By Paige Nash
From Chongqing, China, to Minden, Louisiana, and now onto Washington, D.C. Liana Gould is living out her American dream. She headed out recently to D.C. for an awesome opportunity to intern with the office of Mike Johnson, who represents the fourth congressional district.
Johnson was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2016 and is currently serving his third term. He also serves as the Vice Chairman of the House Republican Conference. He and his wife, Kelly, are from the area and during a visit home, they spoke at Liana’s church. You could call it fate.
Afterward, Liana expressed her interest in politics to Johnson’s wife, who advised her to investigate an internship program.
“After praying about it, I threw my name in the hat for one of the paid internships in their D.C. office and got it,” said Gould. “I had received other opportunities from Representative Clay Higgins’ office and Senator Kennedy’s office, but Mike is the Representative for our district, and I love my community. He has done a fantastic job representing us and the district, so I just knew it was the right choice.”
Liana has wanted to pursue a career in law for a very long time and everything in her life is heading in the right direction, setting her up on a pathway to success. She currently attends Bossier Parish Community College and is working toward an associate degree in Criminal Justice. She plans to later transfer to the University of Arkansas to finish her bachelor’s degree and apply for law school to begin studying congressional law. In addition to continuing her education, she also works for Durrett Law & Title, which she says has been a great learning experience for someone like her who wants to pursue law.
Liana was adopted by her parents, Jason and Lisa Gould, in 2004 from China and she credits God fully for where she is today.
“God placed me in the hands of my family for a reason. Politics and moralities are always a discussion in the Gould household which ultimately led to my interest in politics,” she said. “Fighting for what you believe is what my parents always taught me and through law is how I am going to do that.”
With Liana’s determination, an entourage of people supporting her and this opportunity to get an inside look at daily governmental operations, there is no doubt Minden can look forward to having her represent her community in the future.
“I think the ability to represent my community and fight for mine and other beliefs is what drives me to do what I want to do,” she said. “It’s not every day you hear about an adopted Asian American politician, and I think this internship is a great start.”
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