Congressional opportunities for people with disabilities

I’ve got some worthwhile news to share from the
Day in Washington blog.

The content which follows below is from Day’s blog. I’m providing it here in its original form to spread the word.

RG

Recently, I attended a meeting with Dena Morris, Legislative Director in Senator Durbin’s Office. She wanted to emphasize the importance and need for people with disabilities in Congress. Below is a note from her. I strongly encourage anyone with a disability and an interest in policy to seriously consider her offer. It is a wonderful opportunity and would have a significant impact on increasing the diversity in congressional staff.

From Dena Morris:

Senators Durbin and Harkin are eager to help us change the face of the U.S. Senate, with a staff that better reflects the diversity of the country. Historically, we haven’t done a very good job of finding, hiring and growing people with disabilities in legislative jobs. We’d love your help in turning that around.

We are looking for talented young people, hoping to get started on the Hill, who are willing to learn in an entry level position and grow with the job. Mid-career hires are less frequent, but we’re looking for talent and don’t want to discourage anyone.

In general, we look for are people who are smart, eager and willing to work hard. Political sensibilities are important, along with discretion, judgment and a level head. Communication is critically important, so an ideal applicant will write clearly and be confident and articulate in speaking. As I mentioned last week, you need to be able to juggle several tasks at the same time.

Please feel free to send interested candidates my way and I’ll do my best to either talk with them or help direct them to an office that might be a good fit for them.

Thanks again for your help.

Dena

If you feel you are a good candidate for positions on the Hill, or know someone who is, please contact:

Dena Morris
Legislative Director
Sen. Durbin’s Office
202-224-8466 (phone)
dena_morris@durbin.senate.gov

House committee reviews case of ADA Restoration Act of 2007

If you didn’t already know, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Education and Labor had a hearing on the ADA Restoration Act of 2007 (H.R. 3195) yesterday. For details of the hearing, go to the
committee’s official press release site.

The committee hearing is part of the review process of the legislation, which is seeking to reaffirm the original intent of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Included in the report are testimony excerpts from Carey McClure, Andrew Imparato, and Robert Burgdorf.

McClure spoke about how General Motors revoked their initial job offer to him, due to his muscular dystrophy. The courts supported GM’s position, citing that McClure had adapted his activities of daily living sufficient enough so that he was no longer considered disabled, and thus, not covered by the ADA.

Imparato is the president and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities and spoke on the progressive trend of courts stripping away the beacon of hope that the original ADA was to people with disabilities.

Burgdorf is a law professor at the University of the District of Columbia and addressed the factual statistics that support Imparato’s allegations.

For party contrast, you may also want to review the
Republican view,
As the tone of that press release leans in a different direction than that which is in the first report.

It is good to finally see this legislation working its way through the system. We can only hope that the good and common sense of Congress triumphs over the prevailing system of Washington lobbyists dollars being used to push their agendas.