Our Experts

• Salim Alameddin

Salim Alameddin

Salim Alameddin is a Senior Vice President at Crossroads Strategies. Salim represents clients across numerous industries before legislative and executive branch officials and staff, focusing on foreign trade, energy and environment, federal lands, and tribal matters.

In addition, Salim provides strategic guidance and tailor-made issue monitoring resources to clients in a wide array of legislative and regulatory fields, applying a deep network among congressional staff to hone in on clients’ specific concerns and priorities.

Prior to joining Crossroads Strategies, Salim worked in both Chambers of Congress for then-Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn and Representative Will Hurd, where he assisted on issues including but not limited to tax policy, health care, and international trade.

A Texas native, Salim also assists clients in engaging his home state delegation and the broader Gulf Coast. He is active in campaigns for federal office in the region and has worked extensively at the intersection of clients’ state and federal government affairs.

Salim grew up in Sugar Land, Texas, and graduated from the University of Alabama with a B.A. in Political Science and History.



• John Breaux Sr.

John Breaux Sr.

A Principal & Director of Crossroads Strategies, Senator Breaux led a long and distinguished career in the US Congress. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1972 at the age of 28 – at the time of his election, he was the youngest member of Congress. He represented the 7th District of Louisiana for 14 years before being elected to the United States Senate in 1986. Senator Breaux was a widely recognized bipartisan leader in the Senate, and in 1993, was appointed by his Democratic colleagues to the post of Chief Deputy Whip, a position he held until his retirement. He also held a number of key Senate committee positions.

A senior member of the Finance Committee, Senator Breaux served as the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Social Security and Family Policy. He also held positions on two other Finance subcommittees, the Subcommittee on Health Care and the Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight. Senator Breaux also served on the Senate Commerce, Science and Technology Committee, where he was a leader on telecommunications and transportation issues, along with his work on fisheries and ocean policy.



• Mike Burns

Mike Burns

Mike is the­­ Managing Partner at KP. With a wide variety of clients, Mike has been involved in several major policy areas including energy, water resources, environmental regulation, and ports and the supply chain.

In addition to public affairs issues, Mike has managed communication programs that involved crisis communications, social media, corporate reputation, and product marketing. He works with California corporations and small business owners, state business associations, and philanthropic and foundation groups.



• Trevor Francis

Trevor Francis

A Founding Partner at Seven Letter, Trevor specializes in corporate reputation and issue management, and is responsible for a number of issue, advocacy and cause campaigns aimed at shaping public perception and influencing government decision-making. Previously, Trevor served as President of JDA Frontline, which merged with Blue Engine Message & Media in 2018 to form Seven Letter.

Prior to JDA Frontline, Trevor was a Senior Vice President and Partner at FleishmanHillard. There, he led a wide array of national and state advocacy and grassroots campaigns. He also provided strategic communications, media relations and issues management counsel to clients confronting reputational challenges.

Trevor previously served as Communications Director for the Republican National Committee. In this role, Trevor served as chief spokesperson and strategist tying together earned and paid media, technology, and research to advance the party’s message and agenda on Capitol Hill, in state capitals and among grassroots organizations.

Trevor’s tenure at the RNC followed more than five years at Burson-Marsteller, a global public relations firm, where he was a managing director. There, he managed a number of issue campaigns including efforts aimed at influencing potential actions by Congress, state legislature and federal regulatory bodies such as the Food and Drug Administration and Environmental Protection Agency.

Trevor has significant experience in the executive branch, having served in communications positions at the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Commerce. In both agencies, he played key roles in support of Administration priorities including Trade Promotion Authority, tax cuts and other policy initiatives.

Furthermore, the political experience gained from four presidential campaigns and multiple Congressional races gives Trevor the battle-tested mindset and campaign metabolism that clients expect from Seven Letter.

Trevor grew up in Montville, New Jersey and graduated from The George Washington University with a degree in Political Science.



• Jason Gleason

Jason Gleason

Jason Gleason is an Executive Vice President at Crossroads Strategies with expertise in many areas such as energy, environment, and the tech sector. He thrives in solving complex problems that require difficult political and policy decisions. Jason has helped clients develop and implement advocacy strategies to secure federal funding from numerous agencies, advance legislation on challenging issues, and build longstanding relationships with key decision-makers. He helps lead Crossroads’ engagement with the House Democratic Caucus.

