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Bill Carrick was the longtime chief media strategist for Senator Dianne Feinstein, as well as helping elect President Bill Clinton, multiple LA mayors, Congressman Jim Clyburn, and many more. In this conversation, Bill discusses his early political roots in South Carolina, his time working for Senator Ted Kennedy, his pivot to political media, and a deep dive on his time as chief strategist for Dianne Feinstein. We talk her early activist days in the 60s, the assassination that led to her becoming mayor of San Francisco, their first lunch meeting in 1989, how she leveraged a loss in the '90 Governor's race into 6 terms in the Senate, and her impact and legacy on priorities as varied as water policy, gun safety, choice, anti-torture policies, and more. 

IN THIS EPISODE

Bill's roots in South Carolina Democratic politics...

One of Bill's favorite Fritz Hollings story...

Bill's time working for Senator Ted Kennedy...

The 1974 race that convinced Bill he should become a media consultant...

Bill talks the early career of Dianne Feinstein on the San Francisco Board...

Bill relates the story Dianne Feinstein would tell about the tragic assassination that propelled her to the Mayor's office...

The first meeting of Bill with then-Mayor Feinstein before her 1990 Governor's race against Pete Wilson...

The focus groups that helped ignite her statewide political career...

Her '94 re-election amidst the GOP wave and against one of the first deep-pocketed self-funders...

Bill relates Feinstein's views toward being on the short list of the '84 Vice Presidential process...

Bill on Senator Feinstein's top passions and priorities...

Feinstein's evolving views of the death penalty...

Memories of her final re-election in 2018...

Bill weighs in on the political legacy of Diane Feinstein...

AND Aiken, the assault weapons ban, Tony Bennett, Annette Bening, The Boston Herald, Barbara Boxer, Willie Brown, George H.W. Bush, cable cars, Bill Clinton, the Commerce Committee, DACA, Gray Davis, Kevin de León, The Desert Protection Act, George Deukmejian, Jim Eastland, Dwight Eisenhower, Geraldine Ferraro, Don Fowler, Dick Gephardt, Barry Goldwater, Aaron Henry, Michael Huffington, the Inland Empire, Olin Johnston, Joshua Tree, JFK, Bob Lagomarsino, lovefests, John McCain, Leo McCarthy, Harvey Milk, Walter Mondale, George Moscone, Earl Morris, Rupert Murdoch, the NRA, Richard Nixon, Ole Miss, Prop 187, Pug Ravenel, Ronald Reagan, Dick Riley, Ed Riley, Donald Russell, Arnold Schwarzenegger, John Seymour, Strom Thurmond, Mark Twain, VAWA, John Van de Kamp, Dan White, Curtis Wilkie...& more!

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Jenifer Fernandez Ancona is a co-founder of Way to Win, a progressive donor hub that has helped direct nearly $300M since 2018. Jenifer talks her early experiences in journalism, what pulled her into political activism in the early 2000s, why Way to Win was needed, and the work and research and guidance Way to Win is providing to help Democrats message, organize, and advocate more effectively.

IN THIS EPISODE

Jenifer's path from journalism to political advocacy after 9/11...

Both the national and local political figures who inspired her activism...

Jenifer talks her work on major donor fundraising...

Why Jenifer co-founded Way to Win after the 2016 elections...

Jenifer's take on Democrats' historic "message problem"...

What Jenifer has learned from Way to Win's research ad-testing 50+ spots...

Jenifer on the power of qualitative, focus group research...

Jenifer offers guidance on how Democrats should talk about economic progress when many voters are feeling pessimistic...

Why Jenifer thinks messages promoting bipartisanship are counter-productive...

The balance in communicating to a multi-racial coalition...

Jenifer's thoughts on a potential "zoomed out" macro message for progressives...

Recent research and guidance Way to Win has rolled out among Latino voters...

