Katie Arrington has a new job at the Department of Defense
Katie Arrington isn’t heading to Congress, but she does have a new role in the federal government.
Arrington this week started a new job with the U.S. Department of Defense, the former congressional candidate said on her Facebook page.
Arrington said she is a special assistant to the assistant secretary of defense. She will be involved with cybersecurity.
“I am extremely honored to receive this appointment and continue her work to protect our country, our war fighters and our tax dollars!” Arrington wrote on her Facebook page.
In an email to The State, Arrington said the job would involve overseeing “acquisition cyber strategy,” as well as analyzing major defense acquisitions and protecting the department’s intellectual property, weapons systems and other critical infrastructure.
Arrington was a first-term representative in the S.C. House when she challenged U.S. Rep. Mark Sanford, R-Charleston, in the June GOP congressional primary for S.C.’s 1st District. The Summerville Republican defeated Sanford after getting the endorsement of President Donald Trump.
But, even after a sit-down meeting with the president, she lost the general election to Democrat Joe Cunningham.
Now, Arrington has an appointment in Trump’s administration as a “highly qualified expert” — a special designation for someone who possesses “uncommon, special knowledge, skills, and experience in an occupational field, and judgment that is accorded authority and status by peers or the public,” according to the Defense Department website.
Before joining the State House, Arrington worked for the software company Dispersive Technologies. She also was on the board of Charleston Defense Contractors Association and the national security organization Women in Defense, according to her S.C. House member’s page.
This story was originally published January 9, 2019 at 5:11 PM.
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