Robert Vanasse has returned to his New Bedford roots after decades of political involvement in the nation's capital.
The New Bedford native and longtime Washington resident is now executive director of The Project to Save Seafood and Ocean Resources, an advocacy group in Washington for the New Bedford fishing community.
He is, in short, the lobbyist for his hometown's important fishing industry, with the goal of making a local issue one of national importance,.
"He loves his New Bedford roots," said Michelle Jaconi, who studied with Vanasse in graduate school at Georgetown University and was a producer at NBC for 12 years before joining CNN earlier this year.
Vanasse said his interest in politics "was always around in my family, to some degree." His mother moved to Washington at 18, after she graduated from high school. She worked in the Treasury Department, but eventually moved back to her native city, married and gave birth to Robert, her only child, in 1962.