I have been on staff in U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's Washington, D.C. office since August of 2008. It has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience to be in the office at such an historic time for our country and for our Senator as she transitions over to being our next Secretary of State.
In the office, I am a staff assistant with a diverse portfolio of work.
The most exciting part of my job is my work on Upstate New York economic development. As a life-long resident of New York's North Country, my job has afforded me opportunities to work on policies and initiatives that give back to my home community. I have worked with our grants staff to implement a proactive grants outreach process to assist in securing funds for Upstate NY economic development projects. I also compile daily Upstate NY news clips related to economic development, energy, agriculture and local initiatives that are used by senior staff for policy formation and addressing needs.
I am also the manager of our targeted emailing lists. Given the effectiveness of communicating by email to constituents, we have developed constituent lists to send rapid communications to New Yorkers regarding the Senator's stance on an issue, vote, legislation she has introduced or speeches she has given. These lists can number upwards of 100,000 constituents each. I work with the legislative and correspondence staff to research and write these letters before sending out. For example, following the Senator's vote on the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act this past fall, I worked with her legislative staff dealing with economic and financial issues to craft a clear explanation for her stance on the issue and her vision for a more effective global financial regulatory system.
Another responsibility of my job is to oversee the use of technology in the Senator's communications strategy and constituent outreach as well as the office's day-to-day operations. This role has put me in charge of a $500,000 budget to keep the office as technologically savvy and up-to-date as possible. It has been a tremendous experience to see first-hand the intersection of technology and politics in the 21st century. I believe the 2008 campaigns clearly showed that technological knowledge is now a necessity for any successful political operation and here I am, immersed in it all!
