06.26.07
SENATOR MURKOWSKI ANNOUNCES NEW CHIEF OF STAFF
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Murkowski today announced Karen Knutson as her new Chief of Staff. Knutson is a long-time Alaskan with years of experience on Capitol Hill. She will begin on August 21st.
Knutson joins Senator Murkowski’s office from the Business Software Alliance, where she serves as Vice President of Government Relations. In this capacity Knutson coordinates policy activities in the more than 80 countries where BSA has operations. She directs strategy and policy campaigns on issues such as electronic commerce, intellectual property protection and patent reform, among others.
Knutson is enthusiastic about returning to Capitol Hill, “I am very excited to have been offered the job of Senator Lisa Murkowski’s Chief of Staff. I will be working for a State that I love and for a Senator that I greatly respect. Senator Murkowski has a dynamic agenda for the state and I am proud to be asked to be a part of her team.”
Prior to her employment at the Business Software Alliance, Knutson has a long history of public service. Knutson also served as Deputy Assistant to Vice President Cheney for Domestic Policy, where she played a crucial role in composing the President’s National Energy Policy. Knutson began her career in Washington, D.C. as a legislative assistant for then Senator Frank Murkowski before advancing to work as Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison’s Appropriations Counsel and Senator Sam Brownback’s Legislative Director.
“Karen’s experience in both the public and the private sector, as well as her knowledge of and love for Alaska make her an extremely valuable addition to my staff,” said Senator Murkowski.
Knutson received her B.A. from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and her J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law. She grew up in Ketchikan, Alaska.
