Texas Rep. Jim Turner (D) has hired a Lone Star State native to serve as his new legislative correspondent.

Hailing from Corpus Christi, Shannon Van Cleave arrives in the office after spending two sessions working in the Texas state Legislature. The 22-year-old government major holds a bachelor’s from the University of Texas at Austin.

Show Me the Money. Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) has given the nod to Staff Assistant Ryan Bradel, who moves up a notch to legislative aide.

The former Heritage Foundation intern is a member of the University of California at Los Angeles’ class of 2002. He has also worked as a legal assistant for David Steiner & Associates in Los Angeles and was a Witherspoon Fellow at the Family Research Council. Bradel, 22, hails from San Diego, Calif.

Palmetto Powerhouses. After spending the past six months in Edmond, Okla., helping his old boss, former Rep. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), complete a forthcoming book, John Hart returns to Capitol Hill to serve as Rep. Jim DeMint’s (R-S.C.) new deputy chief of staff and communications director.

“The way I describe my role [is] as more of a producer,” said Hart of his

time working on the book. “You’re job is to help the person’s song come out.”

The former press secretary and legislative assistant to the retired Sooner State Congressman contributed to Coburn’s tome, “Breach of Trust: How Washington Turns Outsiders Into Insiders,” due for publication by Thomas Nelson books this September.

“It will be far more revealing about how Washington really works than [New York Sen.] Hillary [Rodham Clinton]’s book,” said the onetime speechwriter and policy adviser to then-Rep. Steve Largent (R-Okla). Hart later went to work as the policy director for the Largent for Governor campaign.

The 30-year-old Leawood, Kan., native received a bachelor’s in political science from Kansas State University before going on to earn a master’s in journalism from the University of Kansas.

Also new to the DeMint team is Kara Borie, who joins as deputy press secretary. She comes to the office after a stint as scheduler for the office of South Carolina Gov.-Elect Mark Sanford (R).

Prior to working as scheduler for his gubernatorial bid, Borie, 24, also served as his Congressional scheduler when Sanford served in the House of Representatives.

The 2000 College of Charleston graduate holds a bachelor’s in political science.