Craig Brightup
Craig Brightup is NRCA's vice president of government relations and opened its Washington,
D.C., office in 1990. From 1987-90, Craig was director of congressional relations
for the Federal Trade Commission—a position to which he was appointed by President
Ronald Reagan. From 1983-87, he worked in Dallas doing government relations for
the S&A Restaurant Corp., owner of Steak & Ale and Bennigan's, and later managing
the Southwest regional political program for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Craig
also was with the chamber in Washington, D.C., from 1981-83 and now serves on its
Labor Relations and Regulatory Affairs committees. Craig began his career working
for the Federal Election Commission from 1976-81 after graduating from Pennsylvania
State University. In fall 2000, he was included on
Fortune Small Business
magazine's POWER 30 list of "influential insiders" in our nation's capital.