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Rick Perry's Sophisticated Campaign Machine
Weekly Standard ^ | 8-23-2011 | Mark Hemingway

Posted on 08/23/2011 2:28:13 PM PDT by smoothsailing

Rick Perry's Sophisticated Campaign Machine

Mark Hemingway

August 23, 2011

While his critics have been eager to dismiss the Texas Governor as anti-science, the The New York Times takes a look at an upcoming electronic book, "Rick Perry and His Eggheads: Inside the Brainiest Political Operation in America." The book's author shows Perry's approach to politics is at once rigorously scientific and unconventional:

No candidate has ever presided over a political operation so skeptical about the effectiveness of basic campaign tools and so committed to using social-science methods to rigorously test them.

As the 2006 election season approached, the governor’s top strategist, Dave Carney, invited four political scientists into Perry’s war room and asked them to impose experimental controls on any aspect of the campaign budget that they could randomize and measure. Over the course of that year, the eggheads, as they were known within the campaign, ran experiments testing the effectiveness of all the things that political consultants do reflexively and we take for granted: candidate appearances, TV ads, robocalls, direct mail. These were basically the political world’s version of randomized drug trials, which had been used by academics but never from within a large-scale partisan campaign.

The findings from those 2006 tests dramatically changed how Carney prioritized the candidate’s time and the campaign’s money when Perry sought re-election again in 2010 and will inform the way he runs for president now.

The article goes on to discuss the differences between Perry's campaign approach and Obama's. While Obama's chief strategist David Plouffe is know for his technical approach to politics, the Obama campaign may not be as rigorously empirical as Perry's operation. In any event, it sounds like Perry's opponents will underestimate his campaign machine at their peril.


TOPICS: Extended News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: perry; perryrino; rickperry; rinoperry
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To: smoothsailing

The Bush Clan which includes Rove found their power wasn’t what it once was. They put everything they had behind Kay Baily....and Perry creamed her. Their day has come and gone...


21 posted on 08/23/2011 4:20:50 PM PDT by shield (Rev 2:9 Woe unto those who say they are Judahites and are not, but are of the syna GOG ue of Satan.)
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To: yellowroses

And if one thinks a $6,000 one time contribution will get them in the handshake line at the meet & greet fundraisers for Perry has no knowledge of campaign finance in Texas. Perry has things that he’ll have to explain but his little insinuation isn’t in the ballpark.

snip
FORT WORTH, Texas — Texas Gov. Rick Perry raised nearly $103 million in campaign contributions from his first inauguration as governor in 2001 through 2010, according to a published report.

Almost half of that money has been given by 204 “mega-donors” of $100,000 or more, according to Texans for Public Justice, a state campaign finance watchdog.

end snip
http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/03c393d4a06f44ecacb3f29a20179bc0/TX—Perry-Contributors/


22 posted on 08/23/2011 4:27:13 PM PDT by deport ( In Texas it's hotter than two goats fighting in a jalapeno patch.)
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To: smoothsailing

Don’t forget that Rick Perry is a democrat who put an ‘R’ next to his name in 1989.

Infiltrated the party, so to speak.


23 posted on 08/23/2011 4:36:05 PM PDT by hedgetrimmer
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To: smoothsailing

I was reading a thread earlier today which included poll results of the various Republican candidates, and as I was looking at those poll results, I began to see why Rove wants Sarah Palin to enter the race.

From the polling results, I took Rick Perry’s polling numbers, Sarah Palin’s polling numbers, and Mitt Romney’s polling numbers (on those polls where all three were listed as Sarah Palin was not on all the polls), and I was amazed to see what occurs when you have both Rick Perry and Sarah Palin in the race.

See the my list below.

From: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2767362/posts

RPC Average
Perry 18.4
Palin 10
Total Perry and Palin 28.4
Romney at 20.2

Fox News
Perry 13
Palin 8
Total Perry and Palin 21
Romney at 21

CNN
Perry 15
Palin 12
Total Perry and Palin 27
Romney at 17

McClatchy
Perry 18
Palin 10
Total Perry and Palin 28
Romney at 21

If one of the Ps had the totals, it would be one of the Ps that would EASILY get the nomination. When the totals are split like that though, it looks like Romney has it all.


