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Is the GOP Losing Races Due to Greedy Media Buyers?
INSIGHT magazine ^ | October 14, 2002 | Paul M. Weyrich

Posted on 10/17/2002 8:50:55 AM PDT by Stand Watch Listen

Morton Blackwell, the Republican National Committeeman from Virginia, has sent a remarkable five-page letter to his colleagues on the national committee.

He is asking them to name names.

By way of background, Blackwell has run a political-action committee for 30 years, one that sends young people into GOP campaigns to organize college campuses. In the last decade, he has run the Leadership Institute, which, among other things, teaches the organizational aspect of politics.

Blackwell has observed that Republicans have lost hundreds of elections because they concentrate exclusively on the air wars and neglect the ground wars. By this he means that candidates for Congress, for example, just advertise and don't bother to organize precincts so they can identify their voters and turn them out on Election Day. He has preached this gospel for years, and his party largely has ignored the message.

Then came the 2000 elections. Vice President Al Gore got a half-million more votes than George W. Bush, who just managed to earn enough electoral votes to win the presidency thanks to his victory in Florida by a heart-stopping margin. The GOP did a postmortem on that election and was astonished to find that a significant portion of its base didn't vote.

So the Republicans did some experimenting in off-year and special elections. They targeted certain areas and made a real effort to identify sympathetic voters and turn them out on Election Day. The results were dramatic, to the point that the party developed a whole program for the upcoming off-year congressional elections. Historically, the party in power loses seats in such elections.

The political consultants, who make their money giving advice to campaigns, almost always have dismissed the need to organize the grass roots. The dirty little secret is that most of them get a 15 percent kickback for booking media advertising. Any money that goes toward a serious grass-roots organizing effort is money unavailable for media.

The Republican National Committee called in all the consultants from across the nation and briefed them on their plan to implement grass-roots organizing for the 2002 elections. They all applauded. But many of them were thinking "over my dead body." Blackwell explains all of this in his letter and points out that the Democrats overcame the objections of their consultants and increased their vote by 4 percent in key areas.

He tells his colleagues: "I'm asking for your help to explore ways to get around, over or through those people whose financial interest — or political ignorance — causes them to obstruct any campaign efforts other than fund raising and paid media. That won't be easy, particularly where these obstructionists are powerful or well-connected or even our personal friends."

Blackwell asks that his associates pay attention to the plans for implementing the ground wars. "If you find clear evidence of obstructionist activity, please let me know the details of it: who, what and when," he requests.

Blackwell intends to be sure that the names of those consultants who insisted on spending campaign money on media to the detriment of a sound precinct organization are known and that the campaigns they lost as a result of that "strategy" are well-publicized. He points out that the country narrowly is divided and any increase in his party's vote can mean the difference between victory and defeat in what is being viewed as likely one of the closest elections in our history.

Blackwell might want to hire a food taster and someone to start his car. This is serious stuff. Many of these consultants are as mean as they come. He may cost them significant dollars. If they are, in effect, blacklisted in the future, it could cost them their careers. What Blackwell has done takes courage. He should be applauded for what he has undertaken. For far too long, many of these unethical consultants have lined their own pockets at the expense of the candidates they are supposed to be helping, and perhaps even at the expense of the nation.

Perhaps a candidate who lost by 4 percent might have turned out to be a man of true integrity and fortitude who could have helped to turn this nation around. But he is not in Congress today because some consultant talked him out of a good grass-roots organization to ensure the availability of more money for TV ads that usually are seen by thousands upon thousands of people who can't vote in that particular district anyway. Yet the television outlets charge by the number of people they reach during a certain time period, regardless of how many are irrelevant to that campaign. A good precinct organization covers only the territory of the contested district.

One only can hope that Blackwell's colleagues will take this project seriously. It has been a long time since Richard Nixon produced an enemies list. It would seem that the Grand Old Party needs a new one.

Paul M. Weyrich is the chairman and chief executive officer of the Washington-based Free Congress Foundation. INSIGHT magazine October 14, 2002 Is the GOP Losing Races Due to Greedy Media Buyers?
Posted Oct. 14, 2002
By Paul M. Weyrich

Morton Blackwell, the Republican National Committeeman from Virginia, has sent a remarkable five-page letter to his colleagues on the national committee.

He is asking them to name names.

By way of background, Blackwell has run a political-action committee for 30 years, one that sends young people into GOP campaigns to organize college campuses. In the last decade, he has run the Leadership Institute, which, among other things, teaches the organizational aspect of politics.

Blackwell has observed that Republicans have lost hundreds of elections because they concentrate exclusively on the air wars and neglect the ground wars. By this he means that candidates for Congress, for example, just advertise and don't bother to organize precincts so they can identify their voters and turn them out on Election Day. He has preached this gospel for years, and his party largely has ignored the message.

