David Saunders (political strategist)

Last updated

David "Mudcat" Saunders is a Democratic political strategist and author. Saunders was a senior advisor in the 2008 Presidential campaign of John Edwards. He is widely credited with playing important roles in the election of Mark Warner to the office of Governor of Virginia in 2001 and the election of Jim Webb to the U.S. Senate in 2006.

Saunders encourages candidates to show respect for rural culture in order to break through some of the social barriers currently keeping some rural white males from voting for Democrats in larger numbers. He often says that once you can break through the culture, people will listen to what you have to say about the issues.

He is co-author, with political strategist Steve Jarding, of a book on the topic, Foxes in the Henhouse: How the Republicans Stole the South and the Heartland, and What the Democrats Must Do to Run 'em Out.

Saunders is also known for making colorful statements. In a 2005 interview with the blog SouthNow, Saunders was asked, "Why did the Democrats lose in 2004?":

They can't fucking count. That's the Democrats' problem. You don't get in the football game and punt on first down. You concede nothing. We conceded 20 states at first and then six more by Labor Day. That's 227 electoral votes. Bush only needed 18 percent of the remaining electoral votes to win.

—  [1]

Many feature articles have been written about Saunders, including two cover articles by Matt Labash in the Weekly Standard. In one, he expresses his opinion of "inside the beltway" wisdom:

He told us that he suspected the Potomac River was the holiest in the world, since “you can take the dumbest sonofabitch and put him on the other side of that river and all of a sudden he becomes Good Will Hunting.”

—  [2]

In 2006, Saunders was a senior advisor in the 2006 U.S. Senate campaign of Jim Webb in Virginia. He is credited by Jim Webb himself for convincing Webb to run for Senate, as described in this article in Rolling Stone magazine:

In February 2006, Webb called the Democratic political strategist Dave Saunders, and together they plotted to end the career of Senator George Allen, a handsome dunce in the model of George W. who stood to be re-elected by thirty-three points. The Democrats planned to run Harris Miller, an anti-labor lobbyist dedicated to outsourcing IT jobs overseas. Saunders, his drawl as deep and wide as his connections in the tough little Dixie towns where most Democrats fear to tread, persuaded Webb that he was the man to take out first Miller -- who outspent Webb three to one -- then Allen. Saunders, known as "Mudcat" throughout the state, has for years been working on rebuilding Democratic strength in the South through an alliance of African-Americans and the Southern white men he calls "Bubbas." "We were in the same place in terms of 'How do you help people down here?' " says Webb. "How do you get the good out of this culture? At the end of this conversation, I said, "I'll do this. Let's test the theory.".

—  [3]

In 2006, Saunders also served on the Advisory Board of the Commonwealth Coalition, a group organized to oppose the Marshall/Newman amendment (2006 amendment to the Virginia constitution banning gay marriage). In regards to Virginia's anti-gay marriage amendment, Saunders was quoted as saying the following:

It is political trickery - it has nothing to do with queers and marriage. It is to help Republicans, in general, unite their base in the name of hate.

—  [4]

Related Research Articles

2008 United States presidential election 56th quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 2008 United States presidential election was the 56th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama, the junior Senator from Illinois, and Joe Biden, the senior Senator from Delaware, defeated the Republican ticket of John McCain, the senior Senator from Arizona, and Sarah Palin, the Governor of Alaska. Obama became the first African American to be elected to the presidency, as well as being only the third sitting United States Senator elected president, joining Warren G. Harding and John F. Kennedy. Meanwhile, Biden became the first senator running mate of a senator elected president since Lyndon B. Johnson in the 1960 election.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) is the Democratic Hill committee for the United States Senate. It is the only organization solely dedicated to electing Democrats to the United States Senate. The DSCC's current Chair is Senator Gary Peters of Michigan, who succeeded Nevada‘s Catherine Cortez Masto after the 2020 Senate elections. DSCC's current Executive Director is Scott Fairchild.

2006 United States Senate elections Part of the U.S. elections held November 7, 2006

The 2006 United States Senate elections were held on November 7, 2006, with all 33 Class 1 Senate seats being contested. The term of office for those elected in 2006 ran from January 3, 2007, to January 3, 2013. Prior to the election, the Republican Party controlled 55 of the 100 Senate seats.

Jim Webb American politician, military officer and author

James Henry Webb Jr. is an American politician and author. He has served as a United States Senator from Virginia, Secretary of the Navy, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, Counsel for the United States House Committee on Veterans' Affairs and is a decorated Marine Corps officer.

2006 United States Senate election in Virginia

The 2006 United States Senate election in Virginia was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Senator George Allen ran for reelection to a second term but was narrowly defeated by Democrat Jim Webb, who earned 49.6% of the vote to Allen's 49.2%. With a margin of just 0.4%, this election was the closest race of the 2006 Senate election cycle. Webb declined to run for reelection in 2012.

History of the Democratic Party (United States) Aspect of history

The Democratic Party is the oldest voter-based political party in the world and the oldest existing political party in the United States. The party's modern institutions were formed in the 1830s and 1840s. Known as the party of the "common man," the early Democratic Party stood for individual rights and state sovereignty, but opposed banks and high tariffs. During the Second Party System under Presidents Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren and James K. Polk, the Democrats usually bested the opposition Whig Party by narrow margins.

