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Back To The Alaskan Political Wilds
by Heather Greenfield
Lisa Sutherland began her career as an intern for Sen. Ted Stevens in 1977. She will step down as minority staff director for the Senate Commerce Committee next month.
Joe Brenckle, the communications director for minority members on the panel, confirmed that Sutherland will help work on the 2008 re-election campaign for the 83-year-old Republican senator from Alaska. While that is expected to take most of her time, Sutherland also may start a consulting company and wants to research business and marketing ideas for that. The former Alaska native plans to divide her time between Washington and Alaska.
Following the internship, Sutherland began working for Stevens full time in 1981. Stevens is expected to name a replacement soon.
Yahoo And Google In Washington
David Hantman, the chief of staff for Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., also is leaving his post to become a lobbyist for the Yahoo Internet firm. The move lines him up to once again battle the efforts of his girlfriend, Jamie Brown, who lobbies for Google, a Yahoo rival.
The New York Post wrote about the new tech power couple and their political rivalry, which is reminiscent of the one between Democratic political consultant James Carville and Republican Mary Matalin, a former White House aide in the first Bush administration. But Hantman told the Post that he and Brown are used to dealing with their political differences.
The couple has had a few months' break from direct confrontations. Brown left her position as a White House aide in May to work for Google. At the White House, part of her job was to push through judicial appointments for President Bush. Schumer serves on the Judiciary Committee, which the White House has accused of delaying judicial nominees.
Google's search for a Washington spokesman, meanwhile, is over. Adam Kovacevich goes to work for the search-engine firm this week.
"Google is clearly on the cutting edge of a host of policy issues," Kovacevich said. "I'm excited to help tell the company story in Washington."
Google is showing every sign of getting more active on Washington issues like privacy, copyright law, equal treatment for high-speed Internet content, legal reform and relations with China. The latest high-profile hire came after the company hired Bob Boorstin as director of policy communications last year.
Kovacevich is leaving his job as an assistant vice president at Dittus Communications. Before that, he was the spokesman for the Information Technology Industry Council and a spokesman for Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn.
Kovacevich plans to maintain his Potomac Flacks Web log to chart the activities of Washington spokesmen, but he warned of lighter blogging ahead for the publication, which has become a gathering spot for hacks and flacks alike.
House Science Announces Minority Staff
Back on Capitol Hill, some staff who worked for former Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y. are staying and a few of aides for ranking Republican Ralph Hall of Texas will move over to help minority members on the committee.
Janet Poppleton, who also continues to serve as chief of staff in Hall's congressional office, will be chief of staff for Republicans on the Science Committee. Poppleton has served as chief of staff to Hall since 1996 and before that was his press secretary.
Leslee Gilbert will be Hall's staff director. Gilbert began her Hill career in 2003 as a speechwriter for Hall and then became legislative director in 2005.
"I am delighted to have been able to put together such a qualified staff," Hall said. "Janet and Leslee are experienced and effective Hill staffers, who are extremely knowledgeable about the committee's issues and the legislative process. I am confident that as a team, we can really help to shape a Republican vision for science."
Elizabeth Stack will be handling the energy portfolio. Stack is a senior policy adviser to Hall on energy issues. She is also the policy coordinator for the Energy and Commerce Committee's Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee. She started as an intern for Hall in 1994.
Ed Feddeman and Ken Monroe will handle issues for the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee, for which both served as staffers during the last Congress. Feddeman has been with the Science Committee for seven years. Before joining the subcommittee, Monroe was the director of new product development for Qwest Communications International.
Tom Hammond will cover Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee issues. He has worked for the committee since 2001.
The focus for Amy Carroll will be the Environmental Protection Agency, National Institute of Standards and Technology, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Carroll previously served as staff director for the Environment, Technology and Standards panel after starting on the committee as an American Association for the Advancement of Science congressional fellow in 2002.
Mele Williams will handle issues for the Research and Science Education Subcommittee. In the last Congress, she worked for the Research Subcommittee. And Zachary Kurz has been named the committee's Republican press secretary. Kurz previously served as the panel's deputy communications director.
Chertoff's Deputy At Homeland Security
Adam Isles has found a new home as deputy chief of staff at the Homeland Security Department. Secretary Michael Chertoff said Isles has been his counselor since the beginning of Chertoff's tenure.
"He has also earned the respect of senior leadership throughout the department for his work to coordinate matters that cut across multiple component agencies, ranging from aviation security to ports and border security, and international affairs," Chertoff said.
Before joining the department, Isles served as counsel to the assistant attorney general in the Justice Department's criminal division. He also was director for international economic affairs on the National Security Council.
Quote Of The Week
"This is nothing but Google's China syndrome, with techno-geek mumbo-jumbo thrown in to deflect criticism."
-- Software programmer and political activist George Johnston, responding to Google's crackdown on "Google bombs" with changes to its search algorithm.
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