Karen Knutson appointed as Vice President for Government Affairs
Former Chevron lobbyist to be responsible for MIT’s government relations
On Thursday, Oct. 23, President Kornbluth sent an email to the MIT community announcing that Karen Knutson had been appointed as the Vice President for Government Affairs (VPGA), a new position that will oversee the Office of Government and Community Relations (OGCR) and the MIT Washington Office. Knutson will start her role on Nov. 1.
According to the letter, Knutson will be responsible for “advancing the Institute’s educational and policy interests at the federal, state, city and community levels” and will serve as Kornbluth’s senior advisor for government engagement. David Goldston, the previous director of the MIT Washington Office, stepped down in February 2025. In the interim, Maria Zuber, Presidential Advisor for Science and Technology Policy, was in charge of MIT’s governmental engagement.
Institute administration welcomes Knutson to MIT
In a statement to The Tech, MIT spokesperson Kimberly Allen said that the MIT administration “looks forward to welcoming Karen [Knutson] to MIT.” Zuber believes that Knutson is well-qualified for the role due to her expertise in government and industry as a political strategist, stating that Knutson will help “MIT navigate the challenges we face.” According to Zuber, the “importance of [MIT’s] mission” drew Knutson to the Institute.
President Kornbluth also stressed in her letter that Knutson will “make the case at all levels of government for the value of MIT and of the unique partnership between the US government and its research universities.”
A career in oil and gas lobbying
Knutson’s political career began with her appointment as a legislative assistant for Senator Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska) in 1989. She became the legislative director of Senator Sam Brownback (R-Kansas), notable for his strong pro-life stance and opposition to LGBTQ+ rights, from 1999 to 2001. Brownback, who was funded in large part by the Koch brothers, a pair of billionaire libertarians who built their fortunes on the petroleum industry, has advocated for income tax cuts and business deregulation.
Knutson pivoted to energy policy when she joined the Energy Task Force under then-President George W. Bush. As the Task Force’s Deputy Director, Knutson led the drafting of the nation’s energy policy. Environmental groups later found that the energy report was influenced by oil and gas companies, including British Petroleum and the now-defunct Enron Corp. From 2007 to 2011, Knutson was the chief of staff for Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).
Save for a brief stint at Tyson Foods, Knutson has served as a lobbyist for oil and gas companies over the past decade, ranging from Oxbow Corporation to General Electric Oil & Gas to Chevron. Oxbow, her employer from 2011 to 2015, is a vendor of natural gas and refinery byproducts owned by businessman William “Bill” Koch ’62, SM ’63, PhD ’71, a member of the Koch family known for his considerable donations to Republican candidates.
Describing Knutson’s role as vice president and general manager for governmental affairs of Chevron, President Sally Kornbluth lauded her for “advoca[ting] for [Chevron’s] new energy portfolio, from hydrogen to carbon capture, utilization and storage.” According to a 2023 Chevron lobbying and trade associations report, Knutson was responsible for shaping energy security and development policies. Opensecrets reports that Knutson’s cumulative lobbying activity for the oil and gas industry has amounted to over $46 million. In 2024, The Hill included Knutson in their list of top corporate lobbyists.
A Q4 2024 LD-2 disclosure report for Chevron cites the company’s lobbying activities across many areas, including “access to oil and natural gas resources on public lands” and “carbon capture and sequestration” — basic tenets of Chevron’s traditional petroleum operations. According to Opensecrets, Chevron has spent $6.35 million on lobbying so far in 2025.
While Chevron has expressed interest in transitioning to sustainable energy, critics accuse the corporation of greenwashing — that is, hiding fossil fuel interests behind misleading environmental messaging. In a dormspam email sent on Oct. 23, Skipper Lynch ’26 wrote on behalf of MIT Divest: “MIT’s shameful decision to appoint fossil fuel lobbyist Karen Knutson is yet another way that MIT remains invested in climate injustice.”
Although MIT founded the Climate Project in 2024, the Ad Hoc Committee on Climate-Related Industry Engagements has yet to come to a decision on whether the Climate Project should engage with fossil fuel industries. In the past, the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) received funding from major fossil fuel companies, including Exxon Mobil and Shell, drawing criticism from MIT Divest and other environmentalists on campus.