AND Mandela Barnes, Cheri Beasley, George W Bush, Hillary Clinton, corporate media, crazy babykillers, Howard Dean, deep canvassing, El Salvador, Tory Gavito, Leah Hunt-Hendrix, the LA Times, Daraka Larimore-Hall, movement spaces, Richard Nixon, peace protests, Nancy Pelosi, pregnancy crisis centers, status threats, Swayable, the Tribune Company, Donald Trump, victory laps, Das Williams...& more!

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Liam Donovan, a principal at Bracewell and longtime insider and observer of the Hill GOP, returns to weigh in on a chaotic couple of weeks in the House - including the surprise sidestepping of a government shutdown, the toppling of Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and the budding race to fill his shoes. In this conversation, Liam talks the factors that led to McCarthy's ouster, how House Democrats could've "saved" him (and why they didn't), how he's thinking about the nascent race to be the next Speaker, a check-in on the '24 GOP presidential primary & more.


IN THIS EPISODE

Liam’s take on the 9-month tenure of Speaker McCarthy…

Liam’s biggest surprises in the saga of the toppling of Kevin McCarthy…

Why the CR to keep the government open both antagonized GOP rebels while alienating House Democrats…

Why Democrats might have chosen to “save" McCarthy…and why they didn’t…

How Liam is looking at the Jordan vs. Scalise battle for Speaker…

Liam on the possibility of a McCarthy Restoration…

Why acting-Speaker Patrick McHenry could be a default longer-term option…

A couple members of the GOP conference who Liam thinks will be predictive of who emerges from the fight for Speaker…

Liam on a possible shutdown after the 45-day CR elapses…

The path forward for additional funding of Ukraine…

Liam’s latest take on Trump’s strength in the GOP presidential primary and the campaigns of Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley…

AND big bargaining chips, catching the fly, Wile E. Coyote, the debt limit crisis, Diet Trump, discharge petitions, evil-genius super villains, Brian Fitzpatrick, the Freedom Caucus, the Gaetz 8, the Full Ginsberg, Lindsay Graham, gratuitous shutdowns, Garret Graves, Ben Jacobs, Hakeem Jeffries, jousting with totems, Mitch McConnell, nihilism, AOC, Nancy Pelosi, Politico, procedural blockades, Punchbowl, The Republican Study Committee, revocable non-support, tipping points, Glenn Youngkin…& more!

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Over the course of a career focused on political media, Ed Blakely helped innovate within Republican politics that led to the modernization of the media arms of campaign committees of both parties. After a stint in US Amry intelligence, Ed spent nearly 20 years at the NRCC before joining the GOP media firm of Smith & Harroff. In this conversation, Ed talks his efforts to modernize political media at the NRCC, his favorite story of filming President Reagan in the Oval Office, memories from John McCain’s first US Senate race in 1986, and much more across an incredibly interesting and influential career in politics.

IN THIS EPISODE

Ed grows up in Hawaii after his father dies in WWII…

The somewhat famous (if confidential) film that Ed produced after being drafted into the US Army…

Ed’s brush with fame as the youngest disc jockey in Hawaii…

How Ed’s path led to political media at the NRCC…

Some of Ed’s favorite stories of filming ads with President Reagan in the Oval Office…

Ed talks the media innovations he brought to the NRCC that ultimately helped modernize the operations of both parties…

Why Ed came back to the NRCC after being at a private agency for over a decade…

Ed’s memories of Newt Gingrich’s ascent in the House GOP…

Why Ed left the NRCC after more than a decade in the mid 80s & where he landed…

Ed helps elect John McCain in 1986 in his first race for US Senate…

Ed gives an impromptu history lesson of jingles in political TV ads…

Ed talks his approach to fostering new Republican media talent that paid dividends…

Ed’s stints in the public sector…

AND Creighton Abrams, Roger Ailes, Army Intelligence, Bailey-Deardorff, Baltimore, Katja Bullock, Jay Bryant, Edward Butler, Tom Delay, Bob Ehrlich, the fickle finger of fate, Gerald Ford, Barry Goldwater, Bobby Goodman, Peter Hannaford, Denny Hastert, Humphrey Browning MacDougall, Jim Innocenzi, LBJ, JFK, kinescope, The Lincoln Memorial, Bob Livingston, Robin Luke, Robert McNamara, Morning in America, Chris Mottola, Oahu, the Pentagon, Chip Pickering, radio actualities, Hal Riney, Santa Monica, slow boats, Smith & Harroff,  Olympia Snowe, The Sound of Music, speech modules, Steven Spielberg, John Sununu, The Tuesday Team, USC, Guy Vander Jagt, The Washington Post, Watergate, Henry Waxman, whistlestops, Don Young … & more!