Jason joined Crossroads Strategies in 2018 after nearly two decades of service in the House and Senate. As Chief of Staff for Congressman John Sarbanes (D-MD), Jason helped secure the Congressman’s assignment on the prestigious Energy and Commerce Committee. He advised the Congressman throughout the committee’s consideration of the Affordable Care Act, as well as comprehensive climate change and energy legislation. Jason also served on the staff of former Senator Paul Sarbanes (D-MD). During that time, Sarbanes chaired the Senate Banking Committee and authored the landmark Sarbanes-Oxley law. Jason led the Maryland Congressional Delegation’s successful 2005 BRAC campaign, bringing tens of thousands of high-tech and intelligence jobs to the state.

Jason graduated from Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg, VA with a B.A. in History.



• Amilia Glickman

Amilia Glickman

Amilia is a lobbyist representing KP’s clients on various environmental regulatory, legislative, and policy issues. She is an attorney with 20 years of experience in environmental law and policy in both the public and private sectors.

Before joining KP in 2022, Amilia worked as an attorney for the State of California, including as Chief Counsel for the Department of Toxic Substances Control and as a Deputy Legislative Counsel for the Office of Legislative Counsel. Amilia also previously worked as an environmental law attorney with the law firm of Downey Brand LLP, and as a legal research attorney with the Superior Court of California, County of Sacramento.



• Ed Hill

Ed Hill

A Partner at Forbes Tate Partners, Ed is a recognized expert in financial services policy and advocacy. With over 30 years of experience in the field, he advises and works with clients that have policy issues before Congress and financial regulators.

Most recently, Ed served as Senior Vice President and Head of Government Affairs for the Bank Policy Institute. In that role, he helped to lead BPI’s federal advocacy efforts on member company priorities, including those in the areas of capital and liquidity, consumer banking, technology, and national security.

Prior to joining BPI, Mr. Hill spent nearly two decades with Bank of America representing the bank before federal policy makers on issues including capital markets reforms, investment research, and retail banking. He also worked for the National Governors Association, the Financial Services Roundtable, and Ernst & Young, LLP in their Bank Regulatory and Risk Management Practice.

Mr. Hill holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Emory University, a Master of Public Policy from Georgetown University, and a Master of Science in Finance from George Washington University.



• Jay Ireland

Jay Ireland

A senior advisor to Concordant and Co-founder of Earlylands, a strategy and risk advisory firm focused on global markets, Jay Ireland brings decades of cross-functional, senior leadership experience, including a 38-year career with GE in a wide variety of senior positions across business units and functions. Jay is also currently the executive chairman of Milele Energy, a power-generation company investing in clean-energy projects across sub-Saharan Africa.

As the CEO of GE Africa (2011-2018), Jay led GE’s operations on the sub-continent, growing revenue in Africa from $750M to nearly $4B. Other leadership roles included CEO of GE Asset Management, President of NBC Universal Television Stations, CFO of GE Plastics, and Director of Investor Relations. Jay was a GE company officer and member of the company’s Corporate Executive Council.

Jay is a board member of the Mastercard Foundation and a non-executive director of the publicly-listed Gates Industrial Corporation. He is also a Trustee of St. Lawrence University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1977.



• Stephanie Leger

Stephanie Leger

Stephanie brings 25 years of legislative policy experience in public, private and non-profit sectors to CRS.

Starting her career with Senator John Breaux, she rose to Legislative Counsel primarily focused on energy issues before moving to the private sector. Returning to public service, Leger served as the Director of Louisiana’s D.C. office for Governor Kathleen Blanco and worked closely with state, local and federal governments in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. She also served as Deputy Projects Director for Senator Mary Landrieu helping secure funding for numerous projects in Louisiana through the appropriations process. Leger left the Senate to work for Securing America’s Future Energy, a non-profit focused on energy security, as Senior Director.

Since 2012, Stephanie has focused primarily on energy issues first working for and then representing a large domestic independent oil and gas exploration company.

A graduate of Louisiana State University, Stephanie holds a J.D. from the Catholic University Columbus School of Law.



• Rich Lopez

Rich Lopez

A Senior Vice President at Forbes Tate Partners, Rich specializes in Transportation issues and Hispanic Diversity. In addition to working with the White House and Capitol Hill, he has extensive working knowledge of the Department of Transportation, the Federal Communications Commission, and the Federal Trade Commission.

