People

CHAMBER MUSIC. Tom Quaadman has been working as vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness since May 1. Quaadman was promoted internally and has been with the Chamber since 2008. Quaadman, who is following the financial services debate closely, was chief of staff to former Rep. Vito Fossella, R-N.Y., and worked for Fossella when he was on the New York City Council.

MERGER ACTIVITY. In March, the entire Democratic boutique lobbying practice of Parven Pomper Strategies moved to the larger law and lobby office Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld. Brian Pomper, who formerly worked as chief international trade counsel for Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee, recently registered to represent Monsanto Co., Sunoco Inc., and the Innovation Alliance, an organization that deals with patent reform. Also lobbying for those clients is Scott Parven, a former aide to the late Rep. Nicholas Mavroules, D-Mass.; and Alixandria Lapp, a former chief of staff to Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash. Another policy person who came over to Akin Gump with the Parven Pomper team is Roger Murry, an ex-aide to Rep. Grace Napolitano, D-Calif., and former Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Calif.

SEARCH TEAM. Since the announcement that former Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind. is leaving as president of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, a search committee has been formed to look for a replacement. The committee includes former Sen. Bob Graham, D-Fla.; former Rep. William Gray, D-Pa., who is the former president of the United Negro College Fund; Barry Jackson, chief of staff to House Minority Leader Boehner and former assistant to the president for strategic initiatives and external affairs under President George W. Bush; and Librarian of Congress James Billington. Sharon McCarter, a spokesperson for the think tank, said there is no time frame for when a replacement will be named.

ON HER OWN. Ramona Oliver is running her own communications firm called Winning Over Washington. Oliver was communications director at the Service Employees International Union. Earlier in her career, she held media relations positions with an abortion rights group, EMILY's List and with Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell. Oliver has also spent time at the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic Governors Association.

This article appears in the May 29, 2010, edition of National Journal Daily.

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