True Tales from the Campaign Trail , livre ebook

University of Akron Press - Jerry Austin

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

128 pages

English

Vous pourrez modifier la taille du texte de cet ouvrage

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

True Tales from the Campaign Trail finds Democratic and Republican political consultants putting aside their differences to offer entertaining and honest insights into the art of the political campaign. First-hand accounts from across the spectrum detail the trials and tribulations of primaries for Ted Kennedy, Oliver North, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton; fraught Senate races fought with direct mail; and down-and-dirty tricks pulled in local elections. The variety of funny foibles and lessons learned makes for an engaging celebration of the democratic process and the campaign trail.

Informations

Publié par	University of Akron Press
Date de parution	09 novembre 2017
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781629221137
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,1000€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Praise for True Tales from the Campaign Trail
Politics at its best: heartfelt, humane and humorous. True Tales from the Campaign Trail is a tonic, an elixir. It reminds us of what politics could be, and should be again. Pull up a chair, sit back and enjoy these laugh-out-loud stories. Like a collection of behind-the-scenes, in-the-locker-room stories from your favorite sports team, this book colorfully portrays the humanity and humor of the characters who play politics at the highest levels. Jerry Austin has captured the best of what is the essence of American politics—flawed human beings fighting hard for their beliefs, and their dreams.
—Michael Curtin, former editor of the Columbus Dispatch and retired state legislator
Jerry Austin has been a leader in bringing change and supporting outsiders, women, liberals, and people of color. He has been dedicated and clear about supporting real democracy. This book is a great, fun read which will keep you laughing and passing it on. It includes lots of behind the scenes looks at the events we know. At the same time Jerry really understands the core principles of campaigns, and this is a great way to learn about real politics and campaigns in a most enjoyable read.
—Celinda Lake, pollster
Bliss Institute Series
John C. Green, Editor
Jerry Austin, True Tales from the Campaign Trail: Stories Only Political Consultants Can Tell
William L. Hershey and John C. Green, Mr. Chairman: The Life and Times of Ray C. Bliss
Douglas M. Brattebo, Tom Lansford, Jack Covarrubias, and Robert J. Pauly Jr., editors, Culture, Rhetoric, and Voting: The Presidential Election of 2012
Douglas M. Brattebo, Tom Lansford, and Jack Covarrubias, editors, A Transformation in American National Politics: The Presidential Election of 2012
Daniel J. Coffey, John C. Green, David B. Cohen, and Stephen C. Brooks, Buckeye Battleground: Ohio, Campaigns, and Elections in the Twenty-First Century
Lee Leonard, A Columnist’s View of Capitol Square: Ohio Politics and Government, 1969–2005
Abe Zaidan, with John C. Green, Portraits of Power: Ohio and National Politics, 1964–2004
True Tales from the Campaign Trail
Stories Only Political Consultants Can Tell
Written and compiled by Jerry Austin
Edited by Jerry Austin, Sheryl Losser, and John C. Green
All Material Copyright © 2017 by The University of Akron Press
All rights reserved • First Edition 2017 • Manufactured in the United States of America.
All inquiries and permission requests should be addressed to the Publisher, The University of Akron Press, Akron, Ohio 44325-1703.
ISBN: 978-1-629221-11-3 (paper)
ISBN: 978-1-629221-12-0 (ePDF)
ISBN: 978-1-629221-13-7 (ePub)
A catalog record for this title is available from the Library of Congress.
∞ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of ANSI / NISO z39.48–1992 (Permanence of Paper).
Cover design and illustration: Doug Granger
True Tales from the Campaign Trail was designed and typeset in Adobe Caslon with Futura display by Amy Freels. True Tales from the Campaign Trail was printed on sixty-pound white and bound by Bookmasters of Ashland, Ohio.
Contents
Introduction
I. Elections and Campaigns
San Francisco Mayor’s Race | Jerry Austin
No Piña Colada Party | Bob Keefe
No French Kissing | Bob Mulholland
No One Sells Their Last Renoir | Jeff Plaut
Jesse’s Plane Money | Jerry Austin
Give Us This Day, Our Daley Bread | Frank Watkins
This Guy Has No Chance of Winning | Jim Friedman
Learn to Drive Ted Kennedy | Doc Sweitzer
A Thousand Cuban Refugees | John Rendon
The Trip from Hell | Richard Norman
The Transportation Contest | Jerry Austin
Street Money | Garry South
Jumbo, the Precinct Captain | Frank Watkins
Knocking on Doors | Tom King
Don’t Invest to Lose | Tom King
A Historic Election | Jerry Austin
Nothing Succeeds as Planned | J. Warren Tompkins
I Ran for Team Mascot | Steve Cohen
Advancing in Nebraska | John Rendon
Sometimes You Get Lucky | Dale Emmons
II. Political Communication
You Have to Ask for Every Vote | Nancy Korman
When Attacked, You Have to Respond | Bob Mulholland
A Powerful Message | Rich Schlackman
Texas Swagger in Vermont | Paul Curcio
The Farmer Ad | Jerry Austin
Always Go with Your Instincts | Jerry Austin
An Obvious Endorser | Jerry Austin
Gimmicks and Authenticity | Tom Ingram
Getting a Message Across | Tom King