Then came the 2000 elections. Vice President Al Gore got a half-million more votes than George W. Bush, who just managed to earn enough electoral votes to win the presidency thanks to his victory in Florida by a heart-stopping margin. The GOP did a postmortem on that election and was astonished to find that a significant portion of its base didn't vote.

So the Republicans did some experimenting in off-year and special elections. They targeted certain areas and made a real effort to identify sympathetic voters and turn them out on Election Day. The results were dramatic, to the point that the party developed a whole program for the upcoming off-year congressional elections. Historically, the party in power loses seats in such elections.

The political consultants, who make their money giving advice to campaigns, almost always have dismissed the need to organize the grass roots. The dirty little secret is that most of them get a 15 percent kickback for booking media advertising. Any money that goes toward a serious grass-roots organizing effort is money unavailable for media.

The Republican National Committee called in all the consultants from across the nation and briefed them on their plan to implement grass-roots organizing for the 2002 elections. They all applauded. But many of them were thinking "over my dead body." Blackwell explains all of this in his letter and points out that the Democrats overcame the objections of their consultants and increased their vote by 4 percent in key areas.

He tells his colleagues: "I'm asking for your help to explore ways to get around, over or through those people whose financial interest — or political ignorance — causes them to obstruct any campaign efforts other than fund raising and paid media. That won't be easy, particularly where these obstructionists are powerful or well-connected or even our personal friends."

Blackwell asks that his associates pay attention to the plans for implementing the ground wars. "If you find clear evidence of obstructionist activity, please let me know the details of it: who, what and when," he requests.

Blackwell intends to be sure that the names of those consultants who insisted on spending campaign money on media to the detriment of a sound precinct organization are known and that the campaigns they lost as a result of that "strategy" are well-publicized. He points out that the country narrowly is divided and any increase in his party's vote can mean the difference between victory and defeat in what is being viewed as likely one of the closest elections in our history.

Blackwell might want to hire a food taster and someone to start his car. This is serious stuff. Many of these consultants are as mean as they come. He may cost them significant dollars. If they are, in effect, blacklisted in the future, it could cost them their careers. What Blackwell has done takes courage. He should be applauded for what he has undertaken. For far too long, many of these unethical consultants have lined their own pockets at the expense of the candidates they are supposed to be helping, and perhaps even at the expense of the nation.

Perhaps a candidate who lost by 4 percent might have turned out to be a man of true integrity and fortitude who could have helped to turn this nation around. But he is not in Congress today because some consultant talked him out of a good grass-roots organization to ensure the availability of more money for TV ads that usually are seen by thousands upon thousands of people who can't vote in that particular district anyway. Yet the television outlets charge by the number of people they reach during a certain time period, regardless of how many are irrelevant to that campaign. A good precinct organization covers only the territory of the contested district.

One only can hope that Blackwell's colleagues will take this project seriously. It has been a long time since Richard Nixon produced an enemies list. It would seem that the Grand Old Party needs a new one.

Paul M. Weyrich is the chairman and chief executive officer of the Washington-based Free Congress Foundation.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Editorial; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS:

1 posted on 10/17/2002 8:50:55 AM PDT by Stand Watch Listen
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Yes! Yes! Yes!

PA RNC, take note! Rendell's Dems have rallied their base.

2 posted on 10/17/2002 8:55:17 AM PDT by Ciexyz
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Can the Stupid Party actually learn something from their past mistakes?
3 posted on 10/17/2002 8:56:43 AM PDT by Blood of Tyrants
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To: Stand Watch Listen
IT'S 19 DAYS 'TIL THE ELECTION

WHAT ARE YOU DOING TODAY TO HELP TAKE BACK THE SENATE?

YOU CAN HELP, TODAY. GO TO:

TakeBackCongress.org

A resource for conservatives who want a Republican majority in the Senate

4 posted on 10/17/2002 8:57:19 AM PDT by ffrancone
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To: Stand Watch Listen
The GOP did a postmortem on that election and was astonished to find that a significant portion of its base didn't vote.

Any voter who didn't cast a vote in the 2000 election shouldn't be considered part of anyone's "base."

5 posted on 10/17/2002 8:59:02 AM PDT by Alberta's Child
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To: Blood of Tyrants
Bush seems to - he's out campaigning for Republicans for most the time between now and the election.

No resting on laurels here.
6 posted on 10/17/2002 9:00:46 AM PDT by hchutch
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Or: "The RNC Struggles to Organize Its Way Out Of A Wet Paper Bag Near You".

It has always amazed me that a party that does a reasonable job in government is so incredibly inept in its attempts at getting into government.

7 posted on 10/17/2002 9:00:53 AM PDT by LTCJ
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To: Ciexyz
In Colorado, the state party is not sitting on its media buy laurels (strained metaphor alert :). We have assembled a 96 Hour Team of over 1000 volunteers to take the last four days before the election and turn out the base.

