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How to Survive a Senate Confirmation

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Robert Reich reflects on his Senate confirmation as Labor Secretary nearly 30 years ago.

“In late December 1992 I received a phone call from a lawyer who’d been retained by the Clinton campaign who said he’d been asked to investigate me in case Bill Clinton wanted to appoint me to high office. He was a bit vague about who made the request, but said it was urgent we meet as soon as possible.”

Also read Part II and Part III.

As a Senate staffer at the time — and a former student of Robert Reich’s — I found these essays really interesting.
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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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