Leadership, Messaging, Speeches, Views on News • February 25th, 2009

Fact-checking

by Chris Lato

One thing that you can count on is that when given a big stage to speak from, most politicians find it mighty hard to avoid using some creativity in their facts, figures and versions of history.  So, while President Obama knows how to deliver a speech, and every reasonable American should be pulling for him to succeed, it’s always good to do a bit of fact-checking.  

Bottom line: last night’s address to Congress and the nation not detail-heavy. In fact, some may have been disappointed by the lack of detail, but all that comes later. Obama was doing nothing new in that sense. And these deep economic problems won’t be solved overnight, no matter how much some want to believe that all our president has to do is wave a magic wand and our national nightmare is over.

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wispundits • December 1st, 2008

‘Tis the season…to say no

by Chris Lato

Here’s a fascinating piece just in time for the holiday shopping season about how parents and advocacy groups are blaming marketing for having to say ‘no’ when their kids want the biggest, priciest toys for Christmas.  

So what else is new?

Is it sometimes hard to say no to kids? Anyone who has kids will say ‘of course.’ My daughter has too many Build-A-Bears and Barbie dolls as it is.  I get suckered into stuff regularly despite my pledge that I won’t get fooled again. But isn’t it the job of a parent to establish boundaries, to help kids understand that they can’t always get what they want?

 I’m starting to quote a lot of classic song titles here but you get the picture.

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2008 Primaries, Leadership, Views on News • October 9th, 2008

Why would you want this job?

by Chris Lato

This is stating the obvious – but it is really, really tough to be President of the United States.

I was reading this story about President Bush and the financial crisis and was struck by the photo of Bush – who looks like eight years have taken a lot out of him beyond the passage of time.

I had the same reaction near the end of President Clinton’s tenure. Particularly at the end of two terms, these guys leave office battered and bruised by criticism, feeling the extraordinary stress of managing a nation in constantly challenging times, and not exactly leaving at the height of their popularity.

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2008 Primaries, Views on News • September 30th, 2008

Who’s to blame…and where are the leaders?

by Chris Lato

So who’s to blame for the economic crisis? Democrats? Republicans? Obama? McCain? Bush? Clinton? The Masters of the Universe on Wall Street? Individuals who took out home loans they could never hope to continue paying off?

Or is it all of the above?

The more I read, the more I realize there’s plenty of blame to go around for just about every player in this scary state of affairs. No one’s hands are clean. Mistakes were made all over the place. This whole affair looks distinctly bipartisan.

President Bush’s goodwill is essentially spent. He will leave office seriously dinged by Iraq and the economy. Democrats are doing all they can to emphasize the lame-duck-ness of Bush. And let’s face it, we’re all looking ahead to the November elections anyway.

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2008 Primaries, Leadership, Messaging, Speeches, Strategic Blueprints • September 26th, 2008

Debate time

by Chris Lato

After some questions, tonight’s first presidential debate is indeed on. The spin machines for both sides will be churning away. Your best bet is to watch and decide for yourself who ‘wins’ and why.

National security and foreign policy are the top issues tonight, and those are considered the GOP’s domain - so many are expecting that John McCain will prevail tonight. However, the economy will surely come into play, and it will be interesting to see whether McCain will face criticism for his perceived politicizing of the crisis this week by suspending his campaign and suggesting that this debate be called off.

For Barack Obama, the challenge is to convey an understanding of the issues that soothes voters questioning his relative lack of legislative experience. High-flying rhetoric can only carry him so far in these debates.

As for McCain, he will have to justify his support for an unpopular war and the perception that his foreign policy agenda will be a continuation of Bush 43. He will also have to show vitality to assuage the concerns of those who say he’s too old for the job.

Both will also end up discussing the economic crisis and will have to connect with middle-class voters who are jittery about the state of the nation and need assurance that the next president is up to the challenge.

Debates are important – it can take just a moment, a quip or a well-placed criticism or badly fumbled answer, to set a campaign on a whole different course. Think Nixon’s sweat and stubble, Bush 41 glancing at his watch, Al Gore’s sighs, etc. The race is close and the undecideds are still out there. This may be the chance for one candidate to get those undecideds breaking his way.

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2008 Primaries, Leadership, Messaging, Strategic Blueprints, Views on News • September 25th, 2008

The Clinton factor

by Chris Lato

There are a couple of ways to look at Bill Clinton’s recent statements on the presidential race. While Bill and Hill endorsed Barack Obama at the DNC, they have hardly been the attack dogs that some Obama supporters would like to see.

Why is that? Some believe the Clintons are going easy on John McCain in an effort to help him win, thereby positioning Hillary for another run for the White House in 2012. Is that overstating the Clintons’ perceived power? Perhaps not, considering a reasonably high percentage of Hillary supporters have yet to warm up to Obama.

I will say this: I was struck by the even-handed tone Bill Clinton has set this week. It has injected a much-needed dose of class in a race that has become increasingly shrill, with extremes on both sides shouting dopey slogans at each other.

For example, Clinton doesn’t read anything particularly nefarious in McCain’s call for Friday’s debate to be delayed. He is also defending his decision to not campaign on Jewish holidays.

I have not always been so willing to commend Bill Clinton – some of the things he said and did on the campaign trail when Hillary was still in the race were eyebrow-raisers, to put it mildly.

But Bill Clinton is nothing if not brilliant at political strategy. Clinton believes that now is not the time to ratchet up the rhetoric, and instead the campaigns should be talking more about solutions. That’s good advice. Heading to the high road at this stage of the game is a smart tactical move, changing the tone in a way that will speak to the middle. Clinton knows the first candidate to move in this direction will likely reap benefits.

With the troubling news about the economy and the potential for a huge bailout dominating the headlines, Clinton recognizes that people are truly worried about their financial future, and are looking to politicians to lead and not play games.

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Messaging, Strategic Blueprints, public relations • March 24th, 2008

Who wants to be a chancellor?

by Chris Lato

I saw this article on the front page of the Wisconsin State Journal Sunday and thought to myself: someone’s working overtime to put a positive spin on the UW Chancellor salary issue.

The President of the United States is paid $400,000 a year, with another $50,000 a year for expenses. (When the president travels to meet with foreign dignitaries, does he have to pick up the check a lot?)

The next UW-Madison chancellor will be paid between $370,000 to $452,000. Yup, more than the leader of the free world. Am I crazy, or does that seem awfully high? (Full disclosure alert: I’m a UW-Madison graduate, and yes, it was generally a fine education.)

No doubt the chancellor is a busy guy. It sounds like a big job with long hours, etc., etc. But still…there has been criticism of the pay level that sounds valid to me.

In addition, numerous articles cite UW-Madison’s difficult relationship with the state Legislature, and Wiley is blamed for some of those problems.

Now, before going any further, I should point out that this is not intended as a hit piece. But the article got me thinking about how to navigate the choppy PR waters in a case like this. Fences need to be mended with lawmakers who control the purse strings for the UW System. The public needs to understand just what the job entails, and how important UW-Madison is to higher education in Wisconsin - because that salary will undoubtedly cause sticker shock. Justifying the price tag when Wisconsin is in a budget hole and the economy shows signs of heading into the tank is the biggest challenge. If you can’t do that, you’d better re-think your strategy. Just saying “The chancellor works really hard” won’t cut it.

At any rate, the deadline to apply for the chancellor’s job is Friday, so if you think you have what it takes, get your resume together and good luck!

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