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From Window magazine: 'Presidential Wordsmith'

Think that a job as a White House speechwriter is glamorous?

Jesse Moore (’05, Political Science) will tell you it’s also a lot of long days, late nights and endless text revisions – sometimes just to get a single word or phrase exactly right for an audience far outside Washington, D.C. Sometimes he’s so tired at the end of the day, he falls asleep with his suit and shoes still on. But he wouldn’t trade his life for anyone else’s.

“It’s amazing work,” says Moore, who grew up in Lynnwood. “We are really touching a lot of lives with what we’re doing here. I really believe in the president, and the work we are trying to accomplish, wholeheartedly.”

Six years ago, Moore, now 32, used up some vacation time from his job in Western’s Office of Admissions to work for Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign for president. Moore went door-to-door in Las Vegas, urging residents to volunteer and attend the Democratic primary caucuses. He then moved on to Seattle, where he organized voter protection attorneys and assisted prominent politicians. He worked as a regional field director and political officer in several states. After Obama won, Moore accepted a political appointment as a media spokesman and strategist at the Department of Health and Human Services.

Today, Moore works in the White House’s Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, where he works closely with Valerie Jarrett, President Obama’s senior adviser. He writes everything from op-eds and blogs, to informal remarks or commencement addresses for senior White House officials. He also contributes to talking points or remarks for the president when he is set to address groups of key leaders or stakeholders.

Jason Green, who gave Moore his start by inviting him to volunteer with the Obama campaign, says Moore has “a very sophisticated contextual understanding of the moment.

Read the rest of this story on the website for Window magazine.