Recent posts about Election 2008
PR First, Country Second: A McCain Campaign Retrospective
On her January 12 show, Rachel Maddow of MSNBC reviewed a portion of the new book about the 2008 Presidential election, Game Change, by political reporters John Heilemann and Mark Halperin. The section was about Sarah Palin. The authors discuss Palin's prep and tutoring for the campaign trail, and conclude that "her grasp of rudimentary facts and concepts was minimal." They allege Palin didn't know why North and South Korea were separate nations, didn't know what the Fed does, and couldn't explain who her son, Track, was going to fight in Iraq. Maddow played a video clip of Palin, taped during her appearance on the Bill O'Reilly show shortly before Maddow's show that same night, in which Palin admitted that she didn't know who perpetrated the 9-11 terror attacks against the U.S. In another clip, Palin was giving a speech to American troops as they prepared to ship off to Iraq. In her speech, Palin suggested Saddam Hussein was behind 9-11, even though her campaign prep team had carefully explained to her the day before her speech that Iraq was not involved in planning or perpetrating 9-11.
111th Congress Convenes with 65 Freshmen (Profiles)
The House and Senate both convened their inaugural sessions of the 111th Congress at noon Tuesday with 65 new faces. There were 39 Democrats (plus two non-voting members who caucus with Democrats) and 24 Republicans. (See the complete, citizen-authored profiles of the freshmen at Congresspedia.)
Where To for Obama's E-Army of Online Footsoldiers?
Ari Melber of The Nation adds his thoughts to growing speculation about the future role of Barack Obama's unprecedented army of linked-in netroots supporters. "More than a million people asked for campaign text messages on their cellphones. Two million joined MyBO, a website fusing social networking with volunteer work, while more than 5 million supported Obama's profile on social sites like Facebook. Most famously, 13 million voters signed up for regular e-mails, fundraising pitches and other communications. On election day, a staggering 25 percent of Obama voters were already directly linked to him -- and one another -- through these networks. Campaigns largely dissolve after elections, but this infrastructure remains intact. ... Since the election his aides have been experimenting with how to use the networks, for governance and for postcampaign politicking. ... After the election, half a million activists responded to an e-mail survey about the road ahead. The most popular goal was to help the administration 'pass legislation,' according to campaign manager David Plouffe." Other liberal online campaigners include MoveOn with an email list of millions that supported Obama's election and that is working to promote Obama's legislative agenda. (January 2009 update: see Organizing for America for new developments on this. )
Penn's Pals Find New Homes
As President-elect Barack Obama announces his cabinet nominees and prepares to take office, his former rival and Secretary of State candidate, Hillary Clinton, remains deep in debt. Her presidential campaign owes $5.3 million to the Penn, Schoen and Berland (PSB) polling firm, which is owned by former Clinton campaign strategist and Burson-Marsteller CEO Mark Penn. After Clinton wrote off her own $13.1 million loan to her campaign, the campaign owes a total of $6.3 million. Meanwhile, Doug Schoen has announced that he's leaving PSB. Schoen will join the Edelman firm's lobbying practice in Washington DC, where he and "Democratic heavyweight" Bob Shrum will be senior counselors.
The 2008 Falsies Awards: In Memory of the First Casualty
There's nothing quite like a hotly contested election. The candidates have their devoted supporters and angry detractors. Then there are vigorous debates over the issues, while some people question the integrity of the entire process.
We speak, of course, of the Falsies Awards.
Part of the coveted AwardsThis year marks the Center for Media and Democracy's (CMD's) fifth annual Falsies Awards. The Falsies are our attempt to shine an unflattering light on those responsible for polluting the information environment over the past year. We're happy to report that more people -- nearly 1,450 -- voted in this year's Falsies survey than ever before! We're also bestowing special recognition on one of this year's "winners."
Falsies recipients can collect their prizes -- a pair of Groucho Marx glasses, our two cents and a chance to atone for their spinning ways by making a detailed public apology -- by visiting CMD's office in Madison, Wisconsin. This year's Gold and Silver Falsies go to masters of war deception, while the Bronze Falsie recognizes a massive greenwash campaign. The first-ever Lifetime Achievement Falsie goes to a serial corporate front man, while a determined (if at times laughable) attempt at nation re-branding wins dishonorable mention. Then there are the Readers' Choice Falsies and Win Against Spin Awards, nominated by our survey participants.
Penn Pushed on His Losing Campaign
Mark Penn, the CEO of the global PR firm Burson-Marsteller, recently spoke at a corporate conference in the UK promoting his book Microtrends. Journalist Cole Moreton interviewed Penn, starting with a blunt question on his role as "chief strategist" for Hillary Clinton's failed Presidential nomination bid: "Mr Penn, you blew it, didn't you? Were you so interested in microtrends that you completely missed the huge desire for change?" Penn responded, defensively, "Well, no, I think that, you know, I think ... the book is really a non-political book." Penn even denied that an infamous internal memo portrayed Barack Obama as unelectable. "Yes it does, if the facsimile published by Atlantic Monthly magazine is correct. The great communicator appears thrown," wrote Moreton. Penn's explanation: "Those memos, right, that came out, were really ... er, were really, I think, show you, you know, just a piece, because ... a small part, a piece of how we were looking to, I think, set up or solve the fact that he was a very strong candidate."
Winding Down Freedom's Watch
Freedom's Watch, the conservative 501(c)(4) organization that was set up earlier this year to help Republicans win elections, "is closing after just one cycle in business," reports Reid Wilson. "The group, which ran television, radio, phone and mail campaigns against dozens of Democrats this year, received most of its funding from wealthy gaming mogul Sheldon Adelson, chairman of the Las Vegas Sands Corp." Although Freedom's Watch originally said it would be spending as much as $200 million for ad campaigns, the reality was only about $30 million. The recession has hurt Adelson financially, cutting into tourism and gambling and sending Sands stock tumbling from $122.96 per share to just $2.89, a loss of 95 percent of its value. Freedom's Watch originally claimed to offer a conservative answer to the liberal advocacy group MoveOn. As one blogger pointed out, however, the "biggest difference" between the two groups is that Freedom's Watch "had a handful of mega-wealthy donors," while MoveOn "has an email list and funding base of 4 million."
Congresspedia Preview: This Week in Congress (Dec. 6 - 12, 2008)
By Congresspedia assistant editor Avelino Maestas
The weekend brought news of an upset down south, where indicted Rep. William Jefferson (D) on Saturday was upset in his re-election big by Anh “Joseph” Cao (R). Also, congressional leaders negotiated a compromise with the White House to tap about $15 billion for an emergency loan to U.S. automakers, and legislation authorizing the funds could come this week.
Wiki the Vote: Winding Down the 2008 Congressional Election
By Congresspedia assistant editor Avelino Maestas
While Congress remains in recess (the Senate is in pro forma session), our attention returns to the outstanding congressional races of the 2008 election. At least three races should be decided this week, including a runoff for one of Georgia’s U.S. Senate seats, between incumbent Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R) and Democratic challenger Jim Martin. Voters in two Louisiana House districts will head to the polls on Saturday to choose the representatives. Meanwhile, votes are still being counted in California, Minnesota and Ohio, as one Senate race and two House races remain undecided.
Leadership Changes in the 111th Congress
By Congresspedia assistant editor Avelino Maestas
With Democrats expanding their majorities in the House and Senate during the 2008 congressional elections, members of both parties sought to redefine the leadership structure within their respective caucuses. Some of the shuffling was predictable, while political calculation entered into consideration into other leadership campaigns. In addition, freshman members of the House and Senate were forced to take sides in their first actions in Congress, even though they have not yet taken office.
Much of the publicity centered around the future of Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) in the Democratic caucus, and over Rep. Henry Waxman’s (D-Calif.) bid to replace Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) as chair of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Republicans had their own drama, however, with a challenge to Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and a shift in the Senate leadership.
