One of my side projects is a series called Progressive Voices, wherein I use the pretense of an interview to ask smart progressives questions about how and what they do that I really want to know the answer to. My latest victim is John Wonderlich, a very clever guy who runs the Sunlight Foundation's Open House Project, the goal of which is to figure out how to use technology to make Congress more transparent and accountable.

John's personal story is fascinating. He want from a sales manager at a telemarketing firm in Pennsylvania to giving press conferences on Capitol Hill in a matter of months, and it all started with some diaries and a wiki on Daily Kos. He's now doing the work of angels in trying to drag Congress into the 21st century by easing fears about such scary technologies as XML and RSS and making the case that letting information free will help heal our what ails our democracy. Tough job. Glad John's doing it.