Politics of West Virginia Overview of the procedure of elections in the U.S. state of West Virginia

From the time of the Great Depression through the 1990s, the politics of West Virginia were largely dominated by the Democratic Party. In the 2000 presidential election, George W. Bush claimed a surprise victory over Al Gore, with 52% of the vote; he won West Virginia again in 2004, with 56% of the vote. West Virginia is now a heavily Republican state, with John McCain winning the state in 2008, Mitt Romney in 2012 and Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020.

Democratic Party (United States) Major contemporary political party in the United States

The Democratic Party is one of the two major, contemporary political parties in the United States. It was founded around 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest active political party. Since the 1860s, its main political rival has been the Republican Party.

2004 United States Senate election in Illinois Election

The 2004 United States Senate election in Illinois was held on November 2, 2004. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Peter Fitzgerald decided to retire after one term. The Democratic and Republican primary elections were held in March, which included a total of 15 candidates who combined to spend a record total of over $60 million seeking the open seat.

2012 United States Senate elections Part of the U.S. elections held November 6, 2012

The 2012 United States Senate elections were held on November 6, 2012, with 33 of the 100 seats in the Senate being contested in regular elections whose winners would serve six-year terms beginning January 3, 2013, with the 113th Congress. Democrats had 21 seats up for election, plus 1 Independent and 1 Independent Democrat, while the Republicans had only 10 seats up for election.

2008 United States Senate election in Virginia

The 2008 United States Senate election in Virginia was held on November 4, 2008. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator John Warner decided to retire instead of seeking a sixth term. Democrat Mark Warner won the open seat by more than 31 percentage points. Warner became the first Democrat to win this seat since 1966. This was also the first time since 1964 that the state voted simultaneously for a Democratic presidential candidate and a Democratic Senate candidate, having voted for Barack Obama in the presidential election, albeit by a far lesser margin. This was Virginia's first open-seat election since 1988.

Mark Herring American lawyer and politician

Mark Rankin Herring is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 47th Attorney General of Virginia. A Democrat, he previously served in the Senate of Virginia since a 2006 special election, representing the 33rd district, made up of parts of Fairfax and Loudoun counties. In 2021, he lost re-election for a third term against Republican Jason Miyares.

Politics of Virginia

The politics of Virginia have followed major historical events and demographic changes in the commonwealth. In the 21st century, the northern region, often referred to as NOVA has become more liberal in attitudes and voting, constituting a reliable voting bloc for Democrats and joining with population centers in the Richmond Metropolitan and Hampton Roads areas to dominate the state. Political orientation varies by region, with the larger cities and suburban areas generally voting Democratic and the rural areas voting Republican. The southern, rural regions have remained rural and conservative. Until 2021, Virginia shifted more Democrat and since at least 2018 was a solid blue state which was considered the most progressive state in the southern United States.

2008 United States elections Elections in the United States in 2008

The 2008 United States elections were held on November 4. Democratic Senator Barack Obama of Illinois won the presidential election, and Democrats bolstered their majority in both Houses of Congress.

In the context of American politics, A fifty-state strategy is a political strategy which aims for progress in all states of the United States of America, rather than conceding certain states as "unwinnable." In a presidential campaign, it is usually implemented as an appeal to a broad base of the American public in an attempt to win, even if marginally, every state, since even a marginal victory is effectively total victory for electoral purposes. It can also refer to an overall long-term strategy for a political movement such as a political party.

2012 United States elections Election in the United States in 2012

The 2012 United States elections took place on November 6, 2012. Democratic President Barack Obama won election to a second term, though the Republican Party retained control of the House of Representatives. As of 2020, this is the most recent election cycle in which neither the presidency nor a chamber of Congress changed partisan control.

Elections in Virginia

Elections in Virginia are authorized under Article I Virginia State Constitution, sections 5–6, and Article V which establishes elections for the state level officers, cabinet, and legislature. Article VII section 4 establishes the election of county-level officers.

The 2016 presidential campaign of Jim Webb, the former United States Senator from Virginia, was officially launched when Webb, who also formerly served as Secretary of the Navy, announced his candidacy for the Democratic Party's nomination for President of the United States in 2016 on July 2, 2015. As the author of ten books, Webb chose to make his announcement through writing an open letter on his campaign website. He withdrew from the Democratic race on October 20, 2015. Following the withdrawal of his candidacy for the Democratic nomination, Webb openly considered running for president as an independent before ruling out such a run on February 11, 2016.

Lincoln Chafee 2016 presidential campaign

The 2016 presidential campaign of Lincoln Chafee, the 74th Governor of Rhode Island, and former United States Senator from Rhode Island, was formally launched on June 3, 2015. His campaign for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in the 2016 election was his first campaign as a Democrat, after having previously been elected senator as a Republican, and governor as an independent. He received zero votes either formally or by write-in, meaning he got the fewest votes of any major party candidate in the Democratic or Republican Primaries 2016.

References

  1. ↑ SouthNow.org, 2005, SouthNow is the publication arm of the Program on Politics, Media and Public Life within the Center for the Study of the American South at UNC-Chapel Hill.
  2. ↑ Labash, Matt (June 20, 2005). "Hunting Bubba". The Weekly Standard .
  3. ↑ "Virginia Senator James Webb: Washington's Most Unlikely Revolutionary", Jeff Sharlet, Rolling Stone Magazine, Jun 14, 2007
  4. ↑ Proposed marriage amendment galvanizes both sides of debate Archived 2012-09-11 at archive.today
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.