Prior to joining Forbes Tate Partners, Rich was Director of Federal and Administration Affairs at General Motors. He specialized in Safety, Emerging Technologies, Defense Appropriations and Intellectual Property. Rich was also GM’s Hispanic liaison in Washington, D.C. where he served on the Corporate Advisory Boards of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI), the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute (CHLI), UnidosUS and League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC). Additionally, Rich is proud to be a founding Board Member of the Hispanic Lobbyists Association (HLA).

Before joining GM, Rich spent nine years at the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, three years at the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities and two years on his own where he successfully built and managed his own fundraising firm.

Prior to these experiences Rich began his career working on statewide campaigns in Nevada and Texas, as well as working in and with the Texas State legislature.

Rich holds a bachelor’s degree in political science with a double minor in economics and Spanish from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Rich lives in Washington D.C. with his wife, two children and their rescue dog.



• Alison Macleod

Alison Macleod

Alison is a Partner at KP and runs a wide variety of local and statewide public relations programs for KP clients. She has extensive experience in strategic communications programs, media relations, coalition building, project siting, grassroots outreach, stakeholder engagement and community education. Her clients include local governments, healthcare associations, transportation agencies, non-profits, businesses and trade groups.



• Ed Manning

Ed Manning

Ed is a Partner at KP. He is a registered lobbyist and an attorney specializing in environmental, energy, water, and resource issues with over 30 years of experience. Ed has managed broad coalitions and developed winning strategies on diverse issues including construction defect reform, water supply, climate change, gaming, energy infrastructure, and transportation infrastructure issues.



• Rachel Miller

Rachel Miller

A Managing Partner at Forbes Tate Partners, she leads the firm’s energy practice. She is a highly respected energy and environmental expert with 16 years of corporate, regulatory, and congressional experience,

Rachel joined the firm as a Senior Vice President in 2012 – providing clients with unique government relations strategies, coalition management, third party outreach and deep ties within Executive Branch agencies and throughout Capitol Hill.

In today’s budget-focused times, Ms. Miller’s deep knowledge of the federal appropriations and budget processes has proven to be an invaluable asset. She has helped countless clients secure large Department of Energy grants – which, in turn, enable their projects to move forward.

Prior to joining Forbes Tate Partners, Ms. Miller served as Vice President of Energy and Environment Practice at Capitol Solutions. Before that, she worked on mandatory climate change legislation and policies to support low-carbon power, as Director of Federal Affairs for BP America. There, she co-founded the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Contact Group and managed BP’s legislative agenda within the U.S. Climate Action Partnership (USCAP).

Ms. Miller served for nearly four years as Legislative Assistant to Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), the former Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, as a policy advisor on energy, transportation, and agriculture issues.

While on Senator Feinstein’s staff, Rachel drafted legislation that laid the groundwork for the first statutory increase in fuel economy standards adopted since 1975. She also played a key role in drafting energy market transparency legislation that was eventually incorporated as part of the 2008 Farm Bill.

Ms. Miller also served in the House of Representatives as a Legislative Assistant for former Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY). She focused on energy policy, the environment, and education issues.

She was founder and President of the National Board of the Women’s Energy Network (WEN), and is a past President and founder of the DC Chapter of WEN. Born and raised in New York, Ms. Miller received a Bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University and a Master’s degree in Political Management from George Washington University.



• Keenan Austin Reed

Keenan Austin Reed

Keenan, a Principal of Alpine Group and Capitol Hill veteran, has spent the past decade guiding and advising principals in all levels of government. In her role as Chief of Staff, she served as the Congressman's top policy advisor and an advisor to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, where she crafted strategies to elevate the Congressman’s work as a national leader on climate change, environmental justice and rural broadband. She also led McEachin’s work as the Whip of the Congressional Black Caucus, building consensus around the Caucus’ priorities and advancing its agenda with House leadership.

In 2018, Keenan co-founded the Black Women’s Congressional Alliance (BWCA), a membership organization of more than 300 bipartisan and bicameral Black women Hill staffers. She has led dozens of professional development briefings, events and webinars to inform staffers about new career opportunities, provided a platform to elevate their profiles to the broader Capitol Hill community, and pushed growth in diverse hiring in the United States House and Senate. BWCA has been featured in the Majority Leaders Podcast, The Brown Girl’s Guide to Politics Podcast, VICE, Essence Magazine, and Washingtonian.

