The Axelrod Method: Great Campaigning, Not Governance
David Axelrod is for a large part the man behind Barack Obama’s success. When he first started to work the senator from Illinois, Obama was virtually unknown in the United States, and unable to craft an image for himself that would appeal to a majority of Americans, so that he could go on to win elections on a national level.
After working with Axelrod for only a few months, however, it became clear that Obama could seriously challenge Hillary Clinton, the supposed ‘heir’ of the Democratic Party.
Before working for Obama, Axelrod made another black man, educated at Harvard, and son of a single mother big: Deval Patrick was no one when he decided to run for Governor of Massachusetts before Axelrod joined his team, but became a household name, beat the Clinton-establishment Democratic Attorney General who was considered likely to win his party’s nomination, and went on to beat the Republican candidate.
Axelrod presented Patrick as a man able to reach across the aisle, work with both sides, with an inspiring life story, and who would bring change to the state. The exact same image, you could say, he used for Obama.
The Wall Street Journal has an interesting write-up about ‘The Axelrod Method.’ I encourage you to read it. The author explains very well what this method is all about and, not unimportant, he makes quite a compelling case that it may not work well in Washington. The main problem: when you make the person the issue, and style as well, you run into problems when it’s about policies, and when your ’style’ won’t get you anywhere. It’s great campaigning, not great governance.
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Clinton’s record since they left office has been one of very few successes in political campaigns. For good reason too,
But either way, Rove was similar – find a simple message, stick to it.