Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Rebecca Wachsberg

95. Rebecca Wachsberg

Nobody would probably like to put “herder of the cats” on their resume, but as sources inside the Capitol told us, that could aptly describe one of the many vital things Rebecca Wachsberg does. Formally, she is chief of staff to Sen. Mike McGuire, whose boundless 24/7 Energizer Bunny disposition – and obvious desire to succeed Senate pro Tem Toni Atkins when she terms out – often puts him in the middle of, well, everything going on in the Senate. She regularly works with two others on this list – Nick Hardeman (No. 23) and Kimberly Rodriguez (No. 42), both with Atkins – on strategizing the most difficult policy and political issues, and frequently backstops them at any number of committee meetings and working groups. In short, if they can’t be there, Wachsberg will be, and then she will go about herding those aforementioned cats to all get onto the same page. A veteran of local government, Wachsberg was a deputy county administrator for Sonoma County, where she worked with McGuire when he was a County Supervisor. She has a law degree from UC Davis.