Roger Ailes on Political Media
A 1988 C&E interview with the one-time master of political media.
Campaign Insider
The two-sentence litmus test
by Jennie Blackton / Jan 23 2012
One test of a presidential contender is what the average voter can say about why to support him or her in two sentences or less. I’d suggest that “because he can win” is not really a sufficient reason, which should be troubling for Mitt Romney in light of what just happened in South Carolina.
A successful candidate must be clearly defined in the average voter’s mind—simply winning, or the prospect thereof, doesn’t delineate
Grading the polls in South Carolina
by Stefan Hankin / Jan 22 2012
The volatility of the South Carolina primary race over the last week made it an especially hard contest to track. Just about every poll had Newt Gingrich in the low 30s from the middle of January until a few days before Saturday’s vote. Meanwhile, Mitt Romney remained stuck in the mid-to-upper 20s with Ron Paul pulling 11 to 15 percent of the vote.
In the final two days before the primary, Public Policy
Can Newt's camp weather the storm?
by Shane D'Aprile / Jan 20 2012
The campaign of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich hasn’t been defined by message discipline, organizational prowess or really any of the markers that typically define a well-run presidential bid.
It’s a campaign that couldn’t even manage to get on the ballot in Virginia or file a full delegate slate in New Hampshire. And it’s the same campaign that has been rife with organizational issues from the outset.
Yet faced with
Gingrich: I should have never hired ‘regular consultants’
by Shane D'Aprile / Jan 20 2012
Newt Gingrich relishes any opportunity to take a shot at his former consulting team and he took full advantage of one at Thursday’s GOP debate.
The former House Speaker said he wishes he could erase the first three months of his presidential campaign, specifically the part where he “hired regular consultants” and tried to be a “traditional candidate.”
“I would skip the first three months where I hired regular consultants,” Gingrich
2012 Reed Award Finalists
Jan 19 2012
The finalists of the fourth annual Campaigns & Elections' Reed Awards have been announced. The finalists represent the top talent in the political consulting business in the fields of Direct Mail, Online Advertising, Newspaper Advertising, Phones, Political Technology, Signage and Collateral Material, Radio and Television.
Winners will be awarded for their 2011 campaign work, in the following categories, at The Reed Awards Dinner on February 3, 2012 in Washington, DC:
Automated Phones
Best Automated Phone Call
Read more…
Survey: Campaign finance reform could be major 2012 issue
by Aaron Puebla / Jan 19 2012
On the second anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, new polling reveals an increasing number of voters concerned about the role of money in politics.
According to a new survey from Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, conducted for Democracy Corps, 62 percent of voters oppose the Court’s Citizens United ruling, which permitted unlimited campaign spending by corporations and unions. And more than three-quarters of voters say they would like to see candidates
GOP 2.0: Jon Huntsman’s daughters and the Romney boys
by Katie LaPotin / Jan 18 2012
Jon Huntsman's decision to suspend his campaign on Monday left many unanswered questions. Sure, he’s supporting Mitt Romney, no mystery there. But will he run again? And, perhaps more importantly, does the demise of his campaign mean the spotlight will desert his photogenic daughters?
I've already written extensively (see here and here) about the impact of the children of presidential candidates in their parents' races. Particularly how in the last two
Who's to blame for Huntsman's flop?
by Sean J. Miller / Jan 16 2012
This cycle has already seen an accelerated version of the blame game play out in the political media -- and that was even before Rick Perry finished fifth in Iowa. Consultants or candidate, who eats crow for the failure of a presidential campaign?
Ahead of Jon Huntsman’s suspension of his effort on Monday, members of his camp were busy pointing fingers. Some were directed at his chief consultant, John Weaver, while Read more…
Sparks fly in presidential jobs ads, literally
by Sarah Stone / Jan 13 2012
Presidential campaign ads are formulaic. In many cases, the viewer sees a montage of established symbols flashed across the screen: American flags flying, wheat fields rustling, Main Streets lined with shoppers, people going to work.
Symbols are a powerful way of quickly relating a message to an audience. American flags, for instance, are used to represent freedom, while wheat fields are used to represent prosperity. But which symbol best represents 21st century jobs?
For Romney, New Hampshire was about relationships
by Rich Killion / Jan 11 2012
This entire New Hampshire primary cycle was about Mitt Romney and his ability to define the race as much as himself. It’s why he finally got his elusive gold medal and put himself in the driver’s seat for the Republican nomination.
Like a number of candidates benefitting from the second go around, Romney entered the race as a very strong frontrunner with the best name identification, favorability ratings, most formidable organization and strong
Ron Paul confounds New Hampshire polling
by Stefan Hankin / Jan 11 2012
New Hampshire presidential primaries are hard for pollsters to get right. In the Granite State, independents can pick which primary to vote in and citizens can register same-day.
Most polls, for instance, didn’t pick up Hillary Clinton’s late surge in 2008. Technically, this year was easier given that there wasn’t a race on the Democratic side. There was also little polling drama surrounding the frontrunner before Tuesday's vote.
Mitt Romney’s numbers had
Campaign signs take a hit in New Hampshire
by Shane D'Aprile / Jan 10 2012
MANCHESTER, N.H.—If size matters when it comes to campaign signs, Texas Rep. Ron Paul has his competition beat.
In many spots in and around Manchester, Bedford and Nashua, larger Paul signs dwarf the smaller lawn signs of Paul’s Republican rivals. From street corners to highway overpasses, Paul’s army has managed to consume plenty of real estate across New Hampshire—a concerted effort that, according to his backers, started way back in October.
