Projo Politics Blog

U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said goodbye last month to a long-time political aide and is set to welcome another familiar face to his staff this week.

Dennis Riley, 59, of Little Compton, retired on New Year’s Day after 34 years of federal service — first with former Sen. Claiborne Pell and then with Reed, for whom Riley served as an aide in the senior senator’s Rhode Island office.

“Dennis Riley is a testament and a part of that tradition of talented and conscientious public servants who labor, perhaps in the shadows, but it is their work that is decisive in our success on the floor,” Reed said in a tribute to the outgoing staffer on the Senate floor last month, according to a transcript provided by the senator’s office. “After Senator Pell retired, and the people of Rhode Island gave me the chance to continue his good works, Senator Pell spoke so highly of Dennis that I asked him to join my staff. It is one of the best decisions I have ever made.”

Reed’s office told Political Scene that a new employee, Christopher R. Albert, starts today in his role as the senator’s federal projects director. The 35-year-old Warwick man will work with cities, towns, and nonprofit organizations throughout Rhode Island on federal grants, appropriations, and special projects, according to Reed’s spokesman, Chip Unruh.

Albert, a Roger Williams University graduate, worked as chief of staff to former Lt. Gov. Charlie Fogarty from 2001 until January 2007. He will be based in Reed’s Providence office.

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