Political Consultants Take Stage at 9/30 Forum at City Club of Portland
Portland, OR (PRWEB) September 17, 2005
At its weekly Friday Forum luncheon on Sept. 30, City Club of Portland presents “Oregon’s Own Karl Roves: Democracy in the Age of the Political Consultant,” with guest speakers Chuck Adams, Lisa Grove, Jack Kane and Mark Wiener in a forum to be moderated by Willamette Week’s Mark Zusman.
Do political consultants make politicians lie? Or, better yet, can voters handle the truth? You may not recognize these names, but you know their work. Mark Wiener has helped elect 80 percent of the current City Council. Chuck Adams is Karen Minnis' main man — and for a lot of other Republicans as well. Lisa Grove ran numbers for Ron Wyden and Ted Kulongoski. And when Jack Kane speaks, Kevin Mannix listens.
It is common for earnest, Constitution-fearing citizens to denounce the skullduggery of political consultants, who, they say, have poisoned the political process with negativity, meaningless rhetoric and what Fleetwood Mac called “sweet little lies.” Are consultants political monsters? Or are they hard-working citizens, professionally obliged to tell their bosses what the public already thinks, but secretly hoping that someday, some client will say, "Yes, I know what the polls say — but gosh darn it, I want you to tell me how we can win by telling the truth!"
Here's your chance to find out. Here's your chance to mix it up with the folks who fill your mailboxes and TV screens every election year. Join us on Sept. 30 for a lively discussion of democracy in the age of the political consultant.
NOTE DIFFERENT VENUE THIS WEEK ONLY: City ClubÂ’s Friday Forum, which is open to the public, will be held in the Benson Hotel (309 SW Broadway). Doors open at 11:30 a. m. Program begins at 12:15 p. m. and concludes at 1:15 p. m. Luncheon reservations must be made online at www. pdxcityclub. org or by calling 503-228-7231, ext. 102, by 2 p. m. Wed., Sept. 28 (members only may call 503-241-9242). Luncheon tickets are $20 ($16 for members of City Club). Coffee/tea table tickets are $5 at the door. General seating, available at the door, is $5 (free for members of City Club).
A NOTE TO MEDIA
Media are encouraged to attend and are invited to sit in general seating. Please sign in at the registration table on the day of the forum. For broadcast media, an audio press patch will be available, and a riser for videotaping can be provided with advance notice. Contact Tim Krause at 503-228-7231, ext. 102.
ABOUT CITY CLUB OF PORTLAND
City Club of Portland is a nonprofit, nonpartisan civic affairs organization that promotes civic engagement and active citizenship to build a stronger community. Through unbiased research and compelling programs, City Club connects citizens with ideas and issues that affect our community. City Club is open to everyone who wants to interact with other citizens and shape the future of our city and state. For more information about City Club of Portland, visit www. pdxcityclub. org or call 503-228-7231.
ABOUT CHUCK ADAMS
Born and raised in northern Idaho, Chuck celebrates his 30th year of living in Oregon. He is the owner of Adams & Company, a political and public relations company in Oregon. ChuckÂ’s firm specializes in political campaigns and message management for political leaders, trade groups and business executives.
Adams has been the lead consultant for over 10 years for the Oregon House and Senate Republicans. In addition, he was the lead consultant for the Washington state House Republican Caucus in 2004. Adams was the lead consultant on the repeal of Measure 30, the LegislatureÂ’s tax increase in 2003, which was defeated 60%-40%.
Adams and his wife Jill just celebrated their 25th year in business. During that time Chuck has helped dozens of people win seats to the Legislature and other levels of public office. While Adams & Company is a full-service political consulting firm, in 2004, Adams & Company designed over 1,000 campaign pieces and printed over 10 million fliers, brochures and handouts.
Adams has led five different delegations to Eastern Europe, Russia and the Ukraine in exploration of business, political and education opportunities. He was one of Campaign and ElectionÂ’s delegation members to Eastern Europe in 1990, just three months after the Berlin Wall came tumbling down.
