I love these stories.
There's an entire category of behind the scenes players who know how the political game is played and are hired to play it. Here's the latest. Meet Jim Messina (not the guy in Loggins and Messina):
Messina, 39, has one of the lowest profiles of any key player in the top tiers of the Obama administration. But he has already become known as a key "fixer" in the operation -- both because of his extensive ties to political operatives and lawmakers, especially in the Senate, and because of his relentless focus of purpose that mirrors that of his immediate superior, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.
Messina's most renowned feat on Capitol Hill was straight out of Emanuel's no-holds-barred playbook, and it came shortly after President George W. Bush was reelected in 2004. With Democrats still in the minority and frustrated by their inability to block the Republican president or his congressional allies, Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) tapped Messina's boss, Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), to run a strategic effort to defeat a top legislative priority of Bush's second term, the partial privatization of Social Security.
As Baucus's chief of staff, Messina helped craft a message that was simple and straightforward, arguing that the Bush plan was risky and would cut benefits. His critics in the opposition party saw it as misleading at best, but it worked. The plan stalled quickly, and its defeat was credited by some for setting the Republicans on the path to losing control of Congress in the next midterm elections.
"Messina stepped in and delivered a beat-down sandwich, and in my view, it was the beginning of the end of Bush's approval ratings," said Barrett Kaiser, Baucus's communications director and a close friend of Messina.
If you want to know how politics is really played, here you go.
Showing posts with label Tommy Corcoran. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tommy Corcoran. Show all posts
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Tommy the Cork
The post below about Tommy the Cork is too good to pass up and I recommend that you read it. Here it is again. It calls Corcoran the first modern lobbyist and explains why: The breadth of agencies created in the New Deal provided expanded opportunities for deal making. Those who knew the ins and outs of the agencies could sell their services at a premium.
"The trail that Corcoran traveled seems well-beaten now: find a government job, develop expertise, then leave government to sell that expertise for a handsome profit. But it was Tommy Corcoran and a handful of other FDR aides who first applied that career strategy to the executive branch. They recognized that the mix of New Deal regulations and World War II foreign policy commitments had created an opening for savvy, well-connected lobbyists who focused not just on Congress, as they had in the past, but on federal agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Export-Import Bank."
And that's the world we live in now.
"The trail that Corcoran traveled seems well-beaten now: find a government job, develop expertise, then leave government to sell that expertise for a handsome profit. But it was Tommy Corcoran and a handful of other FDR aides who first applied that career strategy to the executive branch. They recognized that the mix of New Deal regulations and World War II foreign policy commitments had created an opening for savvy, well-connected lobbyists who focused not just on Congress, as they had in the past, but on federal agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Export-Import Bank."
And that's the world we live in now.
Sacrilege, Juicy Sacrilege
This being Texas and all, it's not nice to be anything but fawning over the dearly departed, but Slate argues that Lady Bird Johnson won't be able rest in peace until the full story of the fortune she made with her Austin radio station is told.
And its a great story. It illustrates the relationship we've touched on between congress, executive agencies and business interests.
The story begins in 1943 when the FCC, about to be abolished, was saved by young House Rep. Lyndon Johnson. Johnson developed a friendship with one of the FCC commissioners who helped clear the road for Lady Birds application for the station's license to be fast tracked. A fixer named Tommy "the Cork" Corcoran helped it along the way as well.
Once she owned it, in fast order the station was allowed to:
- broadcast 24 hours a day
- move to an "uncluttered" area on the dial where it would have little competition and broad coverage
- quintuple its power
- become a part of the CBS Radio network even though an affiliate existed within listening distance
Johnson also used threats to remove local army bases as leverage to persuade local business to advertise with the station. He (excuse me, she) was eventually allowed to add a television station to his/her holdings, which made them wealthy.
Politics is a contact sport in Texas as we all know. I've always thought that a political history of the use of government power to build fortunes would be a worthy project.
And its a great story. It illustrates the relationship we've touched on between congress, executive agencies and business interests.
The story begins in 1943 when the FCC, about to be abolished, was saved by young House Rep. Lyndon Johnson. Johnson developed a friendship with one of the FCC commissioners who helped clear the road for Lady Birds application for the station's license to be fast tracked. A fixer named Tommy "the Cork" Corcoran helped it along the way as well.
Once she owned it, in fast order the station was allowed to:
- broadcast 24 hours a day
- move to an "uncluttered" area on the dial where it would have little competition and broad coverage
- quintuple its power
- become a part of the CBS Radio network even though an affiliate existed within listening distance
Johnson also used threats to remove local army bases as leverage to persuade local business to advertise with the station. He (excuse me, she) was eventually allowed to add a television station to his/her holdings, which made them wealthy.
Politics is a contact sport in Texas as we all know. I've always thought that a political history of the use of government power to build fortunes would be a worthy project.
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