Carter Wrenn
Gary Pearce
Well, last night I watched the Great Debate and a couple of things struck me. When the smoke cleared there were three different groups all pursuing different goals: The Obama supporters. The McCain supporters. And the press. The goals of the Obama and McCain supporters were simple: To pound their chests and holler they’d won.…
John McCain could beat Barack Obama. But he can’t beat the combination of Obama, George Bush, Dow Jones and, most of all, John McCain himself. McCain came out swinging last night. And he connected repeatedly. Unfortunately, most of his punches landed squarely on his own jaw. The media and talking heads have spewed out millions…
If there were a Nobel Prize for Being Stupid, it would be shared this year by the 3,200 academics who signed an on-line petition defending William Ayers. Thereby guaranteeing continued news coverage of Obama and Ayers. It makes you wonder why we save all this money to send our kids to college. Click Here to…
Ruth Sheehan’s column this morning raises a perennial campaign complaint: “The Democrats/Republicans are stealing our yard signs!” No campaign manager has ever escaped getting that call. Yard signs are the bane of a campaign. They cost money, and no political pro believes they do any good. But any candidate – as well as his or…
I recently heard a presentation by one of the best media-training professionals I’ve ever met, Don Rheem of Washington. He wasn’t talking about the presidential race, but he made a comment that summed up John McCain’s problem: “People don’t care what you think until they know that you care.” McCain has never made a fundamental…
Governor Charlie Crist of Florida is the weather vane of American politicians. He can sense the slightest shift in the political breeze and trim his sails as quickly as anyone I’ve ever seen. You don’t need a poll to know what’s happening in Florida. Just watch Crist. Right now, he is telling you that John…
When I was doing campaigns and it got to be mid-October, I got to where I hated undecided voters. I’d sit behind the two-way mirrors in focus groups and almost shout: “What’s wrong with you people, and why can’t you make up your minds? What else do you need to know?” I have the same…
It’s come killing time in the presidential race and the Old Admiral’s in trouble – it’s the fourth quarter, he’s behind and he’s got to drive the ball down the field and score, right now, or he’s going to find himself throwing ‘Hail Mary’ passes. We Republicans keep telling ourselves Barack Obama’s not tough enough…
I have no inside knowledge of what’s going on inside the Dole campaign. But it looks increasingly like an unhappy and divided campaign. The TV ads are terrible. Loyal Republican Dole even voted against the Wall Street bailout. That’s a sure sign she’s in trouble. Based on some experience with dysfunctional campaigns, I’ll hazard some…
Exactly 80 years ago, in 1946, Republicans took control of Congress with a simple message: “Had…
Jim Hunt would like James Talarico winning the Democratic primary in Texas. Like Talarico, the late…
