Steve Schmidt's first moves as McCain manager bode new discipline, style

Steve Schmidt, the political veteran named last week to run the stuttering presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain and save it from itself, has moved quickly to install another veteran of previous Republican campaigns that opposed the Arizona senator.

The new style first emerges at lunch hour today in Denver with a trademark town hall meeting and a series of local media interviews focused on, of all things, the economy, which pretty much everyone but the McCain operation has long believed was campaign issue No. 1 in 2008.

On Sunday, as first reported by ABC News, Schmidt named as McCain's new political director Mike DuHaime, whose job will be to provide just such nonstop relevant focus.

DuHaime's most recent political feat was to lead the one-time frontrunning GOP presidential campaign of ex-New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani to crash in flames somewhere in the Florida swamps.

But don't be fooled. The tough-talking, aggressive Schmidt and the milder but equally methodical DuHaime, both in their 30s and both New Jerseyans, are part of a new generation of professional Republican operatives getting their first chances to direct the unruly multimillion-dollar monsters that massive national campaigns can become.

Many like Schmidt were schooled in the successful style of....

...Karl Rove, who learned his methodical political management skills through the daily minutiae of state races during the 80s and 90s before jumping into national politics.

Schmidt worked in the losing campaigns of would-be senator Matt Fong of California and would-be president Lamar Alexander, now a GOP senator from Tennessee.

In 2004 Schmidt ran the rapid-response team for Bush-Cheney, a job once held by ex-White House counselor Dan Bartlett, before working with Rove and Vice President Dick Cheney.

In 2006, Schmidt went west to head the ultimately successful reelection campaign for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who had lost several important ballot initiatives, was sagging in popularity and had a campaign team pulling in several different directions.

Sound familiar?

The grumbling grew louder among grass-roots Republicans across the country in recent weeks as the feeling mounted that while few work harder than McCain himself, his campaign had squandered its 90-day general election headstart with spinning wheels taking the candidate in too many directions with muddled messages, sloppy staging and clumsy speech deliveries.

In recent days McCain has worked with Brett O'Donnell, a speech coach, to smooth his chronically awkward Teleprompter speech deliveries, which sound particularly clumsy in comparison to his Democratic opponent's well-timed and rhythmic oratory.

Can the veteran and, yes, stubborn Arizona senator, the former free-spirited fighter pilot who prefers the fly-by-the-seat-of-your pants style evidenced in his favorite unrehearsed town hall gatherings, adapt to the more disciplined mode of pro managers? And stick to the polished message without inadvertently inserting some distracting comment?

The McCain campaign has also just hired Greg Jenkins, an experienced political advance team captain and Fox News producer. His job is to spiff up the often-dreary settings and stagings of McCain's campaign appearances that can silently add or detract so much from delivery of the day's political message not to the immediate audience, which are merely living props, but to the thousands more witnessing the event through the prism of TV.

And, according to Bill Kristol, the other shoe will soon drop when McCain hires Mike Murphy, the campaign strategist who helped him nearly upset the Bush family in 2000, as his traveling advisor and strategist while Schmidt drives the campaign from Alexandria.

Does anyone remember Giuliani's relentless 9/11 message of last fall? While ultimately unsuccessful in Republican primaries due to a variety of reasons, there was no doubt what Giuliani's message was. And DuHaime ran that effort. Likewise, under Rove's direction, George W. Bush ran two successful Texas gubernatorial races with but three or four easily identifiable goals.

DuHaime began his political career as campaign manager for Anthony Bucco’s successful New Jersey State Senate race in 1997. He was deputy campaign manager for Bob Franks’ 2000 U.S. Senate race, and, oh, look, regional political director of Bush's 2004 reelection bid. 

In 2005 and 2006 DuHaime was the political director of the Republican National Committee, which under several chairmen including former Montana Gov. Marc Racicot, Ken Mehlman, Ed Gillespie and Florida Sen. Mel Martinez has since 2000 closely coordinated its efforts with the White House (meaning Rove).

DuHaime's appointment, which also made him deputy campaign manager, is an early sign of the firm, more centralized and pragmatic approach the blunt Schmidt has quickly imposed on the GOP candidate's campaign headquarters in Arlington, Va.

Anyone who's sat in on a national campaign's daily message meeting, which sets and meticulously choreographs the candidate's travels and messages up to two to three weeks out, will recognize the difference between one that's a chorus of possibly good ideas and one that has a presiding officer who listens and then decisively drives a single theme.

Hard to believe, fully 18 months into this presidential campaign and less than four months out from the November election, but DuHaime actually replaces no one on the McCain staff.

That's because, amazingly, until Sunday the Republican presidential nominee's national team did not employ either a political director or a field director.

-- Andrew Malcolm

Photo credits: Mike DuHaime (top) Kevin Sanders / AP; Steve Schmidt (bottom) Matt Sayles / AP 

Comments

[ZachJonesIsHome]

Having good form in giving speeches is critical in todays political world.

Martin Luther King, Jr., a man I admire greatly, once said: We are not makers of history. We are made by history. Within this context please consider:
Will Our Children Be Able To Trust What “History” Says About Senator Obama?
Found at:
http://zachjonesishome.wordpress.com/2008/07/06/will-our-children-be-able-to-trust-what-%E2%80%9Chistory%E2%80%9D-says-about-senator-obama/

[Ted]

Well, it's either gonna be McCain/Palin or ...

