Rep. Tom Rooney's (R-Fla.) new chief of staff, an experienced lobbyist, has the Navy in his blood.
Pete Giambastiani comes to the Hill after lobbying for five years with Blank Rome Government Relations LLC. But his father, Edmund Giambastiani Jr. served as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 2005 to 2007. As for the son, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and spent 10 years in the Navy, earning the rank of lieutenant commander.
As a principal for Blank Rome, the younger Giambastiani represented clients like Expedia Inc., Comcast Corp. and Motorola Solutions Inc. As a lobbyist, he even had occasion to represent the Navy League of the United States.
Giambastiani is no stranger to the Hill. He began his Hill career in 2006 as a military legislative assistant for Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.). Giambastiani left this position 18 months later to serve as a special assistant for the Deputy Under Secretary of the Navy, only to return to Miller's office less than a year later to serve as deputy chief of staff and legislative director.
Giambastiani is working on an MBA at George Mason University.
