Taylorsville Dayzz

Once again we gathered.

This time for Taylorsville Dayzz, smack dab in the middle of Sen. Waddoups home district. We’re guessing he was out making sure no liquor store opened before 11 AM since his presence wasn’t obvious at the parade. In fact, except for a smattering of illegally placed signs, there was no indication that Mike Winder was in attendance either.

Mark Crockett, however, was there. And this may be a clear sign of what both Republican camps are assuming.

That said, Crockett’s campaign paid for the space next to our booth at the festival following the parade. Yet I stayed in our booth until about 2:00 PM, and the Crockett space remained empty; no awning, no volunteers, and no signs... just a patch of grass. Make of that what you will.

On the other side of our booth Mia Love and her followers were keeping up an active presence. She and her husband were friendly and spent a good while bantering with our volunteers. Mia emphasized repeatedly that she had the highest regard for Ben, “But,” she said, “since I don’t live in Salt Lake County, I can’t vote for him.”

She made it sound as if she did, she would. I wonder?

What follows is a collection of photos from the parade.

Enjoy!

The intrepid Joel scans the horizon. 

Isaac McAdams, less than a year old

and a veteren of 32 parades. 

An emergency stop for knee repair

The obligatory and concluding group shot

Pater Familias at the end

of the parade

Martha's tribute to the campaign.

(given the way "Ben" is written,

who do you suppose applied the letters?)

Who Is Mark Crockett?

You’ve probably heard that Mark Crockett is a Holladay businessman, and on his website he describes himself as a “venture backed CEO.” The business currently associated with his name is Vici Capital Partners, which promises to work, “...closely with strategic investors and their companies to dramatically improve cash earnings, infuse needed capital and generate exceptional returns.”

The web site is filled with this kind of glib jargon, the sort of verbiage designed to impress without offering specifics. The firm calls itself “partners,” but who are these partners? The only person specifically mentioned is Mark himself, though a second nameless person is pictured and a Los Angeles address is mentioned. But not a single client is listed, and all inquiries are directed to guess who... Mark Crockett.

So what is it that Mark really does? A hint at that answer can be found on the Vici Capital Partners website under the tab labeled “M&A Advisory.” M&A is one more piece of jargon that means “mergers and acquisitions.”

Read through it and you’ll find what he’s about. He works with the owners of struggling companies who want to put lipstick on a pig. They are eager to create the short term impression of profitability and growth so they can sell their businesses at the highest price.

This kind of business consulting is long on cutting budgets for R&D, hiring, manufacturing, new venture activity and employee training. It’s long on goosing profits and putting a shine on every metric that adds to the purchase price.

That works for a guy like Mark.

He’s a consultant who gets paid for generating an effect. He is the exact opposite of an investor like Warren Buffet, who invests in strong but undervalued businesses for the long term. Mark is in and out in a hurry. His huge fees are in the bank before the chickens come home to roost.

Speaking of being in and out quickly, that’s the theme of Mark’s career. You’ll find a compilation of all the places he’s worked since 1993 at the Business Week research website. They are, Vici Capital Partners, NightWatch Capital, Harvest Earnings, EHS Partners, Tax One, McKinsey & Company, Latham & Watkins and Compumed. There are so many, that Business Week gives up and just labels some as “predecessor organizations.”

All but one of these jobs he’s held just since 2000. If Mark is at one place for more than a year it must seem like an eternity.

All of this emphasis on quick engagement with little regard for leadership, tenure or community shows up vividly in his political career. Mark is famous for the canned articulation that plays well as sound bite or sales pitch, but most find his personality abrasive, his temper short, his manner condescending and his nature narcissistic.

He is all about Mark, and Mark lives in a very small world.

Have you ever seen his campaign headquarters, or his army of volunteers? No you haven’t, because there aren’t any. He farms out retail politics to Randy O’Hara whose firm is designed to create exactly what Mark has spent his career creating - an effect. Only O’Hara creates the effect of having a community of volunteers to lead and care about, and a groundswell of contributors who believe in him and who invest in that belief.

The effect needs to be created, because none of this exists in reality.

No, Mark has privatized all that. He’s distanced himself from hands to shake, babies to kiss and calls to answer. On election night he stands in his living room, alone, with a statement for the press.

And there is your glimpse of Mark Crockett, the would be mayor of Salt Lake County.

What Now?

Who will be the nominee of the Republican party for Salt Lake County Mayor?

