[StBernard] [LANDRIEU] Sen. Landrieu Announces New Leadership Team

[Westley Annis]

Sen. Landrieu Announces
New Leadership Team

 

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., today announced that
longtime aide Jason Matthews will be named Chief of Staff, effective May 1.
He succeeds Ron Faucheux, who will become Chief of Staff and General
Consultant to the senator's reelection campaign.  

Projects Director Paul Rainwater will be promoted to Chief of Operations and
Communications Director Adam Sharp will be named Director of Communications
and Technology. Rounding out Sen. Landrieu's powerhouse team are State
Director T. Bradley Keith, Legislative Director Janet Woodka and Office
Manager Alicia Williams.

"Louisiana is very fortunate to have such a skilled leadership team driving
our fight for Louisiana here in the United States Senate," Sen. Landrieu
said.  "Jason's long years of extraordinary service, together with the
widespread respect he has earned in our office, our state and throughout the
Senate, make him the ideal choice to serve as my Chief of Staff."

Matthews, currently Deputy Chief of Staff and General Counsel, is the
longest-serving non-administrative member of Sen. Landrieu's Washington
staff.  He joined the office as a Legislative Assistant for Defense and
Foreign Policy after serving as Deputy Issues Director for the senator's
1996 campaign.  He was later promoted to Deputy Policy Director, and then,
Legislative Director.  

Rainwater currently serves as Projects Director and is a decorated
Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army Reserves who has served two
tours of duty in the War on Terror, having earned a Bronze Star for his
service in Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq.  Formerly the Chief Administrative
Officer for the City of Lake Charles, La., Rainwater served as Operations
Manager for Calcasieu Parish through Hurricane Rita. He is a native of
DeQuincy, La.

In the newly-created position of Chief of Operations, Rainwater will
continue to be the principal manager for appropriations, homeland security
and Army Corps of Engineers issues.  He will now bring his extensive
management experience to bear in also directing the administration, support
and other day-to-day operations of the office.

"Paul's management capabilities and his superb background in public service
in Louisiana make him the right choice to run the office's administrative
and operational functions as well as our important Projects Team," Sen.
Landrieu said.  "He has a strong track record in serving the state and its
people, and there is no more important responsibility in a Senate office
than that."

Sharp is an award-winning television producer, photographer and editor who
served as Manager of eBusiness and Digitization for NBC News, where he led
efforts to integrate new technologies in the newsgathering process.  In nine
years with the network, Sharp took part in NBC's coverage of the 1993
through 2000 elections, the 2000 Summer Olympic Games and the September 11th
attacks. His new role will be focused on better leveraging new technologies
to promote effective communication between Sen. Landrieu and her
constituents.

Prior to her service as Legislative Director, Woodka served as Counsel for
seven years at the law firm Van Ness Feldman, where she specialized in
energy and environmental issues.  She received her Juris Doctorate from the
Tulane University School of Law, where she served as Editor-in-Chief of the
Tulane Environmental Law Review.

During Sen. Landrieu's terms as Louisiana State Treasurer, State Director T.
Bradley Keith served as Assistant State Treasurer for Communications and had
previously worked as a newspaper reporter for the Monroe News-Star and New
Orleans City Business.  

Before joining the senator's Washington staff, Alicia Williams was Deputy
Campaign Manager for the 1996 election and was previously staff assistant,
systems administrator, projects assistant and projects manager for former
Sen. J. Bennett Johnston.  A native of Grambling, Louisiana, she is a
graduate of Grambling State University and the Washington, D.C., Chapter
President and a life member of the Grambling University National Alumni
Association.  She is also a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and the
Senate Black Legislative Caucus. 

"With experienced and exceptional leaders such as Jason, T., Paul, Janet,
Adam and Alicia, together with our excellent and extremely hard working
legislative, constituent service, communications and administrative staffs,
we have standing with Senator Landrieu one of the strongest teams in the
entire Senate," Faucheux said.  

"The people of Louisiana are truly fortunate to have such a productive and
hard working team of people working for their interests under Senator
Landrieu's leadership, and I commend, congratulate and thank each and every
one of them for their wonderful dedication to public service."

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