2017 Washington Leadership Program Session III: Politics and Policy Makers

WLP Session III:  Politics and Policymakers will focus on the power of storytelling to influence politics and policy making – both as constituents and as politicians and policy makers.  This session will connect participants with politicians and policymakers that reflect their heritage, and introduce then to different paths to becoming a policy maker or engaging in politics. This session will demonstrate the ways storytelling plays a role in policy and advocacy efforts, while identifing ways to use or refute storytelling to reach dissenters. Lastly, attendees will be encouraged to consider how they can use their own experiences and stories to shape their advocacy efforts. Registration for the event will begin at 5:30pm with our program following promptly at 6:00pm. All WLP sessions are free to the public, but seating is limited. Please register online to reserve your seat. Dinner will be provided.  

Speakers

Christopher Kang is National Director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA), a coalition of 34 Asian Pacific American organizations, and formerly a Board Member and Legal Counsel for CAPAL.

From 2009 to 2015, he served in the White House, as Deputy Counsel and Deputy Assistant to President Barack Obama; Senior Counsel to the President; and Special Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs. In the White House Counsel’s Office, he was in charge of the selection, vetting and confirmation of President Obama’s judicial nominees, and he advised the President on commutations and executive clemency. In the Office of Legislative Affairs, Chris advocated for the Obama Administration’s initiatives in Congress. He led the legislative outreach and strategy for the confirmations of Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, the Senate’s successful effort to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and the reduction of the sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine offenses. He also played a supporting role in the passage of the Affordable Care Act. Chris worked for seven years for U.S. Senate Assistant Democratic Leader Richard Durbin (D-IL), as Director of Floor Operations, as Judiciary Committee Counsel handling constitutional and criminal justice issues, and as Counsel for labor issues.

Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke is the Founder and Principal of Arum Group, LLC.  She has 20 years of experience working in political campaigns and specializes in political/non-profit fundraising and political training. Ms. Mielke began her professional career working at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in the Training Division of the Political Department and later for the Clinton/Gore Coordinated ’96 campaign as a Regional Field Director in Pennsylvania.

After returning from the ’96 campaign, Ms. Mielke worked for the Co-Executive Director at the Presidential Inaugural Committee and later to Vice President’s Gore team. Ms. Mielke started fundraising while working at the New Democrat Network PAC and she returned to her roots as the Training Director for the Ron Brown-Paul Tully Institute (BTI), the training arm of the DNC.  In 2002 Ms. Mielke started her political consulting firm, specializing in fundraising and political training. Madalene has collaborated with the NAACP National Voter Fund, John Kerry for President, Democratic National Committee Asian American Leadership Council, Mike Honda for Congress, Friends of Hillary, CHC BOLD PAC, Akaka for US Senate, Xavier Becerra for Congress, Mazie Hirono for Congress, Honda for Congress, America’s Opportunity Fund, Asian American Action (AAA) Fund and Young Democrats of America while working to advance the progressive agenda by raising millions of dollars to empower communities of color.

While building her business, Madalene has been a featured speaker at many conferences and trainings including the American Medical Association (AMA), Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS), Democratic GAIN, Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership (CAPAL), and numerous other organizations and non-profits.  

She has spent her entire professional political career working to bring diversity to the political process and nurturing candidates and staff as they move forward in bringing political change.  The Vietnamese American Chamber of Commerce awarded Ms. Mielke with its National Community Service award for her work in mentoring and promoting Vietnamese American civic participation. Ms. Mielke sits on the Board of Directors for Democratic GAIN and is the Advisory Council Chair for the Women’s Information Network (WIN), an organization dedicated to the advancement of Democratic pro-choice women.

Support for the Politics and Policy Makers session is sponsored by AARP

More About The Washington Leadership Program

The Washington Leadership Program (WLP) provides a space for young AANHPI students interning in Washington, D.C. to come together, build community, and explore their heritage within the context of public service. Through five sessions over the summer, WLP introduces students to AANHPI public service leaders who can inform and inspire students’ own civic engagement.

The Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership (CAPAL) seeks to empower Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) youth by increasing access to public service opportunities and building a strong AANHPI public service pipeline. We envisions a future with equitable AANHPI representation throughout all levels of government and public service.

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**Registration for this event is now closed. Please contact Camille Sanchez (camille.sanchez@capal.org) to be added to a waitlist or for further questions.**

By registering for CAPAL’s Washington Leadership Program, you give permission to be recorded or photographed during the session. Food provided at this event may contain nuts, dairy, gluten, and other allergens. Vegetarian options will be available.

Check out our other WLP sessions!