First, Be In the Room

Rule #1

To engage in politics, you need to be on the chessboard

ITtook a hard lesson when I first arrived in Washington, D.C., to teach me the first rule for the aspiring activist: in politics, as in life, the most basic principle is to show up.

The year was 2002, and dreaming of making my mark in public policy, I arrived in the nation’s capital. My first political job offer came in the form of an interview a friend had arranged for me with then House majority leader Dick Armey. I arrived with great excitement. What bills would I pass? Which political deals would I help to cut?

I was rudely awakened from my dreams of swift political influence when the staffer conducting the interview asked, “Have you ever moved boxes before? We pay $11 an hour.”