The latest from our coworker in Iraq...

If you’ve been around the Capitol Campus scene for quite awhile, you likely know Patrick McDonald, who works in our office as special assistant to Secretary of State Sam Reed. (He also happens to be the fellow who was having dinner with Gov. Gregoire in Iraq, while the rest of the country was wondering where she was at last month.) Patrick is serving in Iraq as part of the Washington National Guard’s 81st Brigade; his role is to assist and consult the Iraqi government with its elections. Last Friday, Patrick sent us a version of a Stars and Stripes story about the big election in Iraq and the degree to which Multi-National Force-Iraq is assisting with security and other matters related to the election... Here is an excerpt of the story that mentions Patrick and his role:

Multi-National Force-Iraq has been providing logistics and security support, but also provided a civilian and military expert in the electoral field in the guise of a Master Sergeant, reservist Patrick McDonald. “My role has gone from not only being a liaison to the Electoral Commission but also a history book providing whatever I can from the lessons learned in 2005,” noted McDonald who, in his civilian job, is Assistant to Washington’s Secretary of State and was in the same role at MNF-I during the 2005 vote. "While many of the challenges are the same, especially in the area of logistics and security, much has changed. This is an incredibly quiet place compared to 2005,” said McDonald, who was wounded twice during his last deployment. "Clearly they have laid the foundation to a lasting electoral process, but much remains to see how integrated the population is into the concept of voting and creating real change in their lives."

(For some reason, the online version of the Stars and Stripes story doesn’t include the part that mentions Patrick.) We wish Patrick and the rest of our troops all the best. Our office is proud of what he is doing over there.