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Dave Contarino was Bill Richardson's 2002 gubernatorial campaign manager, his first term Chief of Staff, and manager of his 2008 presidential campaign. Very few are better equipped to remember the life and legacy of Governor Richardson than Dave. In this conversation we talk Dave's own path to politics and mine his expertise specifically about New Mexico, then go in depth about the inspiration, impact, and influence of Bill Richardson...from his unconventional lifestory, to his time as a rising star in the House, stint in the Clinton cabinet, two terms as Governor, groundbreaking presidential campaign, and his focus over the past decade helping to free Americans held hostage in foreign countries (including the recent release of Britt ney Griner). This is a wide-ranging conversation about a truly original and transformational figure, the late Governor Bill Richardson.

IN THIS EPISODE…

Dave’s roots near Boston and path to politics via a couple of interesting internships…

One of Dave’s early jobs as a DCCC staffer under then-operative Rahm Emanuel…

How Dave’s career took him to New Mexico and his 101 for understanding New Mexico Politics…

Dave talks the early life and political origin story of Bill Richardson…

The role Richardson’s Hispanic heritage played in his political career…

Congressman Richardson’s ascent in the House and how he started to become known as an international hostage negotiator in the 1990s…

Why the ambitious Richardson waited 20 years after he was first elected before he ran statewide…

Dave remembers some of the high points of Bill Richardson’s tenure as Governor…

Dave talks Richardson’s decision to run for President in 2008 and memories of what went right & what went wrong…

Some of the story behind Richardson’s surprise decision to endorse Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton in 2008…

Dave goes in depth on the work Governor Richardson has done over the past 30 years to help free American hostages from foreign countries…

Dave closes by speaking to Governor Richardson’s political legacy…

AND ANWR, Madeline Albright, Andover, Bruce Babbitt, the big seat, Jeff Bingaman, The Boston Globe, Richard Branson, George Brown, the Cape Cod League, Bob Carr, James Carville, the Catholic Church, Henry Cisneros, Cornell University, Warren Christopher, Pete Domenici, Friends of Bill, Geronimo’s attorney, grazing fees, Brittney Griner, the Harriman Center, the head of Denver Transit, Saddam Hussein, James Inhofe, Lyndon Johnson, Judas, Sergey Lavrov, David Letterman, Manuel Lujan, Michelle Lujan Grisham, Susanna Martinez, Paul Maslin, Terry McAuliffe, Roberto Mondragon, Steve Murphy, NAFTA, Ollie North, Pasadena, Federico Pena, Mark Penn, Mark Putnam, radio actualities, the Rio Grande Corridor, Ed Romero, Pat Schroeder, the Science and Technology Committee, Hillary Tompkins, Tufts, Tom Udall, The War on the West & more!

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[Originally released October 2021]
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen has a truly American story: born in Cuba, emigrates to Miami with her family at age 8, works as a teacher before being elected to the Florida legislature - and then makes history as the first Hispanic woman in American history to be elected to Congress. This is a great conversation about her one-of-a-kind life, history-making career, great political stories, and advice & insight to candidates, elected officials, lobbyists, and staffers after serving nearly 30 years in the U.S. House.

