Dan Gerstein
Founder and President
Dan Gerstein is a nationally recognized political writer, communications strategist, and idea man with extensive experience advising high-level public figures and mounting persuasive arguments on issues of public concern.
Gerstein spent 11 years as a speechwriter and communications strategist on Capitol Hill and for two presidential campaigns before becoming a political consultant and commentator based in New York City. Most recently, Gerstein, 40, has become a national media figure as a contributing columnist for The Wall Street Journal and The Politico and as a regular analyst on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC.
Gerstein began his career in politics as a legislative aide to Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, specializing in education, telecommunication, and cultural issues. He went on to serve as communications director in Lieberman's Senate office for five years, acting as chief message strategist, spokesman, and speechwriter, as well as a senior policy advisor.
During his time in the Senate, Gerstein collaborated with Lieberman on hundreds of speeches and statements, from major policy addresses before world leaders to Lieberman's winning monologue for the 1999 Funniest Celebrity in Washington contest. Most notably, Gerstein worked closely with Lieberman on his headline-making speech from the Senate floor on the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal in 1998.
Gerstein also served as a senior strategist and aide on Lieberman's two national campaigns. He was chief national spokesman and a contributing speechwriter for Lieberman on the Gore-Lieberman campaign, working with the senator on a widely praised, nationally televised address on the role of religion in public life at the University of Notre Dame. In 2003, Gerstein was deputy communications director for Lieberman's presidential campaign, where he coordinated the strategic planning process, directed the policy and speechwriting operations, and wrote and edited the campaign's 80-page policy blueprint.
Gerstein moved to New York in 2004 and formed his own consulting firm, Dan Gerstein Consulting (DGC), which specializes in developing communications strategies for advocacy groups and political campaigns. Clients have included the National Religious Partnership for the Environment, Duke University's Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, the National Council on Teacher Quality, the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools, and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.
In the fall of 2006, Gerstein helped engineer Senator Lieberman's historic re-election in the nationally watched U.S. Senate race in Connecticut. He served as communications director and also acted as a lead strategist for Lieberman's general election campaign, which was honored by National Journal as the political Comeback of the Year for 2006.
Gerstein is a native of West Hartford, Connecticut, and a graduate of Harvard College, with a B.A. in history. Before entering politics, he was an award-winning reporter for The Hartford Courant, where he covered local news, government, and sports for four years.
He currently resides in Manhattan, where he is active in local politics and civic life. He is the cofounder of Food for Thought, a monthly discussion group that brings together accomplished young professionals from across the city's political spectrum to chew on new, thought-provoking ideas. He is also a member of the New York Public Library's Young Lions organization, the New York Film Forum, the Lincoln Center Film Society, and the Public Theater. 
"Dan Gerstein is a unique triple threat — a brilliant writer, a wise and savvy political analyst, and probably the best press and media communications strategist I have ever met. I have known and worked with many people who are excellent at one or two of these skills — but there's no one else like Dan, who has all three at a level that simply doesn't get any better."
- Lanny J. Davis
Former Special Counsel to President Clinton
Head of Legal Strategic and Crisis Communications Group
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
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