From the Department of Justice:

"He was appointed as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa on June 15, 2004 by President George W. Bush. While U.S. Attorney, he served on the Controlled Substances and Asset Forfeiture Subcommittee of the Attorney General's Advisory Committee and was a member of both the White Collar Crime Subcommittee and the Violent and Organized Crime Subcommittee.

Whitaker ran in the 2014 primary election for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in Iowa. Previously, Whitaker was a managing partner of Des Moines based law firm, Whitaker Hagenow & Gustoff LLP. He was also the Executive Director for FACT, The Foundation for Accountability & Civic Trust, between 2014 and 2017.

Whitaker is a member of the University of Iowa Political Science Department Advisory Board and the National Association of Former United States Attorneys.

Whitaker graduated with a Master of Business Administration, Juris Doctor, and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Iowa. While at Iowa, Whitaker played tight end for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes football team, appearing in Iowa's most recent Rose Bowl game in 1991."