Before returning to Davidson College for his senior year, Lucas Hoffman ’18 spent the summer interning in Washington, D.C., in the office of Senator John Barrasso, the Majority Whip from Wyoming. Lucas is currently majoring in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics, and the internship allowed him to see the inner workings of a legislative office as he considers a career in law, politics, or public service.

 

As a relatively recent transplant from Massachusetts, Lucas got to know Wyoming in a new way as he answered constituent calls and led Capitol tours for visiting residents. The summer passage of the Big Beautiful Bill sparked debates over grazing rights and the sale of federal land, highlighting just how passionately Wyomingites engage with issues affecting their land and livelihoods. “Wyoming is like the last frontier. It's some of the last truly unadulterated nature in America,” Lucas reflects. “These are things the people of the state take very seriously,”

 

Despite the nation’s deep political divides, Lucas found encouragement in seeing moments of unity. “There were massive protests at the Capitol in Cheyenne that united people from the ranchers, hunters, and coal miners to the coastal transplants and nature-lovers in Jackson Hole who like to ski,” he recalls. He was heartened to see that people from very different backgrounds can still find common ground.

 

Working in a Republican senator’s office, Lucas also discovered the value of dialogue despite differences. Surrounded by interns and aides of all political persuasions, he found that disagreement didn’t preclude collaboration or meaningful conversation. “Hearing different perspectives, even when I disagreed, helped me to think about how to have real conversations,” he says. “By explaining what matters to me and listening to why something matters to them, I realized a lot more bridges can be built than burned.”

 

Lucas was struck by the youthful energy in Washington, despite the city’s older leaders. “​​I was shocked by how many young people were there with an intense fervor for making the country better,” he says. The experience reaffirmed his belief that change is possible. “There's so much room for new voices,” he adds. “Young people who care about the public good should not be discouraged; they should bring their passion into politics rather than turning away from it.”