Barack Obama starring as "Change" the Gardener in remake of movie classic, "Being There", starring Peter Sellers as "Chance" the Gardener!

*HT to hs commenting on
puma4palin.blogspot.com

[plankbob]

Here's pretty much all you need to know about John McCain, from April 2007:

Sen. John McCain sings BOMB BOMB BOMB, BOMB BOMB IRAN, then laughs.

That's not change I can believe in.

[Ray]

ZachJonesIsHome has posted another smear message, an unfounded rumor that he/she hopes will creat FUD, fear, uncertainty and doubt, about Senator Obama.

It won't work; after the swift boat campaign attack on Senator Kerry, Americans are all too familiar with this negative politics.

Mr. McCain has lost credibility with his constantly changing positions on tax cuts (initially against, now for permanent), immigration, etc. And he can't be believed on the economy when he admits he doesn't know much about the economy. And, of course, he wants to stay in Iraq for 100 years when the terrorists are in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Finally, Mr. McCain is not supportive of stem cell research or a woman's right to choose; both issues are supported by a majority of Americans.

Mr. Obama is the right person to bring America back to it's former position of respect and prominence in the world.

Ray

[Carol Thornton]

.I live in a retirement community and we are all around John McCain's age, and in my opinion not one of us would be qualified to run this or any other country.
Not only muscles get rigid with age.

[Wm Tate]

"...until Sunday the Republican presidential nominee's national team did not employ either a political director or a field director."

Compare that to the ruthless attack machine put together by the Obama camp. No wonder the Big O is up in the polls!

-Wm Tate,
http://www.atimelikethis.us/

[jamesincalifornia]

Is this Steve Schmidt the same Steve Schmidt who once was mayor of West Hollywood? He doesn't look much like him, but 25 or 30 years will change a guy's appearance.

[JWargo]

The Republicans need more than a smooth talker to get the party back on track. Here's an article about republican contributors proving a point by cutting off funds...
http://www.greenfaucet.com/hanlons-pub/proud-to-have-my-name-on-this-one
The Lincoln Club of Orange County are stopping their donations to Republican incumbents, making a statement to both the party leaders and voters that change cannot occur in the party if the same old leadership stays in place.
The 300 member organization donates about 1.5 bil a year so the republicans might actually be in trouble.

[julia]

I don't understand why people keep putting the DuHaime news on Sunday. CNN had it on Wednesday of last week

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/07/02/mccain.shakeup/index.html

[Bob Greenpoint]

McCain is "computer illiterate" (his words).

Obama communicates with his kids via iChat on their Macs.

'Nuff said.

[keith]

McCain was / is a poor choice for the GOP. Unless Barack Hussein Obama really steps in it somewhere, I think the election is a foregone conclusion. Not that it would really matter, both are liberals, why not vote for the one who runs as a liberal?

[Suzy]

Just cuz Obama can iChat does not make him any more qualified to be president than the average 26-year-old Hill Staffer. Most powerful men are computer illiterate. They have underlings to do unimportant tasks for them.

[Joe Schillaci]

McCain....ZZZZZZZZ Obama....ZZZZZZZZ
I am writing in Ron Paul.

[dave]

maybe rudy's campaign was after all so vastly unsuccessful BECAUSE there was no doubt as to his message: to create paranoia and present himself as the cure - a hardly inspiring pattern used time and again in politics, and with proven results of the worst kind, even in more recent history. who cares who 'masterminded' this? and why bother about what people look like reading prompted speeches, instead of what ideas they come up with, and what views they adhere to, on their own?

[Linda]

The LAST thing Senator McCain should do, in my opinion is bring in Bush/Cheney people to work on his campaign. It is quite obvious they are pushing Romney as vp and that would certainly end any chances the Republican ticket has to win. Romney and his dirty campaign tactics aimed at McCain and every other GOP candidate from Guiliani to Huckabee, soured him with those who weren't already "turned off" by his inability to show us what he truly stands for with his flip flopping on every single issue he ran on, his total fabrications of events that never happened and his less than stellar record of acheivements in MA. (health care plan just one of the disasters that caused his own state papers to endorse others). McCain has always run his career based on honesty and integrity. Romney does not possess those qualities and will turn this ticket into a mockery of what McCain stands for....

[Bob Moore]

Anyone old enough to be voting age when Reagan took office, and cares enough to study the history of Political parties can tell you the GOP and DNC share the blame for our current problems. Reagan was successful because he was a Conservative first and only a Republican last. Only Romney (not McCain, nor any other VP hopeful) can claim that status. McCain's campaign is faltering because he is to soft on Obama. He needs the fighting strength he had as a Navy Pilot, Cold Warrior, and POW, to win this election and none of his minions on the campaign staff is strong or experienced enough to bring it out. McCain can proudly proclaim his honesty and decency; the honor code he followed as a midshipman is not suitable in political warfare...I know, because I was at Annapolis when he was there...Class of 1957. I hope McCain sees the light, and pics Romney as his running (and help) mate in this election. Go America, Beat the Socialists.