Clayton Thomas is a Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs at the Congressional Research Service (CRS), where he provides nonpartisan analysis to Members of Congress and their staff on a number of issues related to U.S. foreign policy, including Turkey, Iran, and Afghanistan. Prior to CRS, he served as a Fulbright Fellow in Yalova, Turkey and worked as a staff member in the office of U.S. Senator Kay Hagan and as a Presidential Management Fellow at the Department of Health and Human Services. He received an M.A. in Middle East Studies from George Washington University and a B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.