report: Patti Solis Doyl, former Clinton campaign manager, Considering Job with Obama

ErinBerin84

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Mon May-19-08 01:24 PM
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report: Patti Solis Doyl, former Clinton campaign manager, Considering Job with Obama

Edited on Mon May-19-08 01:26 PM by ErinBerin84

( I used the headline that was used on the Huffington Post for this story, because the politico article headline was not as specific..just "former Clintonite mulls over Obama job" or something)I'm all for party unity, but I hope she isn't given too many, um, managerial responsibilities.

"Hillary Clinton�s former campaign manager and confidante, Patti Solis Doyle, and Senator Barack Obama�s top advisor have informally discussed the former Clintonite�s going to work for the Obama campaign in the general election.

Solis Doyle�s possible hiring is a major breach not just in Clinton�s campaign but in the political universe known as �Hillaryland,� a term Solis Doyle reportedly coined after joining the Clintons in 1991 as Mrs. Clinton�s personal scheduler. She was forced out of Senator Clinton�s campaign in February amid internal criticism about her spending practices and preparation for upcoming contests.

�I�ve talked to Patti throughout, I know that she wants to be helpful in a general election campaign, and we appreciate that,� Obama�s chief strategist, David Axelrod told Politico, declining directly to answer the question of whether he and Solis Doyle had discussed her working for the campaign.

Other Democrats familiar with their conversations said there had been informal discussions of Solis Doyle going to work for Obama after the primary formally draws to a close.

�If Barack Obama�s the nominee, I�ll do everything I can to get him elected,� Solis Doyle told Politico.

Solis Doyle, a Chicago native whose brother is an alderman there, has known Axelrod even longer than she�s known the Clintons. Both said they�d talked frequently through the course of the campaign. Solis Doyle said there had been �no real conversations� about a job, but didn�t deny the subject had been broached.

Campaigns often draw from one another�s staff after a primary ends, a move driven both by the greater demands of a general election and by the desire to unite the party.

�I expect a lot of people from the losing campaign to go to the winning campaign, and I think that�s a good idea � it�s part of the process of healing,� said Bob Shrum, who was a key advisor to Senator John Kerry in 2004. �The way the Obama campaign runs, I think people will be integrated fairly easily.�

What�s notable about the suggestion that Solis Doyle could join Obama�s campaign is how early it comes. Clinton declared Monday that the campaign is �nowhere near over� and her loyal staff and supporters continue to reject the widespread assumption that her campaign has no chance of winning. That Solis Doyle is considering a job suggests otherwise.

There has, of course, been extensive speculation about which Clinton aides might make their way to Obama�s camp. Like Solis Doyle, top advisor Howard Wolfson is close to Axelrod, though there�s no indication that he�d consider a job.

"I intend to be working in the general election for Senator Clinton," said Wolfson. "I find any other speculation offensive."

Obama�s campaign has also advertised for jobs in its communications office, and other Democratic operatives said he might look to hire some of Clinton�s field staffers for the general election campaign, and to pick up fundraising staffers whose networks of wealthy donors could augment Obama�s formidable money machine.

Solis Doyle, for her part, would be unlikely to join the campaign in the kind of managerial role she filled for Clinton. She was forced out amid criticisms of the campaign�s management, and criticized for having been chosen more for loyalty than for managerial experience. And Obama�s campaign is notable for its relatively simple organizational chart, with Axelrod and campaign manager David Plouffe clearly at the reins.

Solis Doyle, however, could also bring long relationships with many Latino lawmakers and officials, a valuable commodity since Hispanics will be a crucial constituency in the general election.

�Obviously when this thing is done we�re going to want to bring talented people from all over the party into the fold here,� said Axelrod. �We�re not there yet.�

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0508/10450.html