Despite all the hoopla about ballots yet to be counted, I believe it’s a virtual certainty that the nominee will be Mark Crockett. Why?

First, a huge percentage of the votes were digitally recorded. The possibility that a calculator will add the same numbers twice and get two different answers is remote. There will be no hanging chads in Salt Lake County.

And second, while Winder makes much of the tiny 269 vote margin separating him from Crockett, and the 7,500 votes not yet counted, it’s important to remember when these uncounted votes were cast.

Almost all were cast early, and on election night Crockett had a 5% lead at the very beginning. That’s important because those initial results were entirely composed of early voting. Therefore, you could assume that those early results similarly apply to the uncounted ballots which were also cast early.

Anything could happen, of course, but I think the smart money is on Crockett.

What happens next?

While I believe Crockett will ultimately prevail, I don’t think the uncounted votes will take the results beyond the one vote per precinct threshold that precludes a recount.

When the official voter canvas is announced on July 10th, Mike Winder will request that recount. So we probably won’t have an official winner of the primary until a day or two after that. Therefore, the race won’t officially begin for about two weeks.

This is what you call an awkward pause.

What do we so with that pause? It’s appropriate for the McAdam’s camp to publicly pay respect to the process as it moves forward. However, in private I’d be focussing like a laser on Mark Crockett. And if Crockett decides to take his “titular victory” seriously and moves into active campaign mode, I’d be ready to respond.

Because at some point the Crockett campaign will move, and it will move vigorously and early, to define Ben. Both candidates have relatively low voter ID, and each is vulnerable to being defined by the other. The campaign that takes the initiative first, and does so effectively, will have a lasting advantage.

Primary Watch Party

Last night was the Ben McAdams Primary Watch Party. The main intention was to have a party, but the subsidiary motive was to find out who Ben would be facing in the general election.

Our main intention was fulfilled in grand style, but as to our subsidiary motive we failed completely.

The gap between this weekend’s Dan Jones poll, and last night’s stalemate between Winder and Crockett, is open to interpretation. My guess is that Crockett was able to close the five point gap for two reasons. First, he successfully questioned Winder’s character during the closing weeks of the campaign, and second, the turnout was very, very low.

Unfortunately, zealots intent on burning down the government always prosper when the broader electorate sits on their hands. Reactionaries are committed, and they make it to the polls whenever there’s a candidate who smells of gasoline.

Anyway, we did party hardy, and once the recount is concluded we’ll be well positioned to face either Crockett or Winder.

Below are some pictures taken at headquarters last night. If you were there, I hope you made it into one of the photos, if you didn’t make it to the party, we missed you.

"Did you hear the one about Mark Crockett

in a coon skin hat?"

OK, the joke wasn't that funny. 

Tonight's musical accompaniment 

provided by JoJo

The crowd begins to spill out the front door.

Ben, Ashley Sumner and Jim Dabakis, 

the Utah Democratic Party Chair.

 Our campaign's youth caucus

consults on the election results. 

Julie McAdams, never more than five feet away 

from someone waist high or shorter. 

Martha Camarillo making sure everyone

pays the cover at the door. No excuses!

Our campaign interns. 

Each comes with a very small carbon foot print. 

They're sustained entirely by popsicles. 

"Honey, do you think we'll cover the spread?

I had Winder by five. 

My sister Donna on the right. 

(Included only because she'd kill me otherwise.)

See the two red bars at the bottom of the screen -

the two of equal length? They stayed just like that

all night long. 

Beulah Isn't Talking

Yesterday I received a call from a strange number not in my contact file. The voice was muffled and the caller made no effort to introduce himself. “Hello, is this George Pence?”

“Yes,” I replied.

“The Pence who writes McAdams Apple?”

“One and the same.”

In a harsh whisper he breathed, “I’ve got the goods.”

“What goods?”

He insisted, “The goods on Winder.”

“Really, on Winder. How so?”

“You know, I’ve got the Burwash thing.”

“What?” I said, “That’s old news. Winder posed as a 16th century tennis pro and fed puff pieces to the Deseret News. Everyone knows the story and, unfortunately, I think about five people care.”

“Oh, they’ll care now,” he replied.

“Why?”

“Because I’ve got the tape.”

“The tape?” I asked.

“Yes, the tape of Burwash’s last phone conversation with the Deseret News.”

“And I suppose you’ll give it to me?”

“Yes.”

“And why?”

“Let’s say I’m not entirely at peace with the way his family has exploited cows.”

