External Affairs | Courtesy
Will Dunham ’07 is the news policy director in Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s, R-California, office in Washington, D.C.
Will Dunham ’07 started his new position as policy director for Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-California, Jan. 21 after serving as the Republican Study Committee’s executive director.
“What happened to him? How did he end up doing something like that?” Professor of English John Somerville said. “I don’t remember him expressing any interest in the world of politics.”
An English major at Hillsdale College, Dunham joined the 27 percent of college graduates who enter the workforce in a field other than in what they majored. Having taken President Larry Arnn’s Statesmanship course during his senior year, Dunham felt himself pulled to Washington, D.C., where he is now eager to step into a position that focuses on policy matters.
“I love getting into the details, talking to the experts in various areas, whether they’re on committees or think tanks or universities, and getting on the lead of the policy detail,” Dunham said. “Politics is one of the most important things we do together as human beings. It’s certainly not the only but one of the best ways to improve the lives of the people around us.”
Dunham’s boss Barrett Karr, deputy chief of staff for policy and floor operations, said Dunham’s conservative credentials were attractive for the position.
“Will is very respected on Capitol Hill for both his talent in the policy area but also for his personality,” Karr said.
As the RSC, Dunham worked with brand management and member services, but his favorite part of the job — and what he lists as some of his greatest achievements — has to do with policy: developing a repeal-and-replace bill for the Affordable Care Act, a comprehensive budget, and promoting legislation to protect religious freedom so that Washington, D.C. employers are not required to pay for employees’ abortions.
He said he could not do it without the ten-person team he mostly hired.
“I think that’s what I’m most proud of, assembling a really great team and being part of that team — setting up a team that cares a lot about restoring limited constitutional representative government,” Dunham said.
In McCarthy’s office, there is plenty to do with policy, Dunham says. He is partially responsible for setting the 2016 House agenda and ensuring regular order continues, moving bills through the committee process and onto the floor.
“One of the things I’m really excited about is pursuing the majority leader’s goal of empowering every member to be an active legislator and bringing the ideas and passion that inspired them to run for Congress and turn that into policy and eventually sign it into law,” Dunham said.
Though reading and writing bills may not be the same as reviewing the great books, Dunham said an English degree can be of value for those interested in politics.
“An English degree at Hillsdale was bad for my GPA but good for my basic ability to write a sound sentence, paragraph, and argument,” Dunham said. “Without that basic foundation, I probably would not be as great of a writer. I will be forever indebted to [Somerville] for that.”
Karr said Dunham’s Hillsdale degree contributed to his conservative credentials and skillset.
“One of the things that is hard when hiring is to know the training people have had in college in terms of critical thinking and writing skills,” Karr said. “When we see Hillsdale College on the resume, we know they’ve got the basic skills needed to come in and do the job well.”
Somerville said studying literature can help in any walk of life and develop a better person.
“You’d hope that the study of English — and this isn’t necessarily so — develops in the individual a sense of empathy, a capacity for thinking through sometimes difficult issues, capacity for clear communication. I say you’d hope,” Somerville said. “Just because a person has a sophisticated appreciation for great music, art, or literature doesn’t make that person a great person.”
In the case of Dunham, — who Somerville describes as personable, having a good sense of humor, and always wearing a smile — it seems to have done him good.
“The last time I saw him a few years ago, he seemed unchanged,” Somerville said. “To enter the world of politics and be able to retain those qualities, — maybe it is easier than I think — but it is a good sign.”
Dunham attributed this to his degree and his faith.
“I love studying beautiful things, which I got to do as an English major at Hillsdale, and I think I have a strong grounding in those things. There is truth. Not everything is relative, and politics is not simply a matter of who is the most powerful,” Dunham said. “Those things have inoculated me against the cynicism that unfortunately affects a lot of people here.”
Through the capital’s crony capitalism and disillusionment, however, Dunham said he remains positive as he works in McCarthy’s office.
“He is dedicated to doing something meaningful with the House majority, and I am excited and honored to help him to do that,” Dunham said. “We have a long way to go, but I’m optimistic.”