Washington, DC
My two Capitol Hill jobs helped me to recover financially and psychologically from the collapse of the Bush presidency. I remain extremely confident in my skills, which is reinforced by a variety of inquiries from major statewide campaigns — including George W. Bush’s Texas gubernatorial race... Yet another reminder to me that despite my high-profile defeat in 1990 Texas Governor’s race, I’d left an impression — with Karl Rove in particular, who reached out to me.
Instead, I decided in November, 1993 to launch a sole proprietorship GOP consulting firm specializing in speech writing, news and message management, and optimizing coordination between a candidate’s TV message and daily stump message — all key areas where I’d seen problems in my races as well as others.
Key clients for the 1994 cycle will be Tennessee builder/developer Bob Corker, running for Senate; New York GOP gubernatorial candidate, State Sen. George Pataki, running for Governor; and U.S. Rep. Helen Bentley (R-MD), running for Governor. Not a bad slate of candidates for a first go-round.
The firm, Strategic Media Services (preceding my later firm, Strategic Media, Inc.), was launched and run out of my apartment at 3100 N Street NW in Georgetown.