SARAH TRUMBLE



Sarah Trumble's law school GPA was almost ruined when she took a class taught by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas—probably because her semester-long project was essentially an ode to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her trailblazing work on women's rights. Luckily, Sarah went on to graduate early with high honors and a joint J.D./M.P.P. anyway. Today, she thinks like a lawyer but talks like a policymaker as Third Way's Senior Policy Counsel for Social Policy & Politics. 

Sarah specializes in reaching moderates on the full range of social issues—from abortion, immigration, and drugs to guns, gay equality, religious liberty, and mobility. Drawn to Third Way by the organization's unique pragmatic posture, she focuses on changing hearts and minds where it can have real impact, not just preaching to the choir. In her role, she serves as the expert on the nitty-gritty of social policy legislation, messaging, and politics, and she is an authority on the values and perspectives of Americans in the middle when it comes to the most contentious social issues. 

A long-time member of the Third Way family, Sarah first came to the organization as an intern and then as an outside consultant before joining the team full-time. Prior to Third Way, her experience was largely rooted in the women's community, having worked at the National Women's Law Center, the National Partnership for Women & Families, the National Abortion Federation, and the District Alliance for Safe Housing. Her work has been featured in a variety of media outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, POLITICO, Media Matters, and Voice of America. She holds a B.A. in global studies and a minor in Spanish from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a joint J.D./M.P.P. from the George Washington University.

What feels like a very long time ago, Sarah told a favorite high school teacher that when she grew up she was going to tell Congress what to do on the issues she's always been most passionate about—and to this day, she can't believe she gets paid to do just that. Now if only Congress would take her advice a little more frequently…