MCI Retains Warren Rudman Senior Advisor To CEO Former U.S. Senator Will Focus On Ethics and Corporate Governance

HostReview.com
Tuesday, October 28, 2003; 12:00 AM

ASHBURN, Va., October 28, 2003 - MCI (WCOEQ, MCWEQ) today announced that it has retained former U.S. Senator Warren B. Rudman as a senior advisor to Chairman and CEO Michael Capellas and its Board of Directors. Senator Rudman will focus his attention on ethics and corporate governance, assisting the company in completing and implementing its expanded corporate governance initiatives.

"Senator Rudman created an outstanding legacy of fairness, honesty and bipartisanship during his 12 years in the Senate and he developed a strong reputation for focusing on corporate governance issues," said Capellas. "His insight and commitment to ethical business practices will be extremely beneficial to MCI as we strive to create and execute a world-class corporate governance plan."

Rudman served two terms in the Senate, starting in 1980. During his tenure, he established a record of independence by refusing to accept out-of-state political action committee donations. Perhaps his best-known accomplishment came in 1985, when he co-authored the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings deficit reduction law, a historic step that imposed discipline and accountability on the chaotic budget process in order to reduce the federal deficit. Additionally, Rudman was Chairman of the Senate Ethics Committee.

"I have been following with great interest the turnaround at MCI being led by Michael Capellas and his management team," Rudman said. "I have had extensive discussions with Michael about MCI and its future and truly believe that the company is on the right path to being a role model for ethics and good governance. I look forward to working with the new management team to help make that happen."

Besides his current law practice, in 1992, Rudman co-founded the Concord Coalition, a nonpartisan, grassroots organization advocating fiscal responsibility while ensuring Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are secure for all generations. In 1994-95, Rudman chaired a Select Committee appointed by the board of governors of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) to review the NASD governance and oversight of the NASDAQ Stock Market.

Rudman graduated from Syracuse University in 1952 and subsequently graduated from the Boston College Law School, Boston, Mass., 1960. After serving in the U.S. Army infantry during the Korean War, Rudman began a career in law in New Hampshire in 1960. He later served as legal counsel to the governor of New Hampshire in 1970 and as the state's Attorney General from 1970 to 1976.

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