To kick off its 2026 speaker series, the LeMieux Center for Public Policy at Palm Beach Atlantic University hosted former U.S. Secretaries of State John Kerry and Mike Pompeo. The bipartisan policy discussion, moderated by Gunster Chairman George S. LeMieux, centered around topics like the international conflicts with China, Russia, Latin America, and Iran—the latter ultimately escalating just two days after the discussion. Over 300 gathered to hear the former secretaries' thoughtful and civil discourse on issues facing Florida, the nation, and the globe.
“There are Republicans and Democrats who have extraordinary care for this country, who put themselves in public service and try to do what’s best as God gives them the light to see it," LeMieux said. "We should all be comforted that it's not as bad as it looks on television.”
Pompeo, Kerry Debate Global Threats, Find Common Ground
What John Kerry Warned About Iran Two Days Before the U.S. Attacked
Former Secretaries of State Discuss Global Threats in South Florida
LeMieux serves as the firm's chairman of the board. As a trial lawyer, he has advocated before the U.S. Supreme Court and the Florida Supreme Court, representing leading institutions in finance, telecommunications, healthcare, and real estate. LeMieux served as Florida’s 34th United States Senator in the 111th Congress and founded the LeMieux Center for Public Policy at Palm Beach Atlantic University in 2012. He currently chairs the Florida Council of 100, a group of business leaders focused on the state's biggest policy challenges.
