Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), whose district offices are located in the gamblers’ paradise of Las Vegas, is doing some gambling of her own, rolling the dice with one promotion and four new hires. With their years of experience and various areas of expertise, all five moves look like safe bets.

With her extensive Capitol Hill experience, Marcie Evans is stepping up as Berkley’s new deputy chief of staff for administration. Evans, a native of Kingston, Pa., is an original member of the Berkley team, having joined the Congresswoman’s staff in January 1999 during her first term in office. Arriving on the Hill in 1978, Evans immediately went to work for the office of Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), where she would remain until 1985. After a brief two-year stretch, during which she worked for Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Evans returned to Baucus’ office, this time serving more than a decade. [IMGCAP(1)]

Bryan George, a Hill veteran with 10 years of previous experience, has been tapped to replace Heather Urban as Berkley’s legislative director. A former legislative director for former Rep. Joe Hoeffel (D-Pa.), George is already familiar with the position. Prior to joining Hoeffel’s staff, George worked for eight years in the office of former Rep. Tom Barrett (D-Wis.), beginning as a legislative assistant before advancing to become legislative director and eventually chief of staff.

Jeff Davis, of Olney, Md., has been hired as a legislative correspondent and communications assistant. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Davis has interned in the offices of Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.).

Another Maryland Terrapin, Carrie Fiarman, has been selected as a staff assistant. She is a native of Coral Springs, Fla., and prior to joining Berkley’s staff, Fiarman earned her first Hill experience interning for a Congressman from her Sunshine State home, Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.).

For most, Las Vegas is a vacation hot spot, renowned for casino-lined streets, glitzy resort hotels and the performances of Wayne Newton. For Berkley’s new summer intern, Shawn Morgan, Las Vegas is home — and more. He earned his degree in political science at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and has recently completed his first year as a student at UNLV’s Boyd School of Law. Although this summer internship will be Morgan’s first in Berkley’s Washington, D.C., office, it won’t be his first with Berkley. He interned in the Congresswoman’s Las Vegas office during the summer of 2002 and has volunteered on each of her re-election campaigns.