IN THIS EPISODE

Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen’s early memories growing up in Cuba and her sudden emigration to Miami…

She breaks down why Cuban Americans started to align with the Republican Party…

The conversation that got her involved in politics for the first time…

She talks about her House predecessor, the legendary Congressman Claude Pepper…

How she overcame racist tactics to become the first Hispanic woman elected to Congress…

The surprising way she learned she made history on Election Night…

What surprised her as she got her feet wet in Congress…

She remembers how Newt Gingrich changed the Republican Party and transformed Congress…

Why she didn’t sign the 1994 Republican “Contract with America”…

The House Democrat she remembers for brass-knuckle tactics…

She remembers times she was “in the dog house” for breaking with GOP party leadership…

Her signature accomplishments after 30 years in the house…

She remembers the intensity around the Elian Gonzalez custody case, occurring right in her district…

She weighs in on if the Elian Gonzalez case cost Al Gore Florida in 2000 and ultimately the presidency…

Her memories of the impeachment of Bill Clinton…

Why she never ran statewide and didn’t run for re-election in 2018…

Her take on what makes a good lobbyist…

Her tips on running on a congressional office…

She remembers Marco Rubio as a young intern in her office…

What does she miss about being in Congress…

Her take on why there are so many Florida politicians on the national scene…

She weighs in on whether Florida remains a “swing state”…

Her advice on what people should do when visiting Miami…

AND…537 Votes, The Bay of Pigs, Beltway Fever, Brigade 2506, Jeb Bush, Kathy Castor, Fidel Castro, Liz Cheney, Shirley Chisholm, Bill Clinton, Billy Corben, Katie Couric, Cuba Libres, the Defense of Marriage Act, Tom DeLay, Val Demings, Ron DeSantis, Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Mario Diaz-Balart, Bob Dole, Dante Fascell, first airplane rides, Tom Foley, get-along and go-along Republicans, Newt Gingrich, Elian Gonzalez, Homestead Air Force Base, Steny Hoyer, Sam Johnson, JFK, Bill Lehman, David Leahy, Dexter Lehtinen, John Lewis, La Loba Feroz, John McCain, Bob Michel, a minority mentality, Stephanie Murphy, Obamacare, olive-green military attire, Red Pepper, Robert Redford, Janet Reno, Steve Schale, snowbirds, South Beach, SWAT teams, the University of Havana, Versailles, Don Young, & more!

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Rich Schlackman is best known as a pioneer of all things direct mail - and he continues to hit the mail box and also spearheads important efforts as a GC and has expanded his reach to digital messaging. In this conversation, Rich talks his early activist roots at the '68 Democratic Convention and with names like Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden...why he gravitated to political direct mail in the mid 70s...how he took the "California Style" of mail national in the 80s and 90s...diving deep into his best practices and favorite races...plus some of the efforts for which he's been a General Consultant, like ousting Chesa Boudin as San Francisco DA last year. And of course a conversation with Rich is not complete without hearing how he became the leading wine expert among political consultants and getting his tips to make anyone a little smarter on the topic. This is a fun conversation with one of the most colorful and ground-breaking consultants in the industry.

IN THIS EPISODE

Rich grows up in a heavily union neighborhood in NYC and becomes active in the anti-Vietnam War movement...

Rich's experiences as a protestor at the '68 Democratic Convention...

Rich talks his time around activists Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden...

How Rich pivots to direct mail in the 1970s...

Rich innovates the "California style" of direct mail in the 70s and 80s...

Rich talks the rise of the national direct mail firms in the 80s and 90s...

Rich on a few of his favorite clients, including Congressman Vic Fazio, Governor Janet Napolitano, and nearly beating Newt Gingrich in 1990...

Rich talks his time working for Senator Joe Lieberman...

Rich's favorite Bay Area races, including figuring out how to handle ranked-choice voting...

Rich recounts GCing the recent successful effort to recall San Francisco DA Chesa Boudin...

Rich's insights from working with Gavin Newsom on the now-Governor's very first local race in San Francisco...

Rich talks some of the most frustrating "input" received from others on his mail...

Rich on the evolution of mail and targeting over the course of his career...

Ten minutes picking Rich's brain on his famed expertise on wine...