“Bovine abuse?... I had no idea. Where do we meet for the handoff?”

“Be under the poplar on the southeast section of Winder Farms at 2 AM. Call out ‘Beulah’ and wait for a holstein. The tape will be attached to her bell.”

I did as instructed, and yes, Beulah met me under the poplar. The promised recording is now mine. I’ve spent most of the day transcribing it, and below is the unexpurgated record of that conversation.

..........

Des News: “Hello, is this Richard Burwash?”

Burwash: “Yes, but please call me Dick. Most people do.”

Des News: “OK, Dick, I’ve been reading your last submission about West Valley and I’ve got a few questions. You know, minor things before we go to press.”

Burwash: “Sure, how can I help?”

Des News: “Well your mayor, Mike Winder, he plays a prominent role in this report, and his name gets repeated over and over again.”

Burwash: “Yes, but you’d agree he plays an important role in the story.”

Des News: “True, but is it necessary to use an adjective every time his name is mentioned?”

Burwash: “I’m not sure what you mean.”

Des News: “Well, for instance, the name Mike Winder appears eight times in the first two paragraphs. Before each mention are these adjectives and in this order of appearance: great, wonderful, smart, handsome, intrepid, flawless, charismatic and brilliant.”

Burwash: “All accurate - every one of them. But maybe you’re looking for something a bit more.... concise. Maybe we could use every other adjective say, every other time.”

Des News: “Yeah, maybe. But let’s look at the story itself. May we?”

Burwash: “Sure, go ahead. What’s on your mind”

Des News: “Well, first of all, are you sure Robert Redford is negotiating with Mike Winder to do a remake of Shangri-La set in West Valley?”

Burwash: “Absolutely!”

Des News: “How do you know this?”

Burwash: “Well, yesterday I was talking to Bobby, and he confirmed it.”

Des News: “Bobby?”

Burwash: “Yes, Bobby Redford. He and I are close. I call him Bobby, and you probably already know what he calls me.”

Des News: “Dick?”

Burwash: “Exactly. Did I tell you we’re real close?”

Des News: “You did.”

Burwash: “Anything else?”

Des News: “As a matter of fact, yes. You say the movie’s set in the 80‘s and Redford has the plane of a diplomat make a forced landing at Winder Farms.”

Burwash: “Exactly”

Des News: “And a young boy dashes across the field then singlehandedly saves the passengers and crew?”

Burwash: “Right.”

Des News: “And this boy happens to be Mike Winder, the future mayor of Shangri-La?”

Burwash: “Yes, it’s all there, in the script.”

Des News: “Really? Well, I have just one more question.”

Burwash: “Sure, shoot.”

Des News: “Am I talking to Mike Winder?”

.............

That concludes the audible portion of the conversation. What can be heard after that is a very long pause followed by a ‘click.’

I’ve struggled over what to do with this tape. At last I’ve concluded that the only fair thing is to release the transcript after most of today’s voting has transpired. After all, the source remains anonymous and Beulah isn’t talking.

The People You Meet

Political campaigns are a great place to meet people. You’re surrounded by a hopeful and enthusiastic crowd willing to give their time to a cause that’s greater than themselves.

Yet it’s also true that campaigns are busy and have time constraints that make your focus narrow and short term. There’s always a new dragon to slay, and sometimes all you care about is whether the guy next to you has a sword.

What else there is to know gets lost in the crush.

Vince Iturbe

Vince Iturbe is one of our reliable soldiers. New to political campaigns, he’s here entirely because he was impressed with Ben’s performance as his State Senator.

Beyond that, Vince is an unassuming bachelor living a quiet retired life.

What I just told you is all I knew about Vince, and honestly, about all I tried to know until recently. What was getting harder to ignore was the warm and kindly influence he brings to our office.

Therefore, I did what passes for a background check and Googled his name. Not a lot popped up, except a citation from Community Nursing Services that named him national volunteer of the year. It said that during the last 27 years he had given over 2,500 hours of volunteer time.

Soon thereafter, at the West Valley Parade, I bumped into Vince, told him what I had Googled up and asked him about it.

Initially he tossed it off as an honor not sought, and embarrassing to accept. But when I pressed him he said that his time as a volunteer with CNS is spent tending to the terminally ill. He helps them and their families prepare for the near term inevitability of death by putting their affairs in order and offering support and advice.

