FM profile

Who she is: Meredith Bagby '95

Home: Winthrop House and Palm Beach, FL

What she does: economics and public policy advising.

How she became famous: [Ross Perot] read an article in the Miami Herald about the report I did. It's called "The First Annual Report of the United States." It's supposed to be like the annual report of a corporation, only it's about public finance.

How Perot contacted her: I think his people called information in Florida and got my parents. My mother called me on February 1st at about 8 a.m. and said "Ross Perot's going to call you, you stay right there."

How else her parents have helped: I came up with the idea for the report at a dinner table discussion with my parents. They were complaining about taxes. We were talking about how there should be some kind of report for taxpayers.

About Ross: He called me personally, which was pretty weird. He was really friendly, really nice. A very encouraging guy, pretty accessible. He told me that he was going to take the report to the Senate Banking Committee. He gave it to them, Dole, Newt and I think he gave a copy to Clinton. I'm supposed to get a letter from Sam Nunn about it but I haven't checked my mailbox.

Whether they keep in touch: I call him every once in a while to tell him how things are going.

Whether he's funny: He says witty things. He said it would have taken the government two years and ten million dollars to produce this report.

The media that's covered her: The Boston Globe, The Crimson, The Harvard Gazette, the Miami Herald, the Associated Press. A couple TV shows. Channel 7 news and Channel 68. It was scary.

What it's like being the focus of media attention: My roommates tease me an awful lot. The report is actually getting published in a couple weeks. The ask me "how's your lawyer, how's your agent." All I need is a broker and I'll be set.

What each person's share of the national debt is: I think it's about $14,000 per person. It's 4 trillion divided by 260 million, whatever that is.

What recruiting is like: It's been really interesting. I had no idea what investment bankers or consultants did. I did have to take this really awful IQ test. It was also a psychological test to make sure I wasn't loony. One of the questions was would you rather hold a gun or a flower. Another was would you rather read the bible or watch TV. They wanted it to be a Christian firm.