Past Luncheons
These events have created our global reputation as a great venue where news is made. The Luncheon speaker series allows a guest such as a head of state, politician, cabinet secretary, business leader, musician, actor, sports star or other interesting person to give a significant speech of good duration and then take questions from the press. The questions are written on cards and passed up to the President of the Press Club, who decides which ones will be asked and in what order. The entire program is one hour. All these Luncheons are covered by C-Span and aired several times. Some are aired live by C-Span or some of the other news organizations that cover these events regularly including CNN, MSNBC, Fox, CNBC, Bloomberg and many others. The NPC shoots video of each luncheon which is webcast live on our homepage and available in our archives. We also shoot and post still photos, record digital audio that our members turn into a radio program and create transcripts of the remarks. We write brief articles for our online newsletter The Wire. The Club invites a dozen or so journalists to sit at the head table, have lunch with the guest and ask questions. Some of the head table journalists write stories for their own outlets including: AP, Reuters, Bloomberg, USA Today, Washington Post and others.
There are about 75 luncheons a year. Most of these Luncheons take place in the NPC Ballroom which seats about 300 or so guests. The public can buy tickets to most NPC luncheons. Sometimes the Speakers Committee (link here), which arranges the luncheons decides to hold their event as a breakfast or a news conference with no meal to accommodate the schedule of a guest-- but this is rare. If you have never attended an NPC luncheon, but have seen them on C-Span please join us and bring a friend for an unforgettable experience. The lunch normally begins at 12:30; the speech begins at 1 p.m.; the Q & A ends at 2pm. Tickets are $35. Club members and their guests pay a reduced rate.
Events are sorted in reverse chronological order. Transcripts or tapes for luncheon speakers are available
from the National Press Club Archives.
Phone: 202-662-7598
E-Mail: [email protected]
Transcripts and streaming video of luncheon speakers are located on the speaker audio & transcript page(s).
More details about an event can be found under the appropriate date in the Master Calendar
Please note: this list is no longer being updated. The latest/most complete listing of past NPC Headliners can be found here.
April 2018
Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
April 12, 2018
March 2018
Olympic Swimmer Katie Ledecky
March 26, 2018
Senator Jeff Flake
March 15, 2018
December 2017
U.S. Secretary Of Agriculture Sonny Perdue
December 12, 2017
November 2017
World Bank President Dr. Jim Yong Kim
November 20, 2017
Chairperson Of The African Union Commission H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat
November 15, 2017
U.S. Secretary Of Veterans Affairs Dr. David Shulkin
November 6, 2017
FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb
November 3, 2017
September 2017
NEA President Lily Eskelsen García
September 8, 2017
August 2017
NAACP President Derrick Johnson
August 29, 2017
July 2017
Army Chief of Staff General Mark A. Milley
July 27, 2017
Freedom Caucus Chair Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC-11)
July 24, 2017
Amtrak CEO Charles W. "Wick" Moorman IV
July 12, 2017
June 2017
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel
June 20, 2017
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph F. Dunford
June 19, 2017
April 2017
IRS Commissioner John Koskinen
April 5, 2017
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka
April 4, 2017
March 2017
Pfizer CEO Ian Read
March 23, 2017
January 2017
Health & Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell
January 9, 2017
December 2016
MGM Resorts Chairman & CEO James Murren
December 2, 2016
November 2016
