NoVaPolitics.com

From MSNBC-Newsweek:

The numbers looked a lot less rosy to the other architect of the campaign—RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman. It was Mehlman who built the much-vaunted turnout machine. But he feared that many inside the party were relying too much on technology, like voter databases, and had lost sight of the bigger picture: that voters were turning against them. “We’ve built a great new car, but the gasoline for the car isn’t us; it’s the candidates and the issues,” Mehlman told NEWSWEEK. There was no bigger issue than the war, which Rove had pushed as a winning theme for the GOP. As he flew back to D.C. on a private jet two days before the elections, Mehlman scribbled his predictions on a card—not to be revealed until after the elections. His numbers were much closer than Rove’s: the GOP would lose 23 in the House (5 short of the final tally), 5 in the Senate (1 shy) and 6 governors (spot on). Last week Mehlman announced he would step down and pursue opportunities in the private sector. [Boldfaces mine.]

The late John Boyd, an Air Force pilot, the leader of the Pentagon “reformers,” and perhaps the greatest American military theorist, said, “People first, ideas second, hardware third.” He also criticized the Pentagon for having its priorities reversed (“hardware first, ideas second, people last”). That’s what came to my mind when I read this passage.

BTW, my prediction was 20-25 House seats lost, 4-5 Senate seats lost. Looks like mine wasn’t too far away from Mehlman’s. And I am not nearly as expensive as Mr. Mehlman!

More on “People First, Ideas Second, Hardware Third” applied to politics in Part 2.