Bill Dauster

Deputy Chief of Staff, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (since 2010)

Why He Matters

Dauster's political philosophy is best captured by Vice President Hubert Humphrey, who said that "the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life the twilight of life and those who are in the shadows of life."

As an expert in Senate procedures and fiscal policies, Dauster has helped draft and pass dozens of bills, including legislation that provided affordable health care to children, campaign finance reform and cheaper medical prescriptions for the poor and elderly.

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: Deputy Staff Director and General Counsel for the Senate Finance Committee (since 2003-2010) Senior Counsel and Legislative Director, Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wisc.) (2000 to 2003); Deputy Director, National Economic Council (1999 to 2000); Democratic Staff Director and Chief Counsel, Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources
Birthday: Nov. 25, 1957
Hometown: Sacramento, Calif.
Alma Mater: University of Southern California, B.A., 1978; University of Southern California, M.A. 1981, Columbia University, J.D. 1984

Religion: Jewish
DC Office:
Web site

Path to Power

Dauster was born in Kensington, Md. He was in high school when the Watergate hearings started, and he remembers watching them on television. Seeing Congress in action, he said, convinced him that he wanted to go into the government.

Dauster received his undergraduate degree in 1978 and his master's degree in economics from in 1981 from the University of Southern California.

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That summer, he moved across the country to attend Columbia Law School. He graduated in 1984 and then accepted a job as an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, one of the most prestigious law firms in the county.

In 1986, he married Ellen L. Weintraub, another lawyer who is now a member of the Federal Election Commission.

Dauster moved to Washington in 1986 to work as the chief counsel on the Senate Budget Committee. He said that passing President Bill Clinton's first budget was the most challenging legislative battle he has ever fought.

In 1997, Dauster accepted a job with the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources. He has served as the committee's deputy Democratic staff director, Democratic staff Director and chief counsel. In 1998, he left that position to work on the presidential exploratory committee of Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.).

He moved to the White House in 1999 to work as deputy economic adviser to President Bill Clinton.

Dauster returned to Capitol Hill in 2000 to serve as senior counsel and legislative director for Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.). He helped Feingold draft the McCain-Feingold law that banned soft-money contributions and tightened requirements for donations to political campaigns and parties. As a member of the FEC, his wife later reshaped the bill to comply with Supreme Court rulings on the legislation.

In 2003, Dauster accepted a position as deputy staff director and general counsel with the Senate Finance Committee. He develops hearing schedules, edits speeches, advises the chairman and choreographs a bill's movement on the Senate floor.

Dauster has written several books about Senate procedure.

Dauster devotes most of his spare time to reading and studying the Torah. He not only attends a weekly Torah study group (once visited by Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.)), he also created summaries of each of the 54 weekly Torah readings for Wikipedia. He adds analysis and discussion points every week on the Web site.

Baucus occasionally asks Dauster for Torah quotes he can use in speeches.

The Issues

As a fiscal policy expert, Dauster helped draft much of the legislation that emerged from the Senate Finance Committee over the years. In 2007, he helped write 12 bills that were eventually signed into law, including legislation on taxes, health care and international trade.

He has focused on health-care policy, legislation that protects children and the elderly and protecting the poor and disabled. "If I can give something back to society that would be great," he wrote.

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The Network

In the 112th Congress, Dauster was deputy chief of staff to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), working for Chief of Staff David Krone.

Dauster is close to many of his former and current bosses, including Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and former Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), and was close to the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass).

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Additional Resources