AND Saul Alinsky, Bill Andresen, Applecart, Ross Bates, Evan Bayh, the Berman Machine, Ruth Bernstein, billy clubs, Willie Brown, CHAID analysis, the Campaign for Economic Democracy, Fidel Castro, Jim Chapman, Chris Cooper, Barry Dill, Bob Dole, drop letters, Bob Edgar, Rahm Emanuel, Carter Eskew, gloss paper, Ruth Yannatta Goldway, Matt Gonzalez, Lisa Grove, Mandy Grunwalkd, Edd Hargett, Dan Hazelwood, Abie Hoffman, Wayne Johnson, Kansas politics, Celinda Lake, Ned Lamont, Mel Levine, Hal Malchow, Milton Marks, John McCain, David Metts, Bob Mulholland, Jerry Nadler, Joe Napolitan, No Labels, Mark Penn, phony tabloids, the Port Huron Statement, The Rare Wine Company, Norm Rice, H.L. Richardson, Ben Rosenthal, Michael Rowan, Dr. Bill Roy, Jerry Rubin, Tony Schwartz, Saul Shorr, George Soros, Andy Spahn, Bob Squier, Marty Stone, The Valley Messenger, Pete Visclosky, Voter Contact Services, Lowell Weicker, Scott Weiner, David Worley, the Yippie Revolution....& more!

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Barry Goldwater Jr. grew up in politics as the son of the influential Senator and '64 GOP Presidential Nominee. He has a one-of-a-kind story of witnessing his father's political rise and then his own political career with his House tenure spanning parts of 3 decades. In this conversation, he talks his early memories in a political household, key moments in his father's career, his own political trajectory in Southern California, and the difficulties and opportunities he's found in life after leaving office.
 

IN THIS EPISODE

Born into a political family in Phoenix, AZ…

The story of Goldwater’s Department Store and the rise of his father’s political career…

The surprise that took him to a different state and different profession than expected…

The coin flip that set Barry Goldwater Sr. on a path in Republican politics…

Memories of the ’64 Goldwater presidential campaign…

The Goldwater / JFK relationship and what a JFK vs Goldwater ’64 campaign might have looked like…

The story behind Senator Goldwater urging Nixon to resign at the height of Watergate…

His read on Senator Goldwater’s late-in-life pro-choice and pro-LGBT sentiments…

Barry Goldwater Jr’s first race for office in a 1969 House special election…

Memories of the House of the 70s and 80s…

The leadership skill he witnessed of Speaker Tip O’Neill….

Barry Goldwater Jr and Ed Koch team up to pass a bipartisan Privacy Act…

An important lesson learned from his mother…

The story behind his race for US Senate in California in 1982…

His read on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger….

How he approached being out of office for the first time in 14 years in his mid 40s…

The story of being on the ballot in Louisiana as Ron Paul’s VP candidate in 2008…

His early thoughts on the 2024 GOP primary field…

The story of Senator Goldwater’s surprisingly close connection to President Clinton…

Time spent around both President Reagan and Nancy Reagan…

The guerilla tactic that helped Barry Goldwater Jr win his first election…

The importance of a Higher Power in his life…

AND apron pockets, Arizona State University, Best Always, brickbats, William F. Buckley, Burbank, John Burton, Phil Burton, cold calls, The Conscience of a Conservative, John Dean, Dwight Eisenhower, Newt Gingrich, S.I. Hayakawa, Carl Hayden, hiding in the bushes, Jewish peddlers, Lyndon Johnson, Chiang Kai-Shek, Jack Kemp, the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, Lockheed-Martin, the Mayflower, Mitch McConnell, Mike McCormack, the NAACP, Northrup-Grunman, nylon, the Pacific Coast Stock Exchange, Nancy Pelosi, raylon, John Rhodes, Hugh Scott, shenanigans, Janet Travell, Donald Trump, the Urban League, John Van De Kamp, the wild west, Mao Zedong…. & more!

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Bill Knapp is in his fifth decade as a top Democratic media consultant and is the first K in the mega-media firm SKDK. In this conversation, Bill talks his NYC roots, the 1980 Senate campaign that launched his professional career, lessons from his mentor & eventual partner Bob Squier, key races in his development as a strategist, the '96 Clinton re-elect, 20 years as part of Mike Bloomberg's political orbit, advice for budding media consultants, and much more.