“It all started nearly thirty years ago,” he said, “when my priest asked me to visit a man dying of AIDS. He was all alone in a house emptied of everything but a mattress and a blanket. There was hardly anyone even willing to walk through the front door. And the rest just followed on after that.”

This is the rest of Vince’s story, or at least a larger part of that story.

As I said, political campaigns are a great place to meet people. Being able to rub shoulders with this kind of grace and decency is one great reason to stop by and put your name in our volunteer log, in a column right next to Vince Iturbe.

The New Poll

There’s a new Dan Jones poll out on the County Mayor’s race that was paid for by KSL and The Deseret News. What does it show?

• Winder leads Crockett by 6% with a 6.2% margin of error. Dan Jones characterizes the race as “volatile” and won’t make a prediction

• If the general election were held today, both Winder and Crockett would have the advantage over Ben McAdams. Winder is preferred by a margin of 48% to 40%, and Crockett leads by the larger margin of 49% to 35% over McAdams

What do I think this poll shows?

Frankly, I don’t think it has much to say about either Crockett or McAdams. The poll is entirely about Mike Winder.

Let me first offer the reservation that I am not a pollster, nor do I have access to the decks of information that produced these results. However, I do have long experience, gut feel and sheer gall.

That said, Crockett shouldn’t even be in this race. He’s probably an intelligent fellow, but he’s not much of a politician. His resume includes one successful race for county council, which he promptly lost in the next election. (A loss he blames on Obama’s landslide... really, I’m not kidding.) And if fundraising is a measure of political viability, he’s on life support.

Yet at the Republican county convention, amongst the best informed of all Republican voters, Crockett came 28 votes short of eliminating Winder from the race. And now, in a broader Republican electorate, he’s still within the margin of error.

How can that be, if Crockett’s running against an incumbent mayor of Utah’s second largest city whose name is right now sitting in your refrigerator?

Simply put, Winder is a successful political personality who is his own worst enemy. He’s warm, congenial and easy to like, but he’s also slick and inauthentic with a demonstrated willingness to cut the ethical corner.

Those negatives are telling characteristics that ultimately don’t wear well amongst those who know you best.

Frankly, I believe this race goes to Ben McAdams. Ben is immensely gifted and hugely effective, with a disarming manner that gets him to the hoop before you know he has the ball. Right now Ben is struggling with name recognition, which is the bane of every great politician who also happens to be young. But this is June, not October, and that issue can and will be fixed.

Ben has the prospect of two opponents. One is weak, and the other flawed, but both have the advantage of being Republicans in a crimson state.

Yes, Republicans. Ben has met a few of those in the past; some he’s defeated, a few he’s outmaneuvered, and a lot will be voting for him in the next election.

West Valley Parade

Today Ben, et familia and a flotilla of volunteers showed up for a parade in West Valley. Of course this is the home turf of Mike Winder, so we were hopeful of a good showing and got much more than that.

Organizing for the parade, and in the southeast corner of the ShopKo parking lot, was a proud tide of orange. To their credit, both Mark Crockett and Mike Winder set sail in our direction and asked to shake hands with Cap'n Ben.

OK, I'll sink the nautical metaphor, but it was a classy act by the two - soon to be one - Republican contestants for the County Mayor's office.

Mike prefaced his visit with Ben by calling out, "Who's the blogger?" I've recently taken a few shots at "hiz honor," so for me it was an awkward moment, made more awkward when a pinwheel of volunteers eagerly pointed in my direction. Ashley Sumner announced, "You've been carded!"

Oh well.

I assumed my accustomed role as photographer of the event. However, my white balance was set incorrectly, so my position may now be in jeopardy. What follows is a collection of pictures from today's festivities. It took a lot of work to resurrect anything close to accurate color, so most of the pictures I've simply left in black and white.

Enjoy!

Clan McAdams ready to lead off!

The official MayorMobile

(Notice That The Plate Reads "DemJeep")

Ashley Sumner, Our New Publicity Director

(Please note the orange sunglasses and 

orange nail polish. She's officially drunk the Kool-Aid.)

We're Underway. Ben, Julie and Isaac Are On The Left.

The Official Scooter Phalanx 

Evidently The Poodle Got Into That Same Batch of Kool-Aid

Ben's 37,264th Hand Shake (And He's Still Smiling!)

Robert, The McAdams' Family Fiscal Conservative. 

We Tossed Out Taffy in Waxed Paper Wrappers Along

The Route. Whenever One Wasn't Retrieved By a Potential Voter,

Robert Picked it Up, Put It In His Hat, And Found Another Voter.)

