Lobbying world

The U.S. Travel Association named Geoff Freeman as its next president and CEO. Freeman most recently was president of the Consumer Brands Association and previously was chief operating officer at U.S. Travel. He will replace Roger Dow, who has helmed the travel trade group since 2005. 

Paul Sass joined Cassidy & Associates as a senior vice president working on infrastructure issues. Sass most recently served as Republican staff director for the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Andrew Usyk joined Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP as a policy director. Usyk most recently was vice president of government affairs at the American Hotel and Lodging Association and previously served as a legislative assistant to Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.).

Kelly Hitchcock joined Invariant LLC as a director working with the firm’s financial services and tax clients. Hitchcock most recently was a government affairs officer at the Investment Company Institute and previously was a Republican professional staff member for the House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee.

Christopher Gaspar joined BAE Systems as a director of government affairs. Gaspar most recently was director of government affairs at Textron Inc. and previously advised Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) on defense issues.

Biometrics company CLEAR hired Bill Guidera as head of public affairs. Guidera most recently led state policy at Netflix. He previously was senior vice president for public affairs at 21st Century Fox and a policy counsel at Microsoft Corp.

Michael Held joined WilmerHale as a partner in the firm’s securities and financial services department. Held previously worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for more than two decades, most recently serving as general counsel and executive vice president.