IN THIS EPISODE

Bill’s roots on the Upper West Side of Manhattan…

The three prominent figures Bill met as a child in his apartment building…

Bill dips his toe into politics at Franklin & Marshall College in rural PA…

The 1980 Liz Holtzman Senate campaign changes Bill’s professional direction…

Bill’s intersection with mentor and future business partner, the legendary Bob Squier…

Bill talks the legacy of Bob Squier…

The US Senate race where Bill established himself as a media strategist in his own right…

Bill goes deep inside the 1996 Clinton Presidential Re-election…

Bill helps elect Mike Bloomberg Mayor of NYC in 2001…

Bill’s perspective on the Bloomberg 2020 presidential with a few years’ hindsight…

How Bill’s firm, SKDK, grew to the size of 100+ employees…

Bill talks the skillset of his prominent business partner Anita Dunn…

Bill’s advice to the next generation of political media consultants…

AND $15 CPP, Adas, Avenue J, Daniel Barash, Bob Bauer, Belmont Stakes, Joe Biden, Rod Blagojevich, Jim Blanchard, Bill Bradley, Jim Brady, broad shoulders, Quentin Burdick, Jimmy Carter, Pia Carusone, Central Park, Chat GPT, cinema verité, Tony Coehlo, The Communications Company,  the crack epidemic, crusty editors, Jennifer Cunningham, the DSCC, Rich Davis, Joe DiMaggio, David Dinkins, David Doak, Bob Dole, Byron Dorgan, Rahm Emanuel, Carter Eskew, F stops, FIFA, Friday Shabbat, David Garth, Newt Gingrich, Al Gore, Bob Graham, Frank Greer, Hal the Doorman, David Halberstam, Patti Harris, the Hinckley Hilton, Harold Ickes, Independent Network News, Josh Isay, Elena Kagan, Keith Kincaid, Samantha Knapp, Stanley Kubrick, JFK, lashon hara, Joe Lieberman, Horace Mann, Minnesota boys, Damon Miranda, Rick Miranda, Mike Moore, Mike Morey, Dick Morris, Jim Mulhall, New Jersey droughts, Jackie Onassis, Mark Penn, Earl Pomeroy, Mark Putnam, Riverdale, Bob Roe, Hillary Rosen, David Sawyer, Doug Schoen, Kevin Sheekey, Oren Shur, Doug Sosnik, Mark Squier, George Stephanopoulos, David Strauss, Earl Strinden, Ray Strother, technocrats, torturing gaffers, Donald Trump, Bradley Tusk, Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, VW Karmann Ghia, Otto von Bismarck, War and Peace, Lowell Weicker, Elie Wiesel & more!

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Diana Hwang is the Founder and Executive Director of the Asian American Women's Political Initiative.  In this episode, Diana talks growing up in Houston in a Taiwanese-immigrant family, her political awakening after college in Boston, what led her to start the AAWPI, how the organization has grown over the past 10+ years, her analysis of partisan trends within the AAPI community...plus her own experience running for State Senate in 2016. This is a great conversation with an innovative political thinker on the frontlines of expanding political opportunity.

IN THIS EPISODE

Diana's roots growing up in Houston in a Taiwanese immigrant family...

How Diana became interested and involved in politics in Massachusetts...

How the process around mental health legislation revealed a shortcoming in state politics...

The "life changing" experience when Diana ran for a State Senate special election in 2016...

How and why Diana start the Asian American Women's Political Initiative in 2009...

The hurdles in getting traction for Asian American political advocacy...

The impact of the 2021 Georgia mass shooting of Asian American women on Diana's work...

Diana talks the mission and tools of the AAWPI...

Diana on the importance of the election of Boston Mayor Michelle Wu...

Diana's 101 on some of the partisan differences within the AAPI community...

Diana's analysis of why Republicans ran more competitively in some places with AAPI voters in the last election...

The significance of the WeChat app in organizing the AAPI community...

Diana speaks to both short-term and long-term goals of AAWPI...