24 posted on 08/23/2011 5:07:14 PM PDT by casinva (If Rick Santorum kisses Romney while charging after Perry, I want my nice words about him back.)
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To: aMorePerfectUnion

Now, now. There’s no reason to start acting like a Palin supporter.


25 posted on 08/23/2011 9:56:01 PM PDT by GunRunner (***Not associated with any criminal actions by the ATF***)
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To: hedgetrimmer
Really? He's toast then. No way Republicans would ever nominate a former Democrat.

Oh wait....

26 posted on 08/23/2011 9:58:45 PM PDT by GunRunner (***Not associated with any criminal actions by the ATF***)
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To: smoothsailing

Are we supposed to be impressed by folks being “scientifically” manipulated?


27 posted on 08/23/2011 10:01:51 PM PDT by EternalVigilance (At best, all the Republicans are willing to give the Federal Behemoth is a slight haircut.)
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To: RED SOUTH

Lots of campaign cash? Are you serious?

Puh-leez! $6000 out of the $24 million he raised is not “lots” no matter how bad at math one is.


28 posted on 08/23/2011 10:59:05 PM PDT by BuckeyeTexan (Man is not free unless government is limited. ~Ronald Reagan)
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To: EternalVigilance

Well, it depends on how much or how little you think of voters. For example, is it a fact that only a fool would vote third party?


29 posted on 08/24/2011 3:06:33 PM PDT by smoothsailing
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To: smoothsailing

I’m sorry you can’t see that the packaging and selling of politicians like a box of soap is a big part of what is destroying our free republic. Along with the enslavement of our political class to the money interests so that they have the resources to fool the people in this way once again, of course.


30 posted on 08/24/2011 3:10:58 PM PDT by EternalVigilance (At best, all the Republicans are willing to give the Federal Behemoth is a slight haircut.)
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To: EternalVigilance

Stay sorry, it suits you.


31 posted on 08/24/2011 3:19:35 PM PDT by smoothsailing
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To: smoothsailing

Stay in thrall to slick phony unprincipled politicians and their moneyed masters. It obviously suits you.


32 posted on 08/24/2011 3:59:07 PM PDT by EternalVigilance (At best, all the Republicans are willing to give the Federal Behemoth is a slight haircut.)
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To: Huck

Too bad about ZZ Top. Used to love their music. My father, a music exec, knew them personally.

Saw them play at the Rodeo. The drugs and booze have taken their toll.

They’re ready for a nursing home. They can’t hit the notes or play anymore.


33 posted on 08/24/2011 4:53:23 PM PDT by darth
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To: darth
The drugs and booze have taken their toll.

I don't know about Frank and Dusty, but Billy is a health freak.

34 posted on 08/24/2011 4:55:15 PM PDT by dfwgator
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To: hedgetrimmer
Don’t forget that Rick Perry is a democrat who put an ‘R’ next to his name in 1989.

Infiltrated the party, so to speak.

You mean like Ronald Reagan and Michele Bachmann?

35 posted on 08/24/2011 5:01:28 PM PDT by CA Conservative (Texan by birth, Californian by circumstance)
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To: dfwgator

Not being a devoted fan, I did not discriminate in judging the members of the band.

The two guys out front with the beards were terrible. The score had been simplified to make it easier to play, and they still missed notes. They could not hit the notes in the vocals either.

Bummer. My father used to despair over all the talented musicians he worked with. They had everything a person could want: money, fame, women, adoring fans. But they traded it all for getting high. My father truly loved music above all, and it made him sad.


36 posted on 08/24/2011 5:06:38 PM PDT by darth
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To: CA Conservative

Did they vow to keep voting like a democrat after they changed affiliation?

But look, it is a known democrat strategy to have their members switch parties so they can control politics from both sides.


37 posted on 08/25/2011 7:35:48 AM PDT by hedgetrimmer
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