Apr 28, 2008
Obama Team Remains Unshaken
Politico: Despite Adversity, Campaign Showing No Signs Of Internal Upheaval
-
Play CBS Video Video Eye To Eye: Obama's War Room "Only On The Web": Katie Couric gets a behind-the-scenes look at the nerve center of Barack Obama's campaign and meets the people hard at work to help him win the U.S. presidency.
-
Photo Essay Barack Obama A look at the life and meteoric rise of the president-elect.
After Sen. Barack Obama’s third major primary loss and endless media coverage dedicated to dissecting the apparent weaknesses of his candidacy, one of the most striking elements of his campaign this week was what’s missing: any hint of internal upheaval.
At Obama headquarters in Chicago, hundreds of miles removed from the Beltway bubble, advisers held steadfast in their adherence to The Plan, a blueprint devised 15 months ago by the same inner circle that runs the campaign today, supported by the candidate and carried out by a tight-knit staff.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s operation could not be more dissimilar. Her campaign, ensconced in a Washington suburb, has experienced two major staff shakeups fueled by high-level staff rivalries, shifting strategies and an unusual degree of finger-pointing.
The contrast raises the question: How has the Obama campaign managed to maintain an island of comparative calm?
A winning record undoubtedly aids the cohesion, Obama advisers and unaffiliated Democratic strategists said, but so do other key dynamics: a candidate intolerant of infighting, a clear line of authority and a healthy distance from the city they want to take over.
The Obama campaign reminds some observers of George W. Bush, circa 2000, who presided over a loyal, linear and leakless operation in Austin, Texas, while Al Gore stumbled through multiple makeovers first in Washington, D.C., and later in Nashville, Tenn.
“In a parallel universe kind of sense, there are real similarities” between Obama and Bush, said Jim Jordan, a Democratic consultant who left the top post in Sen. John Kerry’s 2004 presidential campaign amid a shakeup.
“Intense loyalty to and belief in the candidate,” Jordan said, citing the similarities. “Simple, clear lines of authority with real discipline among the staff and consultants. Deep, talented teams. Maybe most importantly, candidates who trust their campaign, who understand what they’re doing, who deliver as well as demand loyalty, who intuitively relate to and handle their campaigns with just the right touch.”
There are certainly disagreements and strains - Obama advisers acknowledge as much, without admitting the details - but rule No. 1 is no fratricidal behavior, which includes unauthorized disclosures to the media. Obama himself on Friday acknowledged the need for the campaign to continually “fine-tune itself.”
But on the whole, the rival Democratic campaigns are a study in contrasts.
Clinton tapped the ranks of Sen. Charles Schumer, a hard-driving New York Democrat, for a press shop that can be as aggressive and unforgiving as the one favored by their former boss. Obama drew from the slightly more sedate worlds of Kerry, former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and former Rep. Richard Gephardt (D-Mo.).
Strategist Mark Penn, a veteran of the toughest White House battles of the 1990s, was deeply unpopular and a divisive presence within the Clinton campaign. Obama strategist David Axelrod is the anti-Penn. In the midst of Penn’s demotion earlier this month, one Obama aide in Chicago remarked to his colleagues about the low-key and well-liked Axelrod: “Do you know how lucky we are that he is our Mark Penn?”
Unlike Clinton’s team, the Obama campaign did not start with pre-existing rivalries. Axelrod and campaign manager David Plouffe were business partners, while Plouffe and Robert Gibbs, the communications director, share season tickets to the Washington Nationals. The staff, many of whom left family and lives behind to work in Chicago, have only each other to rely on in a place far from home.
“We would go to a basketball or baseball game together if we weren’t doing this right now,” Gibbs said. “We are all both friends and colleagues, and I think that is important. We feel we are a cohesive type of unit, not a group of individuals.”
By Carrie Budoff Brown
Copyright 2008 POLITICO
| We cover politics with enterprise, style, and impact. |
More From Politico
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
- 1
- 2
- 3
- next
See all 50 CommentsPosted by obama8years at 01:24 PM : Apr 29, 2008
The man in question has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with Hillary or Bill Clinton. He is a pastor from Clinton, NY - hence he has occasionally been referred to as "Clinton''s former pastor".
It helps to look for evidence before you believe something.