Paul Wiedefeld, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority General Manager
November 30, 2016
Gina McCarthy, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
November 21, 2016
October 2016
John B. King, Jr., United States Secretary of Education
October 19, 2016
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Basketball Legend, Author
October 17, 2016
Ray Mabus, United States Secretary of the Navy
October 12, 2016
Roberto Azevêdo, Director of The World Trade Organization
October 7, 2016
Tom Vilsack, United States Secretary of Agriculture
October 3, 2016
September 2016
Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT)
September 8, 2016
August 2016
Michael York, Actor & Spokesman for Amyloidosis
August 12, 2016
Jonathan B. Jarvis, Director of The National Park Service
August 1, 2016
July 2016
Michael S. Rogers, Director of The National Security Agency
July 14, 2016
Libertarian Presidential and Vice Presidential nominees Gary Johnson & William Weld
July 7, 2016
June 2016
Christopher Hart, Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board
June 30, 2016
United States Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez
June 22, 2016
Tom Wheeler, Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission
June 20, 2016
Girl Scouts CEO Anna Maria Chávez
June 13, 2016
May 2016
Dr. Tom Frieden, Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
May 26, 2016
April 2016
United States Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker
April 18, 2016
March 2016
John Koskinen
March 24, 2016
Ken Burns & Henry Louis Gates
March 14, 2016
WMATA General Manager Paul Wiedefeld
March 7, 2016
January 2016
Mac Thornberry (R-TX)
January 13, 2016
Admiral John Richardson
January 11, 2016
December 2015
Anastasia Lin, Miss World Canada 2015
December 18, 2015
Alejandro Garcia Padilla, Governor of Puerto Rico
December 16, 2015
Dr. David J. Skorton, U.S. Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
December 8, 2015
HRH Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan
December 4, 2015
Deborah Lee James, U.S. Secretary of The Air Force
December 2, 2015
November 2015
Robert A. McDonald, U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs
November 6, 2015
October 2015
U.S. Women's Soccer star Abby Wambach
October 28, 2015
GOP Presidential Candidate Dr. Ben Carson
October 9, 2015
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake
October 7, 2015
Utah Governor Gary R. Herbert
October 2, 2015
Latvian President Raimonds Vējonis
October 1, 2015
September 2015
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
September 30, 2015
Big Ten Commissioner Bob Bowlsby
September 21, 2015
Sen. Lindsey Graham
September 8, 2015
South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley
September 2, 2015
August 2015
New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu
August 18, 2015
Rev. John Richard Bryant
August 12, 2015
Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Paul Zukunft
August 5, 2015
UNC Chancellor Carol L. Folt
August 4, 2015
July 2015
Washington Capitals Coach Barry Trotz
July 8, 2015
Former Texas Governor Rick Perry
July 2, 2015
May 2015
Garrison Keillor
May 22, 2015
Richard Anderson, Delta Air Lines chief executive; W. Douglas Parker, chairman and chief executive of American Airlines Group; and Jeff Smisek, chairman, president and chief executive of United Airlines
May 15, 2015
Air Force Academy superintendent Lt. Gen. Michelle D. Johnson
May 8, 2015
"Internet Evangelist" Vint Cerf
May 4, 2015
April 2015
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
April 16, 2015
Author Ayaan Hirsi Ali
April 7, 2015
March 2015
IRS commissioner John Koskinen
March 31, 2015
FDA commissioner Dr. Margaret Hamburg
March 27, 2015
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
March 9, 2015
February 2015
Eric Holder
February 17, 2015
January 2015
Cheryl LaFleur
January 27, 2015
William "Bro" Adams
January 15, 2015
December 2014
Gary Bettman & Ted Leonsis
December 5, 2014
November 2014
Anthony Fauci