What makes this unique is that the "volunteers" are being paid! We are going to turn out enough voters to reelect Senator Allard. Mark my words.

If you want to help take back the Senate, go to

TakeBackCongress.org. It will point you to the key races and has lots of suggestions about how you can help.

If you are a FREEPER in Colorado and would like to help turn out the vote, and get paid, contact me by FREEPMAIL.

8 posted on 10/17/2002 9:00:58 AM PDT by ffrancone
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Thank you for the post. This article is extremely important. The only consistent thing about GOP campaigns is that the have little if any grassroots strategy. What they said about the Bush campaign was true - in 2000 4 million conservative Christians that they expected to go to the polls decided to stay home.

I'd like to see Morton Blackwell's letter. Do you have it?

9 posted on 10/17/2002 9:07:16 AM PDT by Zack Nguyen
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Excellent article, so good you felt a need to repeat it I see. :-)

I have always thought that political consultants were a major problem but not because of this angle. This angle I didn't know about. The one I criticized was the constant drum beat of going after the undecided voters, the mysterious middle. Of course, that may be hand-in-glove with the advice to buy more media to reach this ambiguous audience. That is why they advise conservatives to go mushy on their core values and try to appeal to the "center", what ever that is. I always thought it was simply a CYA strategy which required no guts.

It is a well known and proven fact that people admire and vote for those who "tell it like it is" and stand on principle. That is what brought about the Republican take over of the house in 1994. Then they went mushy, probably on the advice of political consultants, seeking to please more and more "moderates" and pleasing nobody. The myth of a malleable center needs to be relegated to the trash bin, they don't usually vote even if you convince them, and the fact of candor and principle installed in its place.
10 posted on 10/17/2002 9:10:32 AM PDT by Mind-numbed Robot
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To: Zack Nguyen
Candidates ought to get rid of the bloodsucking consultants and get some people that ran Republican campaigns durring the 50s through 70s to manage their campaigns. We knew how and won most elections in any district that had over 36% Republican registration.

I wouldn't say that the 36% criteria would hold today since the democraps have studied how we were winning races and have adopted the tactics but they are successful!

TV advertising is a real loser as far as generating votes, it only benefits the TV stations and the paid campaign professionals.
11 posted on 10/17/2002 9:20:51 AM PDT by dalereed
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To: Alberta's Child
Any voter who didn't cast a vote in the 2000 election shouldn't be considered part of anyone's "base."

Absolutely not! All your base are belong to us!

12 posted on 10/17/2002 9:31:09 AM PDT by Tribune7
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To: Mind-numbed Robot
I wonder how many of these consultants are advising their clients to highlight the tax cut, and point out that it shortened what would have been a longer recession and the Democrats want to roll it back. The Democrats keep saying the economy is their issue, and I think most of these genius consultants believe that. It seems they get their impressions from the evening news.

Of course, Republican candidates could actually use their brains and decide on their own to use the tax cuts as an issue. I think most of them are afraid to say anything on their own. The reason Reagan was so successful is that he didn't need anyone telling him what he thought. He selected his consultants according to whether they had the same ideas as he did so they were an extension of him, rather than the other way around.
13 posted on 10/17/2002 10:07:44 AM PDT by lasereye
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To: dalereed
I've attended a couple of the Leadership Institute seminars and I've met Morton Blackwell. He's a great guy and absolutely right about the importance of a grass roots effort.

Its not an either/or proposition, just like a football team you need to develop your ground atack and your air attack, the problem here is that the campaign consultants only get paid on the the passes you throw.

Anyone thinking of running for office, or managing a campaign, in the future should check out the Leadership Institute. They have several very practical training programs available.
14 posted on 10/17/2002 10:11:09 AM PDT by Maximum Leader
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To: Maximum Leader
Even the speaker from the Leadership Institute at the FreeRepublic Network confrence only admited to me in private that all consultants push TV advertising and poo-poo ground work in the precincts because they are time consuming and they can't charge that much for their services whereas TV only takes minimal time and their pay is hugh.
15 posted on 10/17/2002 10:17:09 AM PDT by dalereed
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To: lasereye
I wonder how many of these consultants are advising their clients to highlight the tax cut, and point out that it shortened what would have been a longer recession and the Democrats want to roll it back.

Because of forums like FreeRepublic most of us freepers find ourselves shouting at the TV and talking to magazines and newspapers, forgetting that we can't respond there as we do here.

Recently, when Tom Daschle was on TV saying we could not afford a tax cut I was shouting, "It is you big spending leftists Democrats who can't afford a tax cut, not the average American!! Please tell me why the average citizen cannot afford to have more money in his pocket! Please tell me how that would hurt the economy!"

16 posted on 10/17/2002 11:06:04 AM PDT by Mind-numbed Robot
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