It’d been a long time since someone sounded so concerned about his well-being. His family worried about him, but they never voiced it anymore. Not even Mom. “Don’t worry about it. If I need something, I’ll stop on my way.”
***
According to the background Dad provided, Carl Filmore had worked on his first political campaign while still in college. It had been for a small local race in the western part of the state. Since then Carl had devoted his life to one thing: getting his candidate elected regardless of the office he or she was running for. More times than not, Carl succeeded.
“Do you believe Brett’s lack of political experience will be an issue?” Dad asked. Although his presence wasn’t necessary, Brett had asked Dad to join them today. Dad hadn’t hesitated to agree. He’d even canceled his golf game with Brett’s uncle Mark so he could come, and Jonathan Sherbrooke never canceled a golf game.
“We’ve seen several candidates with no tested political experience over the past few years win,” Carl said once his personal assistant again left the room. The woman had made several trips in and out of the office since Brett sat down. “Many of us believe it’s society’s way of saying they’re tired of old Washington. Last year two unknowns with zero experience defeated incumbents for seats in Congress. And according to the polls, the race between Senator Eason and Tara Wakefield in Arizona is a tight one. Wakefield held only a town-level office before entering the race. I really think the race out there could go either way in November.”
Dad added milk and sugar to his coffee. “I’ve been following the race in Arizona and was shocked when I saw the polls this week.”
“And it’s not like
we have any negative baggage to worry about in addition to no political experience.” Carl looked in his direction. “Brett, you’ve got a flawless reputation. The kind men like me dream our candidates will have going into an election. Combine it with your military record and your last name, and this campaign could practically run itself.”
Brett didn’t want to win solely based on his family name. He’d spent most of his life making sure he achieved his goals on his own, not because he’d been born into the right family. However, if this one time his last name helped him get where he wanted to be so he could make a real difference in government, he’d use it.
“Unless either of you has any more questions about what we’ve discussed so far, let’s move to the next item on the agenda,” Carl said.
“Only one,” Dad said. “How are we doing with the nomination papers?”
“Going on schedule,” Brett answered before Carl spoke.
Before Dad arrived, they’d reviewed Carl’s expected timetable for collecting the rest of the signatures required. Brett was pleased he expected the nomination papers to be ready for submission before the end of the week.
“Let’s move on to item number two,” Brett said. After years of giving orders, he found it difficult to leave even the running of this meeting to someone else.
Carl checked his agenda and nodded. “I know Lily has already contacted Pam Burton at the Boston Times. She wants to do a sit-down interview with you next week,” he said, referring to Lily Pierce, Brett’s campaign press secretary. She was the only key member of Brett’s inner team not present for today’s meeting. “She’s got a call in to the Worcester Daily News as well.”
He’d read countless interviews his uncles and cousins had given, but he’d never had to do one himself. His lack of experience with the media didn’t matter; he still knew how easily reporters could take what you said and twist it. He’d need to be extra vigilant during any interviews he gave.
“We’ll also need to get some commercials in the works,” Carl continued. “Pedro Jones is my go-to in this area.”
Brett intended to have a say in all aspects of his campaign. As far as who to hire for television commercials though, he’d leave that to Carl and his creative team. They’d done this before, he hadn’t. “Get him on board. I’m ready when he is.”
During their first meeting, they’d discussed his platform for the campaign. He saw no reason to rehash it now. However, he was curious as to who his competition might be. Carl had tossed out a few names earlier in the week, but Brett hadn’t seen or read any definite answers yet. If anyone would know though, it’d be Carl. When it came to politics, he had eyes and ears everywhere.
“Any word yet on whom I’ll likely be up against?”
“Ted Smith hired Phillip Young to run his campaign. Ted will be your biggest competition for the party nomination,” Carl answered.
He recognized the former lieutenant governor’s name. Ted had the political experience, but he also had a severely tarnished reputation thanks to an extramarital scandal followed by a messy divorce five or six years ago. The name Phillip Young sounded familiar too, but he couldn’t say why. If he thought of it, he’d ask his dad or one of his cousins if they recognized the name.
“It looks like Gina Hammond and Vince Reed will be the front-runners for their party’s nomination. I think in terms of agenda, Gina’s the last thing we need in Washington. Many people even in her party agree with me. However, I think Gina’s still got an edge over Vince. She has Kevin McGinnis running things. The man will stop at nothing to win.”
Brett was vaguely familiar with both names. Gina Hammond had served one term as a representative from Vermont in Congress and then run for Senate. She’d lost to the incumbent, one of Dad’s college buddies. If she planned to run in the special election, she’d moved south, perhaps hoping new voters would mean a different outcome. Vince Reed was a professional football player who’d retired after ten seasons with the New England Rebels. Since then he’d earned a law degree and branched out into business. Brett didn’t know anything about his political leanings. He’d have to spend some time researching all three potential opponents.
“Interviews and commercials help, but they don’t win campaigns. We need to get you out there. Even today a handshake goes a long way to getting a vote. People go with the candidate they feel most connected to. I’ll e-mail you the list of events you need to attend. We can discuss more as they come up.” Carl looked up from his computer. “Unless you have more questions, let’s talk about fund-raising.”
He shook his head and turned his attention to the woman across the conference table from him, his finance coordinator.
When Brett walked out of Carl Filmore’s office a few hours later, his head was full of talking points, important dates, and dollar signs. He’d gone into the meeting expecting it to be a long one, and he hadn’t been disappointed. Despite the lengthy and at times all-out boring afternoon, he felt more confident than before about his chances of winning the primary in November and the special election in December.
“I think today’s meeting went well. You made the right decision going with Carl,” Dad said as they stepped off the elevator inside the parking garage near Carl’s office. “How about we stop for dinner and a drink?” Dad asked. “I’d invite your mom too but she has plans with your aunt Marilyn tonight.”
Brett checked his watch. It was around dinnertime. He’d hoped to see Jen again tonight, but he hadn’t spent much time with his dad lately. And although they didn’t always see eye to eye, he enjoyed spending time with Dad. If he explained to Jen why he couldn’t meet her tonight, she’d understand. Family was important to her too.
“Where should we go?” He took out his cell phone and sent Jen a text message.