Here We All Are at The End of The Parade. 

A Great Time Had By All!

Proud? Really?

Did you see yesterday’s Trib article titled, “Salt Lake County, Can Crockett or Winder beat McAdams.”

An interesting and provocative headline to a story that made no effort to answer the question it posed. There was no head to head analysis of the two Republican candidates versus McAdams. What the article offered was simply a rehash of the Richard Burwash controversy in which Winder used a fabricated pen name to plant articles in the Deseret News.

In the Trib article Mike Winder is quoted as saying that he was “forthright” after learning that the use of a pseudonym was unacceptable.

Wait, here’s a fellow who brags about his degree in History, and is the author of nine books. Are you telling me that nowhere in that experience did the subject of false attribution come to the fore? Do you think the public relations firm he worked for fired him because of his violation of an ethical standard he had no idea existed?

Is this an example of being “forthright?”

Evidently it is. And, for Winder, the story has a happy ending because he says that the delegates to the Republican convention were “proud” of how he handled the controversy.

Really? “Proud?”

Is that the right word? "Proud?"

.......

Today I had my first meeting with the McAdams‘ campaign Education Policy Development Committee. It is one of two such committees I belong to, the other being the Communications Committee which will soon have its first meeting.

I came into the Education meeting with some reservations. Often these committees can turn into a gab fest with participants talking “at” each other about pet peeves and personal agenda.

But no, I was pleasantly surprised. The participants were smart, had diverse backgrounds and were well informed. For the most part the conversation stayed focused.

Joel Briscoe

One suggestion I found particularly attractive came from Rep. Joel Briscoe. He suggested the Mayor convene an education summit combining every significant education constituency in the County. This group would serve as a catalyst for  coalition building between those different constituencies - for instance, between business and the school districts, or County government and the school boards etc. etc.

Seems to me such a summit would be a terrific idea, especially under the aegis of a “Mayor‘s Office of Education.” This office would be akin to the office Ben held in Salt Lake City government - the one charged with human rights. Only the point person in this County position would be the primary advocate for education policy and a lobbyist to the legislature with an education portfolio.

An In Kind Donation

The Trib article “McAdams outpaces GOP foes in mayoral money race,” was certainly excellent news. 

Amend that: ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS NEWS!

Here are some various impressions of what just happened...

..........

The fact that Ben was able to dwarf either of his two possible Republican challengers in the money race (for the last reporting period) was no mean feat. Individually, neither of them even came close to Ben. 

However, and unfortunately, Ben won’t be facing both of these Republicans in the general election. He’ll be facing one. So I did the math, and combined Winder’s donations with the donations that Crockett didn’t give himself, and wound up with about $111,000. That’s still 30% less than Ben was given during the same period.

............

Of course, all this money is designed to do something, and that’s to win public notice. My guess is that over the last two months the contest for publicity goes to the Republicans. They’ve had a fiercely contested race, strong media coverage, and at least two broadcast debates.

Yet, during this reporting period Ben has not just out earned his potential rivals, he has flat out worked them. (Check the campaign calendar at headquarters. His next breath is scheduled for July 6th.) However, the term “primary election” has guided the media spotlight to the Republicans, at least temporarily

Ben’s passbook showing a $98,000 balance isn’t the sort of story that generates compelling video.

............

All of this didn’t happen simply because Ben has great charisma or a more generous following.... though those things may well be true. 

They were the fruit of hard, persistent work. 

Many times, when I was at headquarters, I’d grow weary of calling people to volunteer. So I’d get up from my desk, take a stretch, and wander down the hall hoping to give the refrigerator or the snack cabinet a close inspection.  

About halfway down that hall is Ben’s office, and his door is always open... at least a crack. There he’d be, leaning over his desk, receiver in hand with Joey taking notes. They’d be making call after call, asking good and generous people for financial support. 

Then I’d ask myself, would I rather be making the calls that I’m making, or the calls that Ben’s making?

No contest. I’d reconsider my errand, label the decision not to eat a candy bar an “in kind donation,” and return to my desk.   

Ben's Spanish

Have you ever been in the Red Iguana and seen some young caucasian fellow address the waiter in Spanish, and then order in Spanish, and then share a moment of small talk in Spanish?

What’s your reaction?

I’ll share with you mine, in the order they occur...

(#1) “Boy, I wish I could do that.”