During the 2016 presidential election, Keenan served as Hillary for America’s Statewide Political Director in Florida, the largest political battleground state in the country. In that role, she was responsible for all federal, state, and local elected relationships within the state on behalf of the campaign and also managed the organization’s largest political staff. Previously, Keenan served as Chief of Staff to Councilmember David Grosso of the Council of the District of Columbia City. Prior to that, she served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to Florida Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (FL-24), managing a portfolio including political outreach, stakeholder engagement, constituent services, and legislation. In 2010, she managed Congresswoman Wilson’s first election to Congress.

A proud Rattler, Keenan received her bachelor’s degree and MBA from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU). She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.



• Joe Rinzel

Joe Rinzel

Joe Rinzel joined MultiState in 2019 and currently serves as Principal and a member of MultiState's Board of Directors. Joe is part of the Strategic Government Relations team and runs several different issue campaigns for MultiState clients. In addition to strategic assistance to clients, Joe also works to promote MultiState’s services, including issue management, compliance, and lobbying services.

Prior to joining MultiState, Joe was Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), which represents America’s largest and fastest-growing retailers. Joe led the association’s lobbying efforts on priority issues at the federal, state, and local levels in addition to managing multi-million-dollar issue campaigns in all 50 states on behalf of the industry.

Prior to RILA, Joe served as Senior Director of Public Affairs and lead spokesperson for the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), an organization of state legislators. Most recently, he was a partner at Align Public Strategies, a boutique public affairs firm with a focus on helping corporate brands navigate external relations in order to inform their internal decision-making. Joe currently serves as communications chair for the State Government Affairs Council (SGAC). He is a graduate of Villanova University and lives in Washington, DC.



• Elisabeth Rutledge

Elisabeth Rutledge

A senior advisor to Concordant, Elisabeth draws upon 25+ years of experience in advocacy communication, strategic message development, coalition management, campaign development and reputation management. Elisabeth combines strong strategic vision with seamless tactical planning to deliver nimble and results-oriented campaigns and crisis communications strategies.

Elisabeth has worked with clients large and small to protect and enhance their brand equity and stakeholder relationships. Her clients have included some of the country’s best-known names in energy, health insurance, healthcare distribution, retail, private equity, civil rights advocacy, and transportation.



Elisabeth’s career has featured roles as a senior vice president at The Eller Group and Hill + Knowlton Strategies, as well as a managing director at Public Strategies.



Previously, Elisabeth worked as a communications and grassroots-organizing consultant for clients nationwide. She has held field, fundraising and press positions on political campaigns and worked as a Legislative Aide for then-Representative Debbie Stabenow on Capitol Hill.



She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in American Studies. Elisabeth is also a graduate of the Leadership Texas program and is a board member of the Texas Humane Legislation Network.



• Jason Schendle

Jason Schendle

Jason Schendle joined the Alpine Group with an emphasis on energy and environment policy issues. Prior to joining the Alpine Group, Mr. Schendle served as a Washington Representative with the American Petroleum Institute focusing on exploration and production issues. He served as the point person on the Gulf of Mexico Security Act of 2006, issues surrounding royalty relief and represented API on a large coalition of companies and trade associations focused on Outer Continental Shelf issues. Before API, Mr. Schendle served nearly nine years with Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) where he was her primary energy, environment and agriculture advisor as well as any energy related tax issues. In his capacity as Legislative Counsel, Mr. Schendle advised the Senator during the Energy Policy Act of 2005 which established the $1 billion Coastal Impact Assistance Program as well as the 2002 Farm Bill.

At Alpine, Mr. Schendle advises clients on legislative and regulatory strategy as well as their PAC contributions. His diverse portfolio includes preparing clients to testify before Congress on legislative and regulatory topics as well as testimony in the investigative and oversight realm. He has an in depth understanding of all stages of the legislative process. His client portfolio includes trade associations to serving as the Washington representative for companies without a Government Relations office in Washington. He has strong bi-cameral and bi-partisan contacts.

Some of the legislative efforts where he has played a significant role include the Energy Policy Act of 2007, the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty and Job Creation Act of 2011 and the RESTORE Act of 2012.



• Jessyca Sheehan

Jessyca Sheehan

Jessyca Sheehan has extensive experience partnering with state, national and global organizations on high-profile, strategic communication and public affairs campaigns on energy and climate issues.

