This Time, McAuliffe Is Selling Himself

National Journal
May 23, 2009
by Jennifer Skalka

When he turned 52 early this year, Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe -- glad-handing former rainmaker of the Democratic National Committee and permanent First Friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton -- fittingly celebrated with a fundraiser lightly disguised as a birthday party. Old pals, including such famous-for-Washington types as lawyer Richard Ben-Veniste and former Rep. Tom McMillen, turned out for the Macker, as he's known.

In the middle of the room stood a five-tier confection -- bright blue and decorated with cardinals, the state bird. A McAuliffe-looking figurine, but blonder, stood atop the cake, which had the state's motto, Sic semper tyrannis (Thus always to tyrants), draped across it. But when the time came for guests to dive in, a waiter instead delivered ready-to-eat slices of some other goodie from a back room.

Was the strange, towering creation for real? Without dragging a finger through the Technicolor frosting, it was impossible to tell. But as the irrepressible party pitchman-turned-candidate closes in on his first-ever primary, the mystery dessert makes an easy metaphor for what Old Dominion voters must decide about his gold-plated campaign. "If you're lookin' for the same old thing, I'm not your guy to go to Richmond," the transplanted New Yorker, who has developed a new habit of dropping his g's, told well-wishers.

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Adam Balbus of Charlottesville asks about my qualifactions

Adam’s Question: You do not have any experience in any area of actual political office such as city mayor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, or state senator. How can you believe you can ascend to gubernatorial office only on the merits of your DNC chairmanship, adept political fundraising and networking? Shouldn’t you work your
way up first? I am asking you to explain what experience or personal insights would make you a great candidate for Virginia Governor.

Adam: I think I bring a fresh perspective to state government – one grounded in my experience of turning around failing businesses and rebuilding struggling organizations like the DNC, where I was Chair when we erased the debt, built the first national voter file, built a new headquarters, and left the incoming chair and his team with a clean balance sheet for the first time anyone can remember.

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