Posted by tru_america1 at 08:05 AM : Apr 29, 2008
No, I just don''t believe everything I read like you do. I look for hard evidence before I believe something.
OBAMA is Toast.
Small Town Americans are bitter and cling to Guns or Religion. They are anti-immigrant, anti-free trade. Given at San Francisco fund raiser
%u201CTypical White People%u201D quote
More Blacks are in Prison today than in college
Abortions are better than being %u201CPunished" with a baby
Mis-statements on the number of casualties in IRAQ
Never attended a White Church (even though he and Michelle preach diversity)
His flat declaration that lobbyists %u201Cwon''t work in my White House%u201D changed after it turned out his own written plan says they could, with some restrictions.
Told a story of how his Kenyan father and his Kansan mother fell in love because of the tumult of Selma, but he was born in 1961, four years before the confrontation at Selma took place. When asked later, Mr. Obama clarified himself, saying: ''I meant the whole civil rights movement.''
Obama exaggerated the death toll of the tornado in Greensburg, Kansas, saying 10,000 people died %u2013 he was only off by 9,988. He was trying to tie the deaths to the lack of National Guard heavy equipment because of Iraq %u2013 also incorrect.
SELF PRESERVATION AND INDEPENDANCE IS WHAT THIS COUNTRY WAS FOUNDED ON- MORE AND MORE PEOPLE THESE DAYS WANT TO BE TAKEN CARE OF BY THE GOVERNMENT- GROW UP!
Hillary is well known by her 1st name. I truly think that the Elites in the DEM Party need her more than she needs them.
If Lincon could start a new Republican party back then, Hillary can certainly pull off a Victory in new Labor Party, due to her powerful coliation.
If 3 names are all on the Ballots, I will definitely vote for her.
Forget the Party line, Hillary''''08!!!
Posted by tracy0morgan at 05:27 PM : Apr 28, 2008"
Remove your KKK suit, maybe you will be able to spell a bit better. Or was it a fantasy on his anatomy when you mentioned a "fairy tail" ?
Of course, most "young voters" don''t know that.
So now, young voters are pushing for Obama to be nominated, thinking he is the 2nd coming.
If the Elites in the DEM Party are Stupid enough to annoint Obama, I would totally encourage Sen. Clinton to break from DEM Party and starts a NEW Labor Party.
After all, if anyone has the ability to start a New Labor Party, it''s the Clintons.
Her Coliations include down-to-earth Middle Class families, most Moderate Democrats, some republican women, and all Independences are sick of Republican party and Elites in DEM party.
I will totally vote for her, if 3 names appear on the Ballots.
Forget the Party line, Go Hillary''''08!!
The quality of outreach and responsiveness also reflects the candidate. Donors get thank-you post cards. The campaign knows when and how to follow up. Invitations to participate are mellow and inviting. There''s a blend of really hard work with a sense of relaxation and friendliness. There''s no hard sell, no pressure, no defensiveness, and it''s not really a quid pro quo atmosphere.
Would be really nice to have that spirit in the White House.
Posted by dbaker97 at 12:09 AM : Apr 29, 2008
This is SO not true. She has worked her whole life trying to help people have a better life. She cares deeply about this country and its people. She will work incredibly hard to bring her plans and ideas to fruition. She is certainly not in this for fame or money, she''s had more than enough of both.
I don''t cringe, in fact, I am intrigued!! The political mileage for stating a fact is often lost in the layer of the listener''s fear. The stregnth of fear is often stronger than fact with many listeners.
If listeners just stopped and listened, they may find Reverend Wright a source of liberation from fear.
If Obama just hangs on and keeps his pastor at his side, he will prevail and win!! This is a golden opportunity to learn how leaders charm the most oppressed and victimized people in our population and empower them to rise above their personal struggles and hardships.
That is because he is running a clean campaign and all these folks will be able to sleep at night. Unfortunately, voters seem to respond to the slime, so he may lose. It was pretty apparant the last couple of elections that the slime-ball wins.
Posted by kansas1946 at 12:13 AM : Apr 29, 2008
"No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public."
Henry Mencken
***************************************
That is because he is running a clean campaign and all these folks will be able to sleep at night. Unfortunately, voters seem to respond to the slime, so he may lose. It was pretty apparant the last couple of elections that the slime-ball wins.
they are under attack all the time.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- next
See all 50 Comments