Jack Uhl
Staff Assistant
Senate HELP Committee
Jack Uhl is a Staff Assistant on the Senate HELP Committee, where he works in a non-partisan, non-designated position assisting the Chief Clerk with running hearings and executive sections.
He’s been on the Hill since January, where he started as an intern for Sen. Bill Cassidy and then moved over to the HELP Committee this past April.
Growing up (and currently still living) in Rockville, Jack was never far from the Hill and looked up to a lot of people who worked there, in the DOJ, or in a different federal agency. As someone who always loved the area, he saw a career in politics as a “natural step.”
🎶 Having no Louisiana ties, Jack describes his connection to Sen. Cassidy’s office as “music and food.”
After graduating from high school, Jack took a gap year and wanted to be a cruise ship musician. When the pandemic sank those plans, he pivoted and enrolled in a summer program at the Berklee College of Music where he made a few key connections.
Fast forward to his time at St. Mary’s College, Jack’s roommate (and current bandmate) and a friend he’d met at Berklee turned out to be mutual connections and both have dads who are famous chefs. One of those chefs is the owner of Bayou Bakery (which serves authentic Louisiana food) and has a son who interned with Sen. Cassidy.
It’s a long story, but… the power of music and food does in fact tie Jack to Louisiana.
Although he’s only been on the Hill for roughly a year now, Jack’s journey included many steps beforehand – including multiple internships, serving as an election judge, and taking a college Congress course where he simulated the Senate HELP Committee (subtle foreshadowing).
His Backstory
🏠 Hometown: Rockville, Maryland
🎓 College: St. Mary's College of Maryland
⬇️ Get to know more about Jack ⬇️
Want to meet the Staff Assistant who’s in an indie rock band?
Oh, you should talk to Jack Uhl!
🔗 CNCT with Jack about…
Where his band is playing next
His recent Ireland trip 🇮🇪
Video game recommendations
Playing guitar 🎸
More On Jack’s Band
Jack’s been playing music since he was seven years old. He started out on the piano, then did percussion throughout school; however, it wasn’t until he found the electric guitar that he became a complete music “nerd”.
A lover of all types of music, Jack is always willing to talk (even for a few hours) about it. He describes it as his passion outside of politics.
🎶 Jack’s indie rock band, which formed out of college, is a five-piece called Lookout. They have a few original songs and a full EP coming out in December.
If you like bands like Peach Pit, Backseat Lovers, and Flip Turn, give Lookout a listen!
Jack’s love for music and politics came together at a music policy event in the Capitol. There, he met someone named Adam Reiver, a personal friend of Eddie Van Halen and former guitar tech.
🎸 Jack showed Adam a clip of him performing Eddie’s guitar solo on the Michael Jackson song “Beat It,” and Adam said, “I can't believe there is a Capitol Hill staffer that knows what a superstrat is!”
“I felt truly honored as a musician that a friend of one of my guitar heroes admired my guitar playing,” says Jack.
❤️ Jack’s Favorites
Coffee Spot: Cups
Bar: The Dubliner
Lunch Spot: Thai or KBBQ in the Rockville Town Center
TV Show: Severance
Movie: The Dark Knight
Jack’s Fun Fact: Did you know that, in the movie, Bruce Wayne drives a Lamborghini Murciélago LP640 and that “murciélago” is Spanish for “bat”?
📚 Jack’s Reading List
12 Rules for Life, by Jordan Peterson
The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown
Waiting for the Barbarians, by J. M. Coetzee
Curiosity is Key 🔑
Open-mindedness and a sense of curiosity towards others isn’t just something Jack uses when networking, it’s something he lives by.
“Everybody that you meet, assume that they know something that you don’t know, regardless of who they are,” says Jack.
He argues that if you think about everyone this way, it naturally makes you a more curious person in your conversations. “It makes any conversation interesting,” Jack says.
When a conversation hits a wall, it’s very easy to resort to looking at your phone or just moving on to the next conversation but, with a curious mindset, there can always be something new to learn from someone.
“I really think that the more exposure you get to different kinds of people and different philosophies, the more information that you have to form your worldview and challenge it,” says Jack.
We’re not cats! A little curiosity won’t hurt.
Jack’s Capitol Corner
💎 D.C. Hidden Gem: Pie Shop (music venue serving sweets)
🥪 Cafeteria Order: Steak sandwich from Cups
📝 Best Out-of-Office Workplace: Home!
👔 Hill Closet, Sponsored by: Express
🙏 Hill Holy Grail: A cup of coffee
One More Thing…
“I'm guided by a spirit of wanting to get good things done. I'm someone that really wants to see the best in other people and view their positions, even if I disagree with them, in good faith.”
- Jack Uhl