November 21, 2014
Allison Macfarlane
November 17, 2014
Robert A. McDonald
November 7, 2014
October 2014
Scott Blackmun
October 21, 2014
Thomas Perez
October 20, 2014
Deborah F. Rutter
October 15, 2014
September 2014
Jim Webb
September 23, 2014
Larry J. Merlo
September 19, 2014
John G. Stumpf
September 17, 2014
Ken Burns
September 15, 2014
Ralph Nader & Grover Norquist
September 4, 2014
August 2014
Jacob Zuma
August 4, 2014
Denis Sassou-Nguesso
August 1, 2014
July 2014
Dr. Tom Frieden
July 22, 2014
Anthony Foxx
July 21, 2014
June 2014
Rep. John Dingell
June 27, 2014
M.Night Shyamalan
June 11, 2014
May 2014
Dr. Ben Carson
May 28, 2014
Donald Trump
May 27, 2014
Sen. Marco Rubio
May 13, 2014
April 2014
Deborah Hersman
April 21, 2014
Lewis Black
April 14, 2014
John Koskinen
April 2, 2014
March 2014
Creigh Deeds
March 31, 2014
Michael L. Lomax
March 25, 2014
February 2014
Buck McKeon
February 24, 2014
Ernest Moniz
February 19, 2014
January 2014
Christine Lagarde
January 15, 2014
Joseph H. Boardman
January 10, 2014
Gen. Frank Grass
January 9, 2014
Gen. Ray Odierno
January 7, 2014
December 2013
Ricky Skaggs
December 19, 2013
Dan Akerson
December 16, 2013
Annise Parker
December 10, 2013
November 2013
Gloria Steinem
November 18, 2013
Walter W. Bettinger II
November 11, 2013
Judd Gregg
November 7, 2013
Goldie Hawn
November 5, 2013
October 2013
Sally Jewell
October 31, 2013
George Takei
October 18, 2013
September 2013
Mitch Landrieu & Michael Nutter
September 26, 2013
Gov. Mary Fallin
September 17, 2013
Dr. Tom Frieden
September 10, 2013
August 2013
Benjamin Jealous
August 29, 2013
Wendy Davis
August 5, 2013
July 2013
Carly Fiorina
July 1, 2013
June 2013
Gary Pruitt
June 19, 2013
Tom Vilsack
June 5, 2013
Sebastián Piñera
June 4, 2013
Gerald Ford Journalism Awards
June 3, 2013
May 2013
Chris Evert
May 7, 2013
April 2013
Patrick R. Donahoe
April 19, 2013
Gil Kerlikowske
April 17, 2013
Ólafur Grímsson
April 15, 2013
Ken Burns
April 12, 2013
John H. Noseworthy, M.D.
April 9, 2013
March 2013
Robert L. Johnson
March 26, 2013
Kathy Calvin
March 20, 2013
Thomas Drake
March 15, 2013
Mariska Hargitay
March 13, 2013
February 2013
Christopher Dodd
February 15, 2013
January 2013
Antonio Villaraigosa
January 14, 2013
December 2012
Leon Panetta
December 18, 2012
James Taylor
December 7, 2012
November 2012
Admiral John Greenert
November 16, 2012
Roger Daltrey & Pete Townshend
November 12, 2012
Rodney Erickson
November 2, 2012
October 2012
Gen. Martin Dempsey
October 10, 2012
Arne Duncan
October 2, 2012
September 2012
James P. Hoffa
September 13, 2012
Tony Perkins
September 12, 2012
Bruce Allen
September 7, 2012
Kathleen Turner
September 6, 2012
August 2012
Gen. James F. Amos
August 28, 2012
Sister Mary Hughes
August 16, 2012
July 2012
Gwen Ifill & Judy Woodruff
July 24, 2012
Dr. Delos Cosgrove
July 20, 2012
Doug Parker
July 18, 2012
June 2012
The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation Journalism Awards with Chris Matthews
June 4, 2012
May 2012
Anna Maria Chávez
May 30, 2012
Billie Jean King
May 12, 2012
Mike Rizzo
May 4, 2012
April 2012
Ken Salazar
April 24, 2012
Alec Baldwin
April 16, 2012
Michael Weiner
April 11, 2012
Douglas Shulman
April 5, 2012
Deepak Chopra
April 4, 2012
March 2012
Patrick Kennedy & Jim Ramstad
March 14, 2012
John Pistole
March 5, 2012
February 2012
Danica Patrick
February 21, 2012
January 2012
Janet Napolitano
January 30, 2012
December 2011
Jim Cantore
December 14, 2011
November 2011
Patrick Donahoe
November 21, 2011
Tom Brokaw
November 3, 2011
October 2011
Herman Cain
October 31, 2011
Harvey Levin
October 24, 2011
Natalie Cole
October 19, 2011
Ray LaHood
October 13, 2011
Ron Paul
October 5, 2011
Ken Burns
October 3, 2011
September 2011
Elon Musk
September 29, 2011
Rudy Giuliani
September 6, 2011
August 2011
Gary Johnson
August 19, 2011
July 2011
Michele Bachmann
July 28, 2011
Gregory B. Jaczko
July 18, 2011
Tim Armstrong & Arianna Huffington
July 15, 2011
Ted Leonsis
July 13, 2011
Charles F. Bolden, Jr.
July 1, 2011
June 2011
Gary Sinise
June 30, 2011
Sheila C. Bair
June 24, 2011
Gerald Ford Journalism Awards
June 14, 2011
Tom Vilsack
June 13, 2011
May 2011
Juan Williams
May 26, 2011
Richard Trumka
May 20, 2011
April 2011
T. Boone Pickens & Ted Turner
April 19, 2011
Douglas Shulman
April 6, 2011
March 2011
Harry Shearer
March 14, 2011
Vivian Schiller
March 7, 2011
February 2011
Ben Bernanke
February 3, 2011
January 2011
Tim Pawlenty
January 13, 2011
Gail J. McGovern
January 12, 2011
December 2010
Muhtar Kent
December 2, 2010
November 2010
Secretary Steven Chu
November 29, 2010
Jeff Bridges
November 10, 2010
October 2010
Ayaan Hirsi Ali
October 25, 2010
Condoleezza Rice
October 15, 2010
Gen. Norton Schwartz
October 12, 2010
Brian T. Moynihan
October 8, 2010
Margaret Hamburg
October 6, 2010
September 2010
Senators Cornyn & Menendez
September 30, 2010
Josette Sheeran
September 29, 2010
David Beckmann
September 13, 2010
Christina Romer
September 1, 2010
August 2010
Mitch Landrieu
August 9, 2010
July 2010
Arne Duncan
July 27, 2010
Don Blankenship
July 22, 2010
Tony Horton
July 16, 2010
Venus Williams
July 7, 2010
June 2010
Rajiv Shah
June 18, 2010
Paul Steiger
June 15, 2010
Ashley Judd
June 9, 2010
Gerald R. Ford Journalism
June 7, 2010
May 2010
Barbara Bush
May 26, 2010
Ted Leonsis
May 21, 2010
Tim Kaine
May 19, 2010
Thomas J. Donohue
May 14, 2010
April 2010
Secretary Ray Mabus
April 30, 2010
Sander Levin
April 19, 2010
Janet Napolitano
April 15, 2010
Dennis Quaid
April 12, 2010
Kathleen Sebelius
April 6, 2010
Douglas Shulman
April 5, 2010
March 2010
Dick Armey
March 15, 2010
Ron Kirk
March 9, 2010
Lisa Jackson
March 8, 2010
Mitt Romney
March 5, 2010
February 2010
Francis S. Collins, M.D.
February 26, 2010
Sec. Tom Vilsack
February 23, 2010
Adm. Thad Allen
February 12, 2010
Secretary Gary Locke
February 4, 2010
January 2010
Richard Trumka
January 11, 2010
December 2009
Karen Mills
December 14, 2009
Gary Knell
December 8, 2009
Joy Zinoman
December 4, 2009
November 2009
HSH Prince Albert II
November 30, 2009
Jim Leach
November 20, 2009
Deborah Hersman
November 16, 2009
Truett Cathy and Dan Cathy
November 13, 2009
October 2009
Capt. Wei Jiafu
October 26, 2009
Chris "Ludacris" Bridges
October 23, 2009
Jorma Ollila
October 15, 2009
Jeff Dunham
October 13, 2009
John Potter
October 8, 2009
Mark Shriver/ Craig Fugate
October 5, 2009
September 2009
Ken Burns
September 28, 2009
Dr. Denis Cortese
September 18, 2009
Governor Jim Douglas
September 17, 2009
August 2009
Nick Jonas
August 24, 2009
July 2009
Senator John Kerry
July 29, 2009
Congressman Barney Frank
July 27, 2009
Congressman John Conyers
July 24, 2009
Gail McGovern
July 21, 2009
Morris Dees
July 10, 2009
Admiral Mike Mullen
July 8, 2009
Wayne Clough
July 1, 2009
June 2009
Robert Herz
June 26, 2009
Stan Kasten
June 25, 2009