| Charles Mahtesian, WCL ’01
If you work in government, it’s on your desk. Or, for that matter, if you’re a political scientist or a reporter covering anything from the statehouse to the White House. The Almanac of American Politics is often referred to as the bible of American politics. But look between the covers of the massive 1,800-page digest, and you won’t only find profiles of each member of Congress and background on the economic, social, historical, and political context of all 50 states and 435 House districts. You’ll find AU graduates.
Charles Mahtesian, left, with Sue Davis ’01 and Josh Kraushaar ’04, who worked on the 2004 edition of The Almanac of American Politics.
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Appropriately enough in a city of politicians, Almanac editor Charles Mahtesian knew the publication long before he stepped into the editor’s job. “For any political course work, you have to use the Almanac,” he says. “As someone who is interested in politics, I knew it backwards and forwards.” So did Josh Kraushaar ’04, who lived and breathed politics from such a young age that one of the gifts on his twelfth birthday was a copy of the Almanac. Hired as an intern for the 2004 edition, the history major was “such a natural,” Mahtesian says, that he stepped into a full-time job after graduation. Other AU graduates who contributed their research skills to the latest edition are intern Brooke Schechtman ’02 and staffer Sue Davis ’01, now at a sister publication, Congress Daily. While Mahtesian works mainly behind the scenes, his expertise led to a busy fall that included TV and radio interviews on the political scene. He’s spent many years honing his knowledge, having worked at Congressional Quarterly after college and at Governing magazine during law school. He now combines his reporter’s background and legal skills as the Almanac editor. “Every discipline in this town—whether you’re talking art, law, advocacy—is infused with politics,” he says. “Having a legal background enables you to think in strategic ways, which is important when you manage an operation like the Almanac, whether it’s looking at contracts to buy paper, or agreements with writers, or putting together a large project. All those things, I learned at AU law school.” —Sally Acharya continued next page |