Adams was also selected as one of Campaign and Election’s “Rising Stars” in 2002. He is the founder of the Oregon Campaign Institute, which is the primary training program for republicans in the state of Oregon.
Currently, Adams is the lead consultant to Oregon House Speaker Karen Minnis and Oregon House Majority Leader Wayne Scott.
ABOUT LISA GROVE
Lisa Grove, founder and principal of Grove Insight, has been the lead strategist for numerous political candidates, nonprofit organizations, corporations and labor unions. She has a reputation for providing research and communications and outreach campaigns. Grove has unseated two incumbents and prevailed on scores of ballot measures — her firm’s win/loss record is 43 to 3.
Grove has conducted surveys and moderated hundreds of focus group discussions and dial test sessions for presidential, senatorial and gubernatorial candidates. Her clients have included Vice President Al Gore and U. S. Senator Bill Bradley; U. S. Senators Ron Wyden, John Glenn, Tom Daschle and Carl Levin; Oregon Governors Ted Kulongoski and Barbara Roberts; and U. S. Representatives Susan Davis, Darlene Hooley, David Wu, Peter DeFazio and Brian Baird. Grove also consulted to Cesar Gaviria's successful bid for the Presidency of Colombia. In addition to being WydenÂ’s political pollster, Grove was his Communications Director in the special election following Bob PackwoodÂ’s resignation.
Advertising agencies, public relations firms and Fortune 500 companies have relied on GroveÂ’s research to develop corporate image campaigns in the United States, Asia and Latin America.
A seasoned public speaker, Grove has briefed heads of state, U. S. Senators, Hollywood types and the countryÂ’s leading policy-makers on a wide variety of issues. She has been quoted in publications ranging from the Wall Street Journal to Mother Jones, the Bend, Oregon Bulletin to the Washington Post. She has also been a guest lecturer at the Graduate School of Political Management, American University, George Washington University, University of Portland and Carleton College.
Prior to starting her own company, Grove was Vice President at Mellman Group for nine years in Washington, D. C. Before that, Grove was a Research Associate at Hill and Knowlton's Research subsidiary, Strategic Information Research Corporation and Belden Opinion Research.
A native of the Pacific Northwest, Grove graduated from Lewis & Clark College in 1984 with degrees in communications and international affairs.
ABOUT JACK KANE
Jack Kane is the founder and president of Creative Strategies. For more than two decades, Kane has been a well-known figure in Northwest politics and government relations. He has consulted the campaigns of a number of sitting lawmakers, as well as public awareness campaigns for several counties, municipalities and state agencies. Kane has been acknowledged nationally in the areas of direct mail and television production and is a frequent lecturer at the Campaigns & Elections national campaign schools in Washington D. C.
ABOUT MARK WIENER
Over the past 22 years, Mark Wiener has worked at every level of government and politics. Starting in 1981 as an aide to New York Congressman Charles Schumer, Weiner has also served in a staff role at the state and local level, including stints as Policy Director for the Democratic Caucus of the Oregon House of Representatives and Chief of Staff to Multnomah County Commissioner Dan Saltzman.
Specializing in message development, direct mail and electronic media, Wiener is a sought after political consultant for Democratic and non-partisan campaigns, helping direct races for U. S. Congress, Oregon House and Senate, Portland Mayor, New York City Council, Illinois House, and numerous bond and ballot measures. He has also designed and implemented independent expenditure campaigns for a wide variety of organizations.
Wiener also has extensive experience in “issue marketing:” positioning elected officials and organizations on subjects including child abuse, libraries, criminal justice, consumer protection, human rights, economic equity issues and open space, livability and environmental protection. A partial list of Wiener’s clients include: Basic Rights Oregon, U. S. Senator Ron Wyden, Congressman Earl Blumenauer, Congressman Charles Schumer, Portland Mayor Vera Katz, Boise Mayor Dave Bieter, Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers, Oregon Education Association, Oregon NARAL, Sam Adams for City Council, Oregon AFL-CIO
And Oregon Trial Lawyers Association.
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