Wren: When you started working with Aftab Pureval did Pete feel like you were two-timing him with another Midwestern mayor of a river city with a funny name? Is it your relationship with reporters and cable bookers? People read about my personal life in Page Six, and they think Im going to be sort of an out-there type of person that is attention seeking and all of that. Lis Smith on Pete Buttigieg's campaign bus during a. February 5, 2020 younolly Biography 0. I thought everybody knew that.. Because he was a badass. Based on that experience, how should Democrats make gains in those kinds of states in 2022? But there have been a few times when Ive been around him when I knew something, a factoid or something he didnt know, and let me tell you, I fucking lord it all over him. [21][22][23] In 2022, Smith became a communications adviser for Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow. There is this thing that I have to be very honest with, because maybe I had been seen as a little radioactive because I had unwillingly had my private life spread all over the tabloids, more established candidates might not have hired me. He is in talks to do a Fox News town hall in the coming weeks, building off the surprise success of Bernie Sanders appearance on Fox, and in the past couple of weeks has also been on Ellen and The View, as well as Preet Bhararas podcast, The Intercepts podcast and The New Yorkers podcast. Its just a personal part of my book. The Buttigiegs announced last month that they were engaged in the adoption process. The great media disruption comes for the Des Moines Register. Candidates and the people around them can get so spun up about things, and when you get spun up you make the worst mistakes, she says. But more broadly, they are diagnosing the ills of the party that paid their housing for years. Spitzer and Smith stayed together for more than two years, with the tabloids following them pretty much the whole time. He was going up against George Bush, who had $50 million and he had $4 million, and so he just decides to tear up the playbook and put himself out there. Pete Buttigieg and his husband Chasten in February 2020. Were just not looking for them. We were on the bus in New Hampshire the week we were playing each other and furiously checking our lineups. In that moment, in retrospect, it seems like Harris couldve ended Buttigiegs campaign. And someone needs to be. Click here. "[29] Lloyd Green, writing for The Guardian, called it "breezy and informative. A better response that is informed by all the facts is the most effective way to respond. Smith shot down a Post story claiming Sptizer was spotted kissing and sucking her toes while she was topless in a hot tub at a resort there. In some ways, he came across as a Midwestern dad before he was, in fact, a Midwestern dad. I really did feel he treated me as an equal. ET Political strategist Lis Smith isn't a married woman, though she may one day decide to tie the knot with a lucky somebody. Smith did not let anyone featured in the book read it ahead of time, not even former principals like Buttigieg or Cuomo, whom she levels in the book in the way her beloved Cincinnati Bengals new right tackle Lael Collins might decimate an opposing player. Spitzer leaves the apatment of Lis Smith at 5:44 a.m. on Dec. 19. Critics of the IDC have questioned Smith's loyalty to the implementation of progressive policies and candidates. Not to be cheesy, but it is one of my proudest accomplishments. We've received your submission. Some are even in the White House, like Deputy Press Secretary Chris Meagher, who briefed the press not too long ago. In her book, Smith also called another client she worked for,ex-Gov. What makes him such a magnet for criticism on both the left and the right? Jeff Smith, her former boyfriend, recalls one time when he was running for office, his campaign managers phone rang. Ahead of the release of her highly anticipated political memoir (which Politico Magazine excerpted last week), that includes figuring out how to get her computer to record our phone interview ammo to use in the event that its needed to set the record straight. Hes someone who is very special to me, and I hope hes always a part of my life. | James Devaney/GC Images. I could bring out a little bit more of a killer instinct [in] him, but he could bring out sort of a gentler, more thoughtful side of me that was mutually beneficial to the campaign. His resignation came after it was discovered he had been involved with prostitutes. You get a sense of the news, what is going to get picked up, she said, reaching into her bag for her copy of the Post, which she said she was saving for Buttigieg. He was out there. Andrew Cuomo, had turned into a Nicorette-chomping ahole who ruined the lives of his staffers after letting national fame get to his head during the coronavirus pandemic. She