Anonymous ID: 25b61e May 11, 2020, 1:51 a.m. No.9120307   🗄️.is 🔗kun

Austin Cantrell, White House assistant press secretary

 

How did you get your start in politics? “Days after graduating college, I moved to D.C. without a job and literally went door-to-door on the Hill to find a job at members’ offices. I worked the summer before to build my savings so I could live minimally for up to three months. It took 2.5 months to land my first job. (Shout out to all those who gave me time for a ‘coffee’ meeting!)”

 

What’s an interesting book/article you’re reading during coronavirus social distancing? And why? “I’ve been enjoying Ron Chernow’s ‘Alexander Hamilton’ (the book that inspired the musical) when I have down time. I didn’t know how much I didn’t know about the early days of the Republic and how fragile we were for decades.”

 

What’s a trend going on in the U.S. or abroad that doesn’t get enough attention? “I don’t think we fully appreciate the extent to which the U.S. Space Force, a reinvigorated NASA, and unprecedented public-private space partnerships are permanently changing humanity. Generations from now, these advances (that might seem fanciful and distant today) may well be the primary accomplishments for which President Donald Trump and private-sector leaders will be remembered. What seemed ‘newsy’ to ‘politicos’ in European capitals in 1492 was forever eclipsed by what the fanciful and distant Columbus was doing on the vast Atlantic.”

 

How’s the Trump presidency going? “Still not tired of winning!”

 

What’s a fun fact that people in Washington might not know about you? “I reread Benjamin Franklin’s short autobiography (despite its foibles) annually because it reminds me that anything is possible with a ton of hard work and a pinch of luck.”