A U.S. Congressional Chief of Staff is the top executive in the office of a member of the United States Congress. Chiefs of staff may also be called "Administrative Assistants," not to be confused with simple secretaries.
Very much like an office manager, they supervise all the aspects of a Congressional office including personnel decisions and policy initiatives. A chief of staff is usually the alpha in a congressional office responsible only to the Member; however, there are some offices that have less traditional hierarchies. They may also be assigned to such political undertakings as campaign finance fund raising and campaign organization. From time to time a CoS may be based out of a district office, but they are almost always found on the Hill. Usually they are very experienced working on Capitol Hill or are a personal friend of the Member. Some chiefs of staff got their positions by previously serving as a campaign manager. Salaries tend to be near or above $100,000.
Listed alphabetically by Senator's last name. The two Senators from Hawaii label their Chiefs of Staff as Administrative Assistants. This practice is usually more common in the House and Senators Akaka and Inouye are the only Senators who have Administrative Assistants.
List from the C-SPAN 2006 Congressional Directory--109th Congress, 2nd Session
Chief of Staff | Senator & State | CoS or AA |
---|---|---|
James Sakai | Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) | AA |
Tom Ingram | Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) | CoS |
Sean Conway | Sen. Wayne Allard (R-CO) | CoS |
Dick Wadhams | Sen. George Allen (R-VA) | CoS |
Jim Messina | Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) | CoS |
Tom Sugar | Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) | CoS |
Mary Jane Collipriest | Sen. Robert Bennett (R-UT) | CoS |
Danny O'Brien | Sen. Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE) | CoS |
Stephen Ward | Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) | CoS |
Brian Klippenstien | Sen. Christopher S. Bond (R-MO) | CoS |
Karen Olick | Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) | CoS |
Rob Wasinger | Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) | CoS |
David Young | Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY) | CoS |
Clark Johnson | Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) | CoS |
Alicia Peterson Clark | Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) | CoS |
Barbara Videnieks | Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-WV) | CoS |
Michael Meehan | Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) | CoS |
Johnathon Jones | Sen. Thomas R. Carper (D-DE) | CoS |
David Griswold | Sen. Lincoln D. Chafee (R-RI) | CoS |
Krister Holladay | Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) | CoS |
Tamera S. Luzzatto | Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) | CoS |
Mike Schwartz | Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) | CoS |
Mark Keenum | Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) | CoS |
Erich Mische | Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) | CoS |
Steve Abbott | Sen. Susan M. Collins (R-ME) | CoS |
Bob Van Heuvelen | Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) | CoS |
Pete Olson | Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) | CoS |
Mike Ware | Sen. Larry E. Craig (R-ID) | CoS |
Peter Fischer | Sen. Mike Crapo (R-ID) | CoS |
Jack Danielson | Sen. Mark Dayton (D-MN) | CoS |
Bret Bernhardt | Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) | CoS |
Laurel Presslet | Sen. Mike DeWine (R-OH) | CoS |
Sheryl Cohen | Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-CT) | CoS |
Greg Gross | Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) | CoS |
Steve Bell | Sen. Pete V. Domenici (R-NM) | CoS |
Bernie Toon | Sen. Byron L. Dorgan (D-ND) | CoS |
Ed Greelegs | Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-IL) | CoS |
Scott Bensing | Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) | CoS |
Flip McConnaughey | Sen. Michael B. Enzi (R-WY) | CoS |
Mary Irvine | Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) | CoS |
Mark Kadesh | Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) | CoS |
Andrea Becker | Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN) | CoS |
Richard Perry | Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-SC) | CoS |
David Young | Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-IA) | CoS |
Vas Christopoulos | Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) | CoS |
Lou Ann Linehan | Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) | CoS |
Brain Ahlberg | Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) | CoS |
Patricia Knight | Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-UT) | CoS |
Dick Ribbentrop | Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) | CoS |
Glenn Powell | Sen. James M. Inhofe (R-OK) | CoS |
Patrick DeLeon | Sen. Daniel K. Inouye (D-HI) | AA |
Heath Garrett | Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) | CoS |
Bill Kurtz | Sen. James M. Jeffords (I-VT) | CoS |
Drey Samuelson | Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD) | CoS |
vacant | Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) | / |
David McKean | Sen. John F. Kerry (D-MA) | CoS |
Paul Bock | Sen. Herbert H. Kohl (D-WI) | CoS |
Tim Glazewski | Sen. Jon L. Kyl (R-AZ) | CoS |
Ron Faucheux | Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) | CoS |
Tim Yehl | Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) | CoS |
Ed Pagano | Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT) | CoS |
David Lyles | Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) | CoS |
Clarine Nardi Riddle | Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (D-CT) | CoS |
Elizabeth Burks | Sen. Blanche L. Lincoln (D-AR) | CoS |
Bret Boyles | Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS) | CoS |
Marty Morris | Sen. Richard G. Lugar (R-IN) | CoS |
John Little | Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL) | CoS |
Mark Salter | Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) | CoS |
Billy Piper | Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) | CoS |
Ivan Zapien | Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) | CoS |
Julia Frifield | Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD) | CoS |
Tom Daffron | Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) | CoS |
Rick Desimone | Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) | CoS |
Tim Becker | Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) | CoS |
Peter J. Mitchell | Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) | CoS |
Pete Rouse | Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) | CoS |
Bob Russell | Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR) | Cos |
Neil Campbell | Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) | CoS |
Susan McCue | Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) | CoS |
Jackie Cottrell | Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) | CoS |
Kerry Ates | Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV (D-WV) | CoS |
Ken Lane | Sen. Ken Salazar (D-CO) | CoS |
Wayne Palmer | Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) | CoS |
Johnathan Davidson | Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes (D-MD) | CoS |
David Hantman | Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) | CoS |
Rick Dearborn | Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) | CoS |
Shannon Hines | Sen. Richard C. Shelby (R-AL) | CoS |
John Easton | Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) | CoS |
John Richter | Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME) | CoS |
William Reynolds | Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) | CoS |
Sander Lurie | Sen. Debbie A. Stabenow (D-MI) | CoS |
George Lowe | Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) | CoS |
Paul J. Collines, Jr. | Sen. John E. Sununu (R-NH) | CoS |
Mark Strand | Sen. Jim Talent (R-MO) | CoS |
Shawn Whitman | Sen. Craig Thomas (R-WY) | CoS |
Matt Zabel | Sen. John R. Thune (R-SD) | CoS |
Kyle Ruckert | Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) | CoS |
Aric Newhouse | Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH) | CoS |
Ann Loomis | Sen. John W. Warner (R-VA) | CoS |
Josh Kardon | Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) | CoS |
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