recalled tellingde Blasio chief of staff Phil Walzak over drinks that she and Spitzer were a couple. It was written over a period of 18 months,[25] and covers her life and political career. That is not how she ran his race. Shes a Black half-South-Indian woman. | Lorenzo Bevilaqua/ABC via Getty Images. Yeah, I guess Id fallen in love with slightly problematic guy It wasnt like I was dating Ted BundyEliot was the former governor and attorney general of New York State, Smith said, referring to the serial killer. The speed with which Buttegieg emerged has been astonishing, which happens to be the speed at which Smith works. My end goalsbeing able to stay in New York with Eliot and serve as the New York City mayors press secretarywere in sight. In real life, I have a really close-knit family. Smith: I think its been great. I think thats always been part of Joe Bidens appeal. Running for politics theres got to be a little element of narcissism or whatever you want to call it in you. Everyone thought I was crazy. We needed to be the antidote to him. She texts the buzziest bits to her sprawling network of journalistic contacts, who tweet them out. And it was a running joke between us: I was like, I cant listen to you talk about smart sewers one more time, or I will lose my mind. He loves that stuff. Hes someone who is involved fighting childhood hunger. Before a debate, you have no idea how much gossip is going around. Smith: Im not going to touch that with a 10-foot pole. 20172020 Pete Buttigieg presidential campaign, Pete Buttigieg's 2020 presidential campaign, Martin O'Malley 2016 presidential campaign, Georgetown Institute of Politics and Public Service, "On the Ground With Lis Smith, the Political Pro Who Invented 'Mayor Pete', "A Tabloid Bashing, and a Lost Job With the Mayor", "Virginia Politics Blog - McAuliffe Adds Press Secretary", "To Know Mayor Pete, Look at His Top Adviser's Underreported Past", "Mayor Pete Buttigieg Is Even Worse Than He Seems", "Knowing the Buttiverse: We're tracking 101 ex-staffers from Secretary Pete's 2020 campaign and where they are now", "The Women Running Presidential Campaigns Give Us a Behind-the-Scenes Look at Life on the Trail", "10 of the most powerful women who are running the 2020 presidential campaigns from behind the scenes", "Lis Smith | 2020 40 under 40 in Government and Politics", "GU Politics announces fall fellows to celebrate its fifth anniversary", "Andrew Cuomo's Smear Team: His Brother and Top Advisers, Transcripts Reveal", "The Moment Cuomo Adviser Lis Smith Says MSNBC Anchor Katy Tur Repeated Her 'Spin' On Air", "In crisis PR mode, Lis Smith told top Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa to 'just have your fucking assistant text people' and 'this is insane' as sexual harassment scandal blew up", "The Michigan Democrat Who Could Solve Her Party's Identity Crisis", "Lis Smith dishes on love of political combat in new book", "Two New Memoirs Detail the Threats to American Democracy", "Confessions of a Political Swashbuckler", "Welcome to the new era of political memoir", "Any Given Tuesday: Lis Smith on Cuomo, Spitzer and a political life", "Opinion | Lis Smith's self-serving story about Andrew Cuomo", "Let's Hear From the Women Lis Smith Smeared", "Opinion | 'The G.O.P. This story has been shared 127,012 times. My mood changed when the Post story popped. But they did teach me the importance of always making sure that candidates are reflecting the values of their voters. Even people like Terry McAuliffe and Claire McCaskill, who both have outsized personalities. I thought you had cancer or something. He motioned to the bartender again`Well take two shots of Jameson on top of that roundbefore turning back to me and clearing his throat. Well, of course someone running for president would need to talk about it with me first, right? January 25 2022 01:38 PM A prosecution barrister has told a non-jury court it will hear evidence that Lisa Smith's husband took a sniper course on her advice while he was carrying out border. People get stuck in a rut because something worked last cycle, and so they think it will work this cycle and it doesnt. Political strategist Lis Smith reveals in her new book how The Post exposed that she was dating prostitution-loving former Gov. Weve got that Joey Burrow swag, but he does have humility to him. Lis Smith: My favorite was one person asking me if I lost a bet or something. Smith has been studying the effort, reaching out to reporters who were there, and has been in regular contact with John Weaver, who helped engineer it. How much of his success was because of you, and how much was because of him? Not possible, Smith says. Although Smith and Spitzer attempted to keep the affair under wraps, a photographer for the New York Post spotted the pair at her SoHo walkup apartment, exchanging loving looks.. [1], Smith was born to lawyers Thomas