Clinton sends her California campaign manager to help her win Texas

[Kadie]

Clinton sends her California campaign manager to help her win Texas
Carla Marinucci, Chronicle Political Writer

Thursday, February 14, 2008


(02-14) 15:54 PST San Francisco - --

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign, signaling the start of an aggressive drive in states she must win on March 4, has summoned a formidable political "closer" to head up her Texas effort - Averell "Ace" Smith, the campaign manager behind her 9-point Super Tuesday victory over Sen. Barack Obama in California.

Smith - who developed a reputation as the "Doctor Death" of political opposition research before leading winning campaigns for Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and state Attorney General Jerry Brown - is now on the ground for Clinton as her Texas state campaign manager, sources confirmed today.

The son of former San Francisco District Attorney Arlo Smith, Smith has shown an uncanny knack for identifying key demographic groups and delivering voters in his races in the nation's most populous state.

In Texas, he will take on the challenge for Clinton in a state with key demographic parallels to California - a wide swath of critical Latino voters and working women.

Political insiders say the hiring is a signal that Team Clinton is heading into a new phase in the "absolute must win" state.

more...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/14/MNS1V2MN2.DTL&tsp=1

[avrdream]

1. Excellent!

I love all these positive, powerful, and fighting changes in the HRC campaign. They are really giving it a go.

[TomInTib]

2. Oh, the Texans will surely appreciate that.

Send a Californian out to run things in Texas?

That'll go over big.

Or not.

This Texan says the Campaign had better get ready for some pissed-off Texans.

[NJSecularist]

3. Hillary won't have the luxury of a large absentee ballot voting bloc in her favor this time

[thevoiceofreason]

8. From our early canvassing in the democratic Houston areas

the early mail-in vote is 2-1 Barack

[NJSecularist]

9. In the end, across all districts, I don't think there will be a significant advantage...

among mail-in voters.

Unlike California.

[LSparkle]

4. We're already having buyers' remorse for Villaraigosa here in L.A.

Thanks, Doctor Death. We got us an empty suit of a mayor whose personal life is the only notable thing about him.

[Capn Sunshine]

5. Dr. Death stalks the Tejas prairie

who will be next? :scared:

[thevoiceofreason]

6. That's gonna play really well down here.

C'mon down. Welcome to Texas. Care to go hang oout in Lufkin for a while? Thought not.

[Thrill]

7. She was up over 20 points in California a week before Super Tuesday

And ended up winning by 9. I wouldn't call him a closer