(#2) “He probably spent his mission in a place like Mexico.” (Which is shorthand sour-grapes for, “He was forced to learn Spanish, otherwise he couldn’t even say ‘adios.‘“)

(#3) “Let’s see if he tries that when his mission is ancient history.”

(#4) And finally, “Boy, I wish I could do that.”

Some-while back I was walking with Ben in the Midvale Cinco de Mayo parade. Of course, Ben was running from one side of the street to the other, shaking hands and kissing babies. I was doing my best trying to keep up with a camera.

Eventually we ran into a recalcitrant bystander. He was an Hispanic man, probably in his fifties, with a sour expression. His arms were crossed, his posture uninviting. None-the-less, Ben approached him with his hand extended. No “Hello,” no greeting of any kind, the man simply said, (and oddly in English,) “Do you speak Spanish?”

Immediately Ben broke into Spanish; fluent and colloquial Spanish. The man’s solid demeanor melted. His grimace turned into a smile.

My reaction? (Refer above, numbers one through four.)

Then I realized, “Hey, Ben only looks like an elder just returned from Mexico. He’s got a wife, three kids, a resume that’s got to put him in his thirties.”

Then off Ben ran to the next baby, and I followed after, the moment passed, and I forgot about it.

Last weekend I was reading a Tribune bio piece on Ben. It was ticking through all the know facts: Viewmont High, works in a music store, plays guitar, meets Julie etc. etc. Then it mentioned the mission in Brazil.

BRAZIL?

Don’t they speak Portuguese in Brazil? The Portuguese that’s about as much like Spanish, as it is like French?

The answer is, “Yes.”

Okay, so how did Ben’s Spanish come about?

This morning I asked him just that question.

The answer is that he elected to learn it on his own, well after his mission, well after college, and when he must have been in his mid to late twenties.

He said, “I just wanted to learn Spanish for the sake of it.”

How do you do that? Well, Ben enrolled in an immersion program. He moved to Costa Rica, lived on a farm, and took Spanish classes during the day.

And based on the changing expression of that man in Midvale, he’s done a pretty good job keeping up with it.

So, if you’re inclined to assume that Ben’s Spanish is the fortunate byproduct of his religious background, or that it comes from any other source than a pure enthusiasm for Hispanic culture and Latino people.... well, guess again.    

A Sign for Winder, Or a Sign of Winder?

Did you know that Mike Winder is the Mayor of West Valley City?

OK, that fact probably isn't lost on you.

Did you know that West Valley City has an ordinance forbidding the placement of political signs, or any signs for that matter, on public land?

Again, that probably sounds obvious. You'd assume every city, the County, and the State forbids putting up political signs on public property.

Your assumption would be correct. Sign ordinances are remarkably similar everywhere. In fact, here's a quote from the West Valley sign ordinance Title 11 that could be a template for every municipal code in the country...

(Ord. No. 01‐50 Amended 07/03/2001)
114106.
SIGNS ON PUBLIC PROPERTY.
No sign shall be located on publicly‐owned land, within public rights‐of‐way, or otherwise, except by written permission of the City...

Now take a trip along the Van Winkle Express Way, particularly where it intersects with I 215. You'll see a huge number of Mike Winder signs that have one thing in common. They are all on public property. And these aren't the small signs on the end of a stake commonly given out to supporters. These are as much as three feet across and almost as high.

You suppose Mike Winder doesn't know they're illegal?

You suppose this is being done by rogue elements of an over-enthusiastic campaign team?

You might have thought that a remote possibility until you saw Mike Winder arrive, alone, at last weekend's South Jordan City Festival. He got out of his West Valley municipally owned car, grabbed some "Mike Winder" signs, and then began placing them on public land until he was approached by security staff.

That conversation wasn't overheard, but no doubt it had to do with an ordinance with which he is already quite familiar.

A Very Lucky Man

In yesterday's post, titled "I Hate That Pause," I discussed the importance of name recognition. To that point, notice some of the Ben McAdams campaign buttons I have laying around.

I wonder, does everyone make an instant association of navy blue and orange with Ben McAdams? Personally, my first thought is of the Chicago Bears.

I'm not being completely critical. Through the convention season these buttons made more sense. We were dealing with a unique and highly informed audience.

But now, if I wear a nameless blue and orange button on the streets of Magna, I doubt many people will think, "Ahhh, Ben McAdams."

And the word "Ben" alone probably isn't enough either. At least not yet.

The good news is that some profligate volunteer gave most of these buttons away at the Pride Festival. New ones are on order. I hope they all bear the name "BEN McADAMS" in very large capital letters.

