Street: Heard you’re doing something cool this summer! What are you doing?
TH: I'm interning for the Brookings Institution, a think tank in Washington, DC. Specifically, I work for Lawfare, a national security blog affiliated with Brookings. Lawfare is devoted to hard national security choices.
Street: Whoa! National security. Are you training to become the next Jack Bauer or something?
TH: (Laughs) As an intern, I work on blog posts, events coverage, and tagging and categorizing posts to make it easier for our readers to access content. It's interesting and challenging, and the best internship I've ever had.
Street: What kind of content does Lawfare publish?
TH: Lots of content gets put up there. Recently, we've published stuff on the capture of Ahmed Abu Khattala, the release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, all issues related to Guantanamo, Snowden, etc. However, it's not just like a news blog. We don't just cover the fact that things happen. Instead, it's analyzed from a legal, technical, experiential framework. The people who write for Lawfare are really impressive professionals. Many of them are law professors, lawyers, law students, people who work in or used to work in government, etc.
Street: Wow, they sound like some powerhouse co-workers. Is it tough working in an environment with such seasoned professionals?
TH: They are all really smart, (I'm kind of in awe of them!) which is what makes this internship challenging. I really want to please these people and live up to their expectations. Plus, as my boss has said multiple times, the learning curve in terms of national security is sometimes vertical. There is just so much to learn! It's great, though, because this is really what I want to do. I find national security - which, in fairness, encompasses a lot: Middle East affairs, cyber-security, war studies - so fascinating.
Street: You mentioned that Lawfare holds events. Are we talking cocktail parties at the White House or what?
TH: We hold events on a bunch of different stuff. Recently, Lawfare held a debate examining prospects for FISA / NSA reform post-Snowden. I also attend random events held at Brookings that I find interesting. The other day I went to an event on UN peacekeeping, and there was another one a few days ago on the situation in Iraq.
Street: Where are you staying in D.C.?
TH: I am living on George Washington University's campus in the Foggy Bottom/West End area. It's the perfect location for students, full of exciting things and young people.
Street: Oooo like what? This is good info for the people planning trips to D.C.!
TH: Foggy Bottom is just awesome. It has everything a college kid could want - two grocery stores, a Sweetgreen (which let's be real, Sweetgreen and Sweet Flow are very important), multiple CVS's, and plenty of dive bars. It’s the ideal place to be.
Street: You had me at “dive bars.” Do you have a favorite spot?
TH: There's one place called McFadden's that gives out free happy hours all the time. There are just tons of bars everywhere in D.C. in general. Most days after work, I go out for happy hour with the other interns.
Street: What’s the coolest thing that’s happened to you in D.C. so far?
TH: Being published under my own name with Lawfare is pretty incredible. It is very rare for a young person without a degree to get such immediate coverage.
Street: Final question, because I have to ask…Have you run into any of the Obamas yet??
TH: (Laughs) Not the Obamas, unfortunately. Ben Bernanke, former chairman of the Federal Reserve (aka the guy who weathered us through the 2008 crash) works at Brookings, though. I see him in the cafeteria all the time.
