With Lonnie Bunch’s ouster, Trump chills free speech at the Smithsonian
What obviously led to Bunch’s abrupt resignation was Trump on his case.
The Hill•James D. Zirin, opinion contributor15 SeptThe Hill — page 10
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page 10 of 28The Hill•James D. Zirin, opinion contributor15 Sept
Trump’s tariffs on Canada could cost him several red states
President Trump's tariffs on Canadian imports and Canada's retaliatory measures are impacting key economic sectors in several Republican-leaning states, potentially affecting upcoming midterm elections.
The Hill•Merrill Matthews, opinion contributor15 Sept
The latest court ruling against deportations ignores precedent and won’t hold up
The Supreme Court has held that a deported alien "is not being punished" for his conduct but "is merely being held to the terms under which he was admitted."
The Hill•Mark Goldfeder, opinion contributor15 Sept
Nelly Decker: Communications director, House Judiciary Committee Democrats
Nelly Decker is a quintessential under-the-radar staffer who prizes being nearly un-Googleable. But she has nonetheless been a pivotal player in some of Congress’s biggest battles — and will be central in many of the body’s coming clashes should Democrats retake the House. “I have worked in a majority, then minority in Oversight, waged a battle against…
The Hill•Rebecca Beitsch15 Sept
Marcus Towns: Member services director, House Appropriations Committee Republicans
Advancing any legislation with a slim Republican majority is a challenge, but navigating the variety of GOP viewpoints while trying to advance appropriations bills adds a new layer of difficulty. For Marcus Towns, the member services director for the House Appropriations Committee, it helps to be a people person. “It’s a very personality-driven job,” Towns…
The Hill•Nathaniel Weixel15 Sept
Chris Land: Staff director, Senate Banking subcommittee on digital assets
Chris Land’s journey to becoming the lead negotiator on a major Senate cryptocurrency bill started far from the halls of Congress. Land, who serves as the staff director for the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Subcommittee on Digital Assets, was working in the Wyoming Legislature after law school, not planning to work on crypto,…
The Hill•Julia Shapero15 Sept
Andrew Bower: Deputy staff director, House Oversight Committee Democrats
Andrew Bower followed Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) from his personal office to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee as Democrats elevated a fresh face, and with him, a fresh new approach to investigations. The committee has faced an avalanche of issues, but it’s the probe into deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that Bower said “has…
The Hill•Rebecca Beitsch15 Sept
AJ Swinson: Coalitions and outreach director, House Judiciary Committee
On the surface, AJ Swinson’s job as the coalitions and outreach director for the House Judiciary Committee seems simple: She is the point person to make sure outside allies and those with a stake in the panel’s work understand what the committee is doing and why it is doing it. But the responsibility to manage…
The Hill•Emily Brooks15 Sept
Julia Bartusek: Executive director, House Democratic Women’s Caucus
Julia Bartusek never expected to end up in Washington. The executive director of the House Democratic Women’s Caucus grew up on a pig farm in Minnesota, a far cry from the halls of Congress where she now helps shape one of the House Democrats’ most prominent coalitions. But she said that she’s always had an…
The Hill•Sudiksha Kochi15 Sept
Christiana Stephenson: Communications director, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY)
Christiana Stephenson has spent more than seven years helping House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) navigate the relentless communications demands of House Democratic leadership. Stephenson joined Jeffries’s leadership operation as press secretary in January 2019, when he was House Democratic Caucus chair. She has been with him ever since. Her path to the Capitol was less direct. Stephenson first…
The Hill•Sudiksha Kochi15 Sept
Omar Hossino: Chief counsel and national security adviser, House Republican Policy Committee
For many in Washington, being sanctioned by America’s adversaries is a badge of honor. Omar Hossino, the national security lead for the House Republican Policy Committee, is viewed as the staffer who has helped members get on those blacklists. “His greatest achievement: He had me identified by the Assad dictatorship [in Syria] as an enemy…
The Hill•Laura Kelly15 Sept
Alyssa Erdel: Deputy chief of staff, House Republican Conference
Heading up member services is a “chameleon position,” Alyssa Erdel says — highly adaptable depending on the vision of the lawmaker in charge, whether for the House’s Republican Conference or in a committee. “My mission is always the same: I listen, identify what’s missing, build trusted relationships, solve problems, and fill voids,” Erdel said. Erdel…
The Hill•Emily Brooks15 Sept
Chris Bien: Deputy chief of staff, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.)
Managing the House floor is a big job in any Speaker’s office. That challenge is turned up to the max in the current House Republican majority, where super-slim margins and a culture of rebellion make drama on the House floor a regular occurrence. Chris Bien, Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) deputy chief of staff, has helped…
The Hill•Emily Brooks15 Sept
Raphaël Schreiber: Legislative director, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.)
July 15, 2025, was “the most stressful day” of Raphaël Schreiber’s career in Congress. The legislative director for Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) had a “very brief” conversation with the congressman about the idea of a bill directing the Department of Justice to publicly release materials on its Jeffrey Epstein investigation. “And then he told me,…
The Hill•Emily Brooks15 Sept
Carly Rush: Chief counsel, Senate Appropriations Committee Democrats
Carly Rush is, literally, an expert on the letter of the law. While working through a dual degree in public policy and law at Harvard University in 2013, Rush spent a summer as a law clerk for the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), which then-Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) chaired. That’s where…
The Hill•Helen Huiskes15 Sept
McKinley Lewis: Staff director, Senate Special Committee on Aging; deputy chief of staff for strategic initiatives, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.)
McKinley Lewis is a long-serving aide and trusted adviser to Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), who has become an influential conservative voice in the Senate Republican Conference. Scott has made a national name for himself as an advocate for election reform and tackling the nation’s $40 trillion debt. Yet he remains intensely focused on the needs of his…
The Hill•Alexander Bolton15 Sept
Wyndee Parker: National security adviser, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY)
No two days are the same for Wyndee Parker. As national security adviser to House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), Parker is responsible for overseeing the activities of all of the lower chamber’s national security committees, including Armed Services, Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, Homeland Security and their Appropriations counterparts. She also works with the executive branch…
The Hill•Ellen Mitchell15 Sept
Raymond O’Mara: Policy director, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (NY)
Few Capitol Hill staffers can match Raymond O’Mara and say they’ve worked at the leadership level in the Senate and the House, and even fewer can say they have worked in Congress from as many vantage points as he has. O’Mara now serves as the top policy staffer for Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.),…
The Hill•Alexander Bolton15 Sept
Rubi Flores: Policy director, Congressional Hispanic Caucus
Rubi Flores, 30, is a concert pianist turned policy director who has landed at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) as it positions itself to fight the Trump administration on its mass deportation agenda and other issues key to Latinos. An immigrant from Mexico who moved to the U.S. at age 10, Flores excelled not only…
The Hill•Rebecca Beitsch15 Sept
Alison MacDonald: Chief of staff, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
Alison MacDonald is preparing to sunset a long career supporting the work of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), who is retiring from Congress at the end of the term. MacDonald, a New Hampshire native, was working as a health policy advocate outside of the Capitol when she was drawn to the opportunity to work for Shaheen…
The Hill•Helen Huiskes15 Sept