..............

Looking for a good biographical source on Ben? I was Googling the archives over the weekend and re-read an article from 2010. It's a Trib bio piece done by Derek Jensen titled, "Utah's newest senator - he's LDS, liberal and rising rapidly."

I'd recommend it.

..............

It's true, Ben McAdams once ranked as a super nova in my firmament of stars. But that's over. He's been eclipsed and replaced.

Julie McAdams, his wife, has taken his place.

A few days ago, late in the evening, I was working on a post for McAdams Apple. One I was intent on finishing. Then, right next to the keyboard, my cell phone started to rattle and ring. It was a new number, a picture of a friend didn't fill the screen.

My first thought was to let this call drop into voice mail. But I'm glad I didn't.

It was Julie McAdams. Knowing that without actually seeing her I'd have no idea who she was, she said "Hello, George, this is Julie, Julie McAdams."

I was dumbstruck. I offered a greeting, but assumed she must have the wrong number. There must be another George... a George Schwartz perhaps.

But no, it was me she was after. Julie explained that her call was a simple thank you for what I had done for the campaign. "You already know Ben appreciates it," she said, "but I thought it was important for you to know that I do to."

What a truly gracious act. Yes, Ben is a generous person who knows how to show gratitude, but for some reason this call from Julie really rocked my boat.

It could not have been more kind, or more thoughtful. I was genuinely touched.

Obviously, Ben is a very lucky man.

I Hate That Pause

One of the recent additions to the McAdams' campaign staff is our communications director, Ashley Sumner. She's a bright young woman with a degree in strategic communications and prior experience on the campaigns of Peter Caroon and Ralph Becker.

Ashley Sumner

Ashley's still settling into her new role, but she's a quick study and has already identified areas where she can make important contributions.

I was curious to know what a bright person with fresh eyes thought of our campaign, especially since she's now immersed in the very center of it. So late yesterday I asked her for her thoughts.

My first question was,  "What is the most important thing this campaign needs to do right now?"

Her answer came without hesitation, "Achieve greater name recognition for Ben."

Actually, I think she's right. It's also true that this fact is often a blind spot for political campaigns. The people who are involved in these efforts spend months focused on a single political candidate, and it's easy to begin feeling that this familiarity is shared by the rest of the world. But it isn't.

Around the office I can say "Ben," or among active Democrats in Salt Lake I can say, "Ben McAdams," and everyone knows who I mean. But when I call an independent or Republican voter in Taylorsville and say "Ben McAdams," there can be a very long pause.

I hate that pause.

Like it or not, there are a huge number of voters who cast their ballot for someone simply because they've heard of them. Beyond any appreciation for a candidate's history, opinions or qualifications, it's simple human nature to want to feel comfortable with the people we elect to office. And without familiarity, that sense of comfort is impossible

So, what does it take to establish a minimum level of familiarity? Most political experts say that a candidate's name must be seen at least six to twelve times.

That's it, no brochure, no press conference, no debate, just have your name seen six to twelve times.

Once that happens, then you can begin to diffentiate and define a candidate's various qualities and objectives. But only once that happens.

And for a large part of Salt Lake County we're not there yet.

Obviously, there are many things that Ashley, and even Ben himself, can do to get us there. But what can we, as Ben's supporters, do to get name recognition crossed off the to-do list?

It's prosaic and commonplace, but that's where yard signs, buttons and tee shirts come in. Put on a Ben McAdams button and walk past ten people, then each of those ten people have seen his name one more time. Put up a yard sign and five cars drive by, then each of those drivers have seen his name one more time.

It's simple, redundant math. But it couldn't be more important to Ben's success.  

Were You There?

Were you at Ben McAdams' headquarters last night?

If you weren't, and you live in Salt Lake County, then you were one of seventeen people who didn't make it.

What a crowd! And it's still six months before the election, and no one even knows the name of Ben's opponent. Someone made the mistake of scheduling the environmental caucus on the same night as "Women's Wednesdays," and the circus was on.

It's not that we have a small office, we don't. My guess is that it's about 4,000 square feet, and there are desks and phones aplenty. But at about 5:00 PM volunteers started arriving, and arriving, and arriving. Joel Freston and Martha Camarillo, the twosome responsible for volunteers, were initially pleased. Then the second score of volunteers arrived, and then the third, and so on, and so on.