Panda Bear | Jerry Austin
Human Radar | Ace Smith
“If We Can’t Eat Them, We Shouldn’t Shoot Them” | Jeff Plaut
Ash Wednesday | John Rendon
No Cameras, No Story | Tom King
You Could Not Say That, But I Could | Jerry Austin
Signs for the Times | Bob Mulholland
“Meet the New Boss. Same as the Old Boss” | Garry South
The Gang of Five | Alice Huffman
The Rise of Dick Morris | Jerry Austin
How I Became Political Director | Paul Curcio
Getting Some Guidance | Alice Huffman
Changing the Primary Date | John Rendon
Convention Madness | Rick Rendon
Convention Chaos | Jerry Austin
III. Wry and Wise
Presidential Impersonation | Jerry Austin
A Good Hand Man | Bob Keefe
The Sweepstakes | David Heller
A Pollster Not an Upholsterer | Jeff Plaut
Gary’s Gorillas | John Toohey
Apologizing to Protestants | Nancy Korman
I’m Not a Puppet | Peter Fenn
Rendon, I Got Other Plans | John Rendon
A Moment with the President | Jerry Austin
Bananas | Richard Norman
Airport Security | Steve Cobble
Two Double Beds | Garry South
Celebrity for a Day | Jerry Austin
A Pizza Guy | John Toohey
Saturday Night Live | Steve Cobble
Mosquito Inspector | Steve Murphy
Are You from New Orleans? | Tom King
Jamillah | Jerry Austin
Jenrette | Jerry Austin
Humble Pie Act | Garry South
Winning the Nose Ring Vote | Steve Cobble
A Scary Invitation | Jerry Austin
IV. Leadership and Appreciation
Remembering Mo | Karen T. Scates
Meeting Ronald Reagan | Bill Lacy
Ted’s Humanity | Nancy Korman
The Nuclear Codes | Richard Norman
The First Catholic Priest in Congress | Nancy Korman
Still Conservative After All These Years | Bill Lacy
A Job Interview | Jerry Austin
Branch Water and Bourbon | Tom Ingram
From Now On, He’s With Me | Howie Carroll
Miss Anna Belle | Tom Ingram
Great Storyteller | Nancy Korman
A Story Left Untold | Jerry Austin
Justice and Power Politics | Steve Cobble
Coach Hayes and His Football Family | Jerry Austin
Campaigning for Lula | Steve Cobble
The Ballot Box Revolution | Jerry Austin
Comrade Steve | Steve Cobble
On the Road to Belfast | Jerry Austin
The Ostrich Has Landed | Wayne Johnson
The People Vote No | Jerry Austin
About the Contributors
Introduction
The concept for True Tales from the Campaign Trail originated with the Chicken Soup for the Soul series of books.
Chicken Soup consisted of inspirational true stories about ordinary people’s lives. The book became an international best seller. Later, versions were published targeted for a specific demographic, i.e. Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul . And to date, books in this genre have been published regularly since the first book in 1993.
True Tales is based on interviews with longtime Democratic and Republican political consultants. These consultants’ stories were transcribed and edited, and are presented here for the enjoyment of those readers who enjoy politics and/or a good story.
Chicken Soup and True Tales from the Campaign Trail share an “you can’t make this up” originality.
The first story could have been published in Chicken Soup : A candidate for mayor experiences a once-in-a-lifetime, unplanned moment that will be remembered in the annals of San Francisco politics forever.
The stories are divided into four sections of roughly equal length—a rough and ready division, since some stories could be in more than one section.
“Elections and Campaigns” features stories involving Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Oliver North, while “Political Communication” reports on successful—and unsuccessful—efforts to communicate with voters and politicians.
“Wry and Wise” contains accounts of the funny foibles and lessons learned. And “Leadership and Appreciation” remembers effective leaders, such Ronald Reagan and Ted Kennedy, and celebrates the virtues of the democratic process, here and abroad.
I would like to thank the fellow consultants who shared their stories; Sheryl Losser for help editing the stories; Doug Granger for designing the cover; the Bliss Institute of Applied Politics for supporting the project; and the University of Akron Press for publishing this book.
ENJOY!
Gerald “Jerry” Austin
Akron, Ohio
Summer 2017
I. Elections and Campaigns
San Francisco Mayor’s Race
Jerry Austin
In 1991, I was retained as the consultant for the first Asian-born American to run for mayor of a major city.
Tom Hsieh (“Shea”) was born in China and had migrated to San Francisco in the early 1950s. An architect by profession, Hsieh was the first Asian elected to the Board of Supervisors, the local government in San Francisco.
Tom Hsieh continued to have a very distinctive accent as well as a habit of speaking at times in “cookie monster” type phrases—phrases without a verb.
During the campaign, I produced an ad with Tom looking at the camera asking, “What do you want, good grammar or good government?”
The highlight of any San Francisco mayor’s race is the final televised debate, scheduled in prime time on a major network. San Franciscans consider politics a contact sport. The debate always has a better-than-average-size viewing audience for a televised political event.
The major candidates were Art Agnos, the embattled incumbent; Angela Alioto, another member of the Board of Supervisors and the daughter of former mayor Joe Alioto; Frank Jordan, a former chief of police; Richard Hongisto, a former sheriff and Board of Supervisors member; and Tom Hsieh.
The televised debate took place on the Thursday before the election. I had briefed To