in this role until February 6, 2012. Tauscher served as Special Envoy for Strategic Stability and Missile Defense at the State Department from February 7, 2012 until August 31, 2012.
Congressman Douglas Bereuter
Douglas Bereuter represented eastern Nebraska from 1979-2004. A Republican, Bereuter served as a member of the House International Relations Committee, where he was vice chairman for six years. A member of the House Select Committee on Hunger for its entire period of existence, Bereuter is well-known for his for global hunger and agriculture initiatives. He started the USAID Farmers-to-Farmers program, which provides voluntary technical assistance to farmers, farm groups, and agribusinesses in developing and transitional countries to promote sustainable improvements in food security and agricultural processing, production, and marketing.