Finally, satisfaction melted away into sheer panic. Hastily, card tables were turned into desks, and an intern was sent out to buy a gross of cellular disposables.

But it was useless. People were standing shoulder to shoulder, and front to back. In spite of it all, everyone was well behaved until we ran out of Coke and red licorice Twizzlers. Then there were murmurs. The ugly harbinger of impending mutiny that would even startle a Captain Bligh.

At this moment someone with a marshal's badge and a fireman's uniform arrived at the scene. Unfortunately, with all the murmuring, we couldn't understand a word he said. So an enterprising volunteer handed him a phone and offered her chair. All to no avail, he refused to make a single call.

Finally Joel hit on an idea. He gave me enough money to buy fifty rolls of quarters and deputized another fellow to Google up a map of the closest pay-phones. Martha stationed herself at the door, handing out maps, call lists and forty quarters apiece.

It was a masterstroke. We were saved.

………………

 OK, there were some liberties taken with the previous post, but it's all approximately true.

What follows is entirely factual. Our fundraising is going like gang busters. At this moment, our campaign should be in the doldrums. Everyone's attention should be on the furious Republican primary to oppose Ben. But no, our office has the feel of a winning campaign in October. There are new volunteers everyday and we're on our way to eclipsing a six digit fundraising goal before the end of the reporting period. We couldn't be happier.

Beverly Cooper and Joey Pitt deserve much of the credit for every dollar we earn.

……………….

Here's one undocumented advantage to wearing an orange "Ben McAdams'" tee shirt.

Today, on the way home, I stopped by the Smith's on 900 East and 800 South. I had a large basket of produce and I was stuck at the end of a long line. Unexpectedly, a manager tapped me on the shoulder and pulled my basket over to the next check-stand. Instead of removing the chain, he pulled it up and had me duck underneath along with my basket. So there I was, alone, in a newly opened check-stand next to a long line of people wearing quizzical expressions.

The manager looked up with a hint of conspiracy. "It was the tee shirt," he said, and then he offered a broad smile.

The Latino Vote

Not long ago the Salt Lake Tribune ran an article titled, “McAdams reaches for Latino voters in S.L. County mayor’s race.” The article sourced the U.S. Census bureau’s estimate that Salt Lake County’s Latino population is 17.1% of the total. It briefly described the campaign's various Latino initiatives, like “Latino Lunes,” one day a week reserved to focus on Latino issues, and do Spanish language phone banking.

There’s no doubt that the Latino vote will be important in the Fall election. 17.1% of the population is a significant number. However, as a segment of the voting population, that figure is diminished by a variety of factors.

Over a fifth of the age-eligible Latino population is not blessed with American citizenship. Regarding that fact there is little the McAdams campaign can do. Another factor is that the Latino population is young, very young, with over a third being under the age of 18. They can’t vote, and again, Ben can’t do much about that.

So where is the real opportunity? Where is the un-mined and achievable potential in the Latino electorate? Primarily, it’s in lagging participation rates among those eligible to vote. According to a report by the Pew Research Center, only 31.2% of eligible Latinos voted in 2010, compared to 48.6% percent for whites, and 44% for blacks.

Why is that the case? The Trib cited sociological explanations based on the uninspiring history of democracies in Latin countries. But again, Ben’s in no position to change history.

The one fact open to change returns to the youth of the Latino population. Whether Latino, white or Martian, young people vote at rates far below older populations. And in 2010, 31.3% of all Latinos eligible to vote were between 18 and 29. That percentage is half again as large as whites.

Distressingly, fewer than a fifth of of these young eligible Latinos voted in 2010.

So the challenge is not just reaching out to Latinos. Most particularly it’s finding a way to encourage young Latinos to vote.

All ideas as to how this can be done will be seriously entertained.

A Union Man

Hang around the McAdams campaign and you’ll run into a union member. Good solid people, working hard and raising families, but finding time to volunteer.

My grandfather was a proud member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. With union protections and union wages he and his fellow union members did well for themselves. He went from living in a car with his wife and kids to home ownership, children in college, and eventually a dignified retirement.

That is the sort of story we used to label, “only in America.”

Now “only in America” has come to mean something else. Here in the U.S. from 2001 to 2008 real wages were stagnant, and since the recession began real wages have declined precipitously. Presently, the gap between rich and poor in the U.S. is greater than in any other advanced western economy.

These are statistics designed to break your heart.

None-the-less, whenever I see a proud union member making phone calls for Ben, and working for a better America, I have hope.