As the lead for Lucas Public Affairs’ work in energy and climate, Jessyca brings a depth of experience in corporate communications, strategy and message development, issues management and crisis communications to the firm’s clients spanning water, energy, technology, transportation and more.

Jessyca provides strategic guidance to LPA clients, managing statewide public affairs campaigns and corporate initiatives. She is also a sought-after speaker, leading public speaking and message training seminars for Fortune 500 companies, nonprofit organizations and senior executives. She serves as a valued member of the firm’s executive team and is an experienced mentor for the staff.

Before joining LPA, Jessyca was vice president of a Bay Area-based public affairs agency where she oversaw strategic communications and engagement programs for high-profile statewide initiatives in the energy and utility sector. Previously, she was a director at the Sacramento office of APCO Worldwide where she led the firm’s North America Energy and Clean Tech practice. Earlier, she worked at the California Chamber of Commerce supporting public affairs activities and at a statewide nonprofit organization.

Jessyca has a Bachelor of Arts in English and French from the University of California, Los Angeles. Following her graduation, she taught English at a high school in the southwest of France. Jessyca is an avid runner with countless long-distance runs under her belt, including numerous half-marathons in national parks across the western U.S.



• Hon. Greg Walden

Hon. Greg Walden

Chairman of Alpine Group, Former Congressman Greg Walden represented the people of Oregon’s vast, Second Congressional District from 1999-2021. He chaired the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee which has jurisdiction over telecommunications, health care, medical research, energy and consumer safety issues.

As a member of that committee for 20 of his 22 years in the House, he led legislative efforts in telecommunications and spectrum issues; energy grid security and reliability; confronting the opioids epidemic and expanding access to affordable health care.

His colleagues twice elected him to lead the National Republican Congressional Committee, the national campaign arm of the U.S. House GOP, where under his leadership House Republicans attained their largest back-to-back majorities in history.

Before his election to Congress, Walden served eight years in the Oregon House and Senate, where his state House GOP colleagues twice elected him Majority Leader.

Walden and his wife, Mylene, owned and operated radio stations in Oregon for more than two decades. He served on the local community hospital board and on the board of a community bank.

He is a graduate of the University of Oregon School of Journalism.

Currently, he and his wife own MSW Communications, and he serves on advisory boards working on innovative solutions to climate change, and advancements in health care.



• Brian White

Brian White

Brian is a Partner at KP. He is a registered lobbyist, providing strategic counsel on policy, regulatory consulting, and advocacy for a variety of clients. He represents clients in discussions with the Governor’s Office, California Legislature, regulatory agencies, including for clients such as Cypress Creek Renewables, Off Shore Wind CA, Pacific Merchant Shipping Assn, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Tenaska, International Code Council, Visions In Education, Association of Personalized Schools & Services, CA Licensed Foresters Assn, Forest Landowners of CA, and Hipcamp. With an extensive government affairs background, Brian is a seasoned public policy and legislative strategist who holds expertise in many policy areas. His experience in building coalitions and fostering positive relationships for a diverse client base makes Brian particularly adept in finding proactive solutions that positively benefits clients while also being able to neutralize potential negative threats.



• Sarah Wills

  CEO
Sarah Wills CEO

A global business leader with over 30 years of experience in politics and policy, corporate strategy, communications, marketing, brand, and corporate citizenship, Sarah Wills is a trusted advisor to corporate, government and non-profit leaders across markets and industries.

Recognized for excellence in corporate affairs, Sarah has a uniquely broad lens developed from her experience as a political consultant, policy advisor in both chambers on Capitol Hill and to a Governor, and in leadership roles supporting CEOs in the finance, industrial, technology and healthcare sectors.

Prior to leading Concordant Advisory, Ms. Wills served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Cardinal Health, where she presided over communications, government relations, enterprise marketing, brand, and ESG. Earlier in her career, Wills spent ten years at GE serving in leadership roles within government relations, communications and global strategy, followed by a stint leading corporate affairs at Tempus AI, a precision medicine startup company.

Before her corporate career, Sarah spent fifteen years in politics and policy, initially as an Associate for David Axelrod and Associates, then several years as a Legislative Assistant on Capitol Hill, Senior Policy Counsel to the Governor of New Jersey, and Executive Director for New Jobs for New York, a 501(c)(3) launched by then U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and Roger Altman, founder of Evercore.

Based in Chicago, Ms. Wills serves on the Board of Directors of the Joffrey Ballet and the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio and is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center and Illinois Wesleyan University.