Trusted Advisors – Meet Our Team

David Metzner, Managing Partner

David Metzner has consulted for over 25 years on the federal nature of the American Government and the interplay between the states, Washington, DC, and foreign governments in the development of public policy. This has included national debates among the Republican and Democratic political parties, the regulation of the financial markets, trade policy, anti-trust and foreign policy.

Mr. Metzner was a founder of American Continental Group in 1994. In this capacity, he assisted corporate and non-profit organizations in understanding the development of public policy in both Washington and across the United States.

In 2007, Mr. Metzner assumed the leadership of ACG Analytics, an analytical consultancy firm, which advises asset managers and corporate leaders on how public policy can affect their investment and management decisions. Most recently, ACG Analytics has been a recognized resource for firms researching crypto, anti-trust policy, CFIUS enforcement, Fed policy and the government conservatorship of the GSEs, as well as the EU macro economy. This includes President Biden’s “Green Agenda”, emphasis on new anti-trust enforcement and changes in the Labor policy. Since the firm’s inception, he has supervised the publication of over 9000 pieces of written research and countless custom research assignments for clients. Additionally, he has led the organization of research trips to Athens on Grexit, London on Brexit, Berlin on EU macro and Washington on the Venezuela crisis, the GSEs and Puerto Rico. He is frequently asked to speak on the development and implementation of the Biden Administration’s domestic and foreign policies.

Mr. Metzner began his public policy career as the Director of Legislative Affairs for The Singer Company. He assisted the CEO and other senior executives in developing corporate positions on tax policy, international trade, and national security. During this period, he often spoke to corporate employees about the private sector’s role in policy development at the state, local, and federal levels of government.

In January 2009, Mr. Metzner completed his six-year Presidential appointment as Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. In this role, he focused his efforts on strengthening the Center’s programming on Globalization, China and Latin America. He led the Board’s initiative in creating the Kissinger Institute on China-United States Relations. Congressman Lee Hamilton, the Wilson Center’s President, called this the “Center’s most important initiative in thirty years.” The Chinese Government has enthusiastically endorsed the Institute for its leadership in the two nations’ bi-lateral relations. He is a member of the Economic Club of Washington and the National Committee on US-China Relations. He has been recognized by Crain’s New York Business and Washington Life for his deep understanding of the developmental process of public policy in the United States.

Mr. Metzner earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Boston University, a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and a Juris Doctor from the George Washington University National Law Center. While at Fletcher, he produced a highly regarded thesis on the role of the Vice President in Foreign Policy. At George Washington, he did research on government procurement policy and its impact on the economy. He resides in Washington, DC and New York City.

John East, Director of Research

John East worked in the Senate as committee staff for the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, now Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Richard Shelby (R-AL). He also worked as a liaison to the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee and Senate Appropriations Committee for Sen. Wayne Allard (R-CO) who held both committee assignments. John also worked in the House for Colorado-3 (swing district) Rep. Scott McInnis (R-CO), assisting in his work on the House Natural Resources Committee. John started his life in politics working for Barack Obama when he ran for House and Al Gore on his 2000 Presidential campaign.

John has worked on House, Senate, and Presidential campaigns, and on State House and Senate, gubernatorial and ballot initiative campaigns. John served as legal counsel for Maryland Senate President Mike Miller and for the Maryland House Ways & Means Committee. He has lived in the Mid-Atlantic (Washington, D.C., Maryland, Pennsylvania), New England (Connecticut, Maine), Appalachia (West Virginia), the Midwest (Illinois, Nebraska), the West (Colorado), and the South (Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana). He currently resides in New Orleans.

Education: University of Pennsylvania, University of Chicago; J.D. University of Maryland. Attorney-at-Law.

John is a member of the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy and the American Dialect Society, and is a recipient of the Libertarian Party of Alabama’s Freedom Fighter of the Year Award.

Meilee Wong

Meilee joined ACG in 2009 and has served in a variety of roles, most recently as Managing Director of Special Projects. She brings a particular expertise in managing complex strategic projects and logistics for our clients. Previously, Meilee worked at several different nonprofits in their Federal policy and communications departments. She also served overseas in the Econ/Pol section of the U.S. Consulate Sao Paulo (Brazil) and speaks Portuguese.

Meilee holds a Master’s in Political Management from The George Washington University, and a bachelor’s in Print Journalism from the University of Southern California.

Christopher Czerwinski, Director of International Policy

Christopher Czerwinski joined ACGA in 2016. He provides strategic analysis on a range of policy issues including international trade, financial services, tax, energy and Latin America.

Christopher received an M.A. in International Economics from Johns Hopkins SAIS and a B.A. in Political Science from Clemson University.

Molly McGrady, Research Assistant

Molly holds a B.A. in Politics (Foreign Affairs) and History from the University of Virginia. Prior to joining ACGA, Molly interned for Senator Mark Warner on Capitol Hill. She also interned at The Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, which is directed by Professor Larry Sabato.

Michael Robinson, Counselor (Technology)

Michael W. Robinson draws on three-plus decades as a trusted public policy and communications counselor to global companies, executives, boards of directors, market leaders, and elected officials – and his involvement in the highest-profile business, financial, and public policy issues from Wall Street to the White House to the senior levels of Corporate America.

With experience at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); FINRA; The NASDAQ Stock Market; The White House; Department of Justice; a leading investment bank, Friedman Billings Ramsey (FBR); in-house senior roles at several Fortune 100 companies and global consultancies; and The New York Times, Michael drives strategic analysis and engagement initiatives for a wide breadth of public and private companies, hedge fund and private equity investors, and other market participants.

In addition to leading global organizations through a wide range of crisis situations – from AIG in the 2008-2009 financial crisis to the Deepwater Horizon to numerous Congressional investigations to post-9/11 recovery at the SEC – he created the program that secured CFIUS and Congressional approval for the Borse Dubai–NASDAQ merger and led communications efforts across a range of precedent-setting anti-trust litigation and policy debates.

As the SEC’s Chief Spokesman and Public Affairs & Policy Director Michael drove the Commission’s communications/public affairs activities with respect to the policy enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act as well as high profile enforcement actions, including Enron, Arthur Andersen, and WorldCom, among others.

Michael subsequently led the communications initiatives in the U.S., Europe, and Asia in connection with Freddie Mac’s $6 billion accounting restatement and successfully managed its political impact. As Chief Communications & Government Affairs Officer of Friedman Billings Ramsey Group, Michael led external and internal corporate communications and marketing, as well as investor and government relations – and cemented the firm’s reputation as one of the nation’s top investment banks and capital markets firms.

Michael also directed global communications for The NASDAQ Stock Market and FINRA/NASD. While there, he led the effort to establish NASD Regulation as a credible securities industry regulator and created communications and marketing campaigns that positioned NASDAQ to retain its largest listed companies during a period of enormous regulatory, political, and public focus. Michael was also a key member of the global public affairs team at Mobil Corporation and helped direct the successful communications strategy in support of its $98 billion merger with Exxon.

In 2008, Michael was named Public Affairs Executive of the Year by PR News. At The New York Times in the 1980s, Michael was a member of the Business Section when it was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the October 1987 stock market crash, and he worked with the team that won the Pulitzer for its coverage of the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion.

Michael holds Bachelor of Arts degrees from Syracuse University in Newspaper Journalism (Newhouse School of Communications) and Political Science (Maxwell School).