Running the Show

31 March 2008



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Rove’s Advice to Dems is Priceless

This journal has little time for Karl Rove, formerly known as Bush’s brain. However, he is one of the best political brawlers of his generation, and he knows his stuff. In this week’s Newsweek, he offers the Democrats some advice on how to handle their convention. It is probably one of the most insightful pieces written this year.

He notes that the convention could well be hung, unless the superdelegates shift en masse to one candidate or another. That being the case, it is vital to control the convention mechanisms. As he put it, “If you set the rules, decide who votes, organize the event and control what is said, it's almost impossible to lose.”

He advises that the platform is not the big statement of the campaign the way it used to be, but instead it is a forum for negotiation and discussion. Let the policy wonks craft things, but be ready to negotiate. John Edwards isn’t a factor in the race, but getting him to weigh in on the platform will ensure that his backers (and they are numerous) stay active for the election.

Delegates, of course, are the whole thing, and their care and feeding is important. He advises that the campaign get whips and deputy whips in each delegation to make sure the delegates vote the way they are supposed to. And those Edwards delegates need wooing.

Finally, he talks about the importance of staging. The convention is a made for TV event that has to look good on the small screen. He noted, “We live in a culture of the visual. Every moment and every event should be scripted. The media will complain about it, but think through what messages you want and when you want them. This script must be visually powerful and interesting enough to keep the cameras on your candidate and not somewhere else. Make the spectacle personal. The Al and Tipper Gore kiss, for instance, did him a lot of good. And be sure to provide fresh content all the time. In the era of cable TV, talk radio, the blogosphere and YouTube, someone is watching and talking all the time. If you're not pressing content into all available channels, someone else will.”

© Copyright 2008 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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