Labor Relations 101

Memo To Bush...Karl Rove Has Left The Building.

Karl Rove, President Bush's chief political aide and friend, has announced his resignation from the Bush administration.  CNN is reporting that Rove left after White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten requested that White House staffers resign before labor day or commit to serving the president through the end of his term -- January of 2009.

Rove has long been credited for serving as Bush's "architect" and even some whisper that he is the brain behind the current administration.  Rove rode a wave of unprecedented access to the oval office until the Democratic party took control of both Congress and the Senate in November 2006.

Although the Republican party denies that Rove's departure will have a major impact on the administration, it cannot be denied that Rove was the engine that made the President go.  President Bush will be hard pressed to convince anyone that he has not entered the dreaded "lame duck" territory.  Love him or hate him, Karl Rove truly made his mark on 21st Century politics.

In Debt? McCain Vows To Become President

CNN is reporting that John McCain's presidential campaign is in serious jeopardy.  The McCain campaign is expected to announce that it is in debt to the tune of $1.75 million dollars. 

"...earlier this week [campaign manager John] Weaver and campaign manager Terry Nelson resigned after McCain appeared to lose confidence in their ability to lead the campaign that had only $2 million in the bank after raising more than $20 million in the first six months of the year."

Several staff members, including vitally important senior staffers, are expected to resign on Monday, July 16, 2007.  This has been an incredibly difficult presidential campaign for John McCain.  His Florida co-chair was arrested for soliciting sex from an undercover police officer; the Republican base continues to view McCain as a maverick given his views on bolstering the number of troops in Iraq, including an ill fated amendment to the immigration bill which was defeated weeks ago.

Although McCain has vowed that he will be the next President of the United States, the reality is that he will have a hard time convincing financial donors that his office is capable of managing money considering that it blew through $20 million dollars.

Rick Davis, a longtime McCain political adviser, has taken over as campaign manager.  It is highly likely that Davis will work overtime to convince the voting public that McCain is at best as an underdog.  In fact, there might be some truth to this line of thinking.  However, there are several realities that we cannot lose sight of.  The next President will inherit a record deficit; a war on foreign soil; strained international relations and domestic issues such as social security, immigration and health care.  A qualified Presidential candidate will have to demonstrate an ability to provide stability in unstable times.

If McCain is unable to manage his presidential campaign, considering that this is not his first time running for the Oval Office, then questions may arise concerning his ability to successfully govern the United States as its President.

John Edwards Gains Two New Advisors

The Associated Press is reporting that former U.S. Senator John Edwards has added two new members to his quest for the White House.

WakeUpWalmart director Paul Blank and spokesman Chris Kofinis are expected to join Edwards within the next few days, although a deal has not been finalized.

These changes come after a rather disappointing fund raising quarter in addition to ongoing communication challenges. The Edwards campaign has been unable to match the fund raising prowess of Hilary Clinton and Barrack Obama.  The Edwards campaign was quick to diffuse talk that the addition of the new staff members was indicative of trouble within the campaign,

"Top Edwards strategist Jonathan Prince said the staff changes reflected the campaign's continued growth and shouldn't be taken as a sign that anything was amiss."

On the other hand, the loss of Blank and Kofinis is a tremendous blow to the WakeUpWalmart movement.  For the past 2 years WakeUpWalmart has campaigned against the business practices and lack of union representation of Walmart.  Working in conjunction with Walmart Watch, WakeUPWalmart has spent considerable time and money "educating" the public on issues impacting Walmart employees, including pay; benefits and Walmart's alleged anti-union stance. 

It is believed that the departure of Blank and Kofinis may be an indication of the weakening of the WakeUPWalmart's effort to unionize Walmarts stores.