TALLAHASSEE, FL: Communications staffers for Al Gore and George W. Bush were forced to shift from campaign workers to crisis control managers as Election Night gave way to post-election frenzy last week.
TALLAHASSEE, FL: Communications staffers for Al Gore and George W. Bush were forced to shift from campaign workers to crisis control managers as Election Night gave way to post-election frenzy last week.
Gore's people, however, faced a further challenge in having to uproot from campaign headquarters in Nashville, TN, which may have given the Republicans a much-needed PR edge.
While both camps sent emergency splinter groups to Florida, Bush's staff retained headquarters at the Governor's mansion in Austin, TX, according to Mindy Tucker, spokesperson with the Bush camp in Tallahassee. Crucially, phone and fax numbers remained constant during the transition, and strategists were able to gather and plan, allowing the communications team to stay ahead of the curve with the media. 'At no point were we out of touch,' said Tucker.
Gore's team, however, eager to show that the campaign portion of the effort had ended, abandoned their Nashville headquarters almost immediately.
The result was a team scattered between DC, Florida and Nashville, meaning they were not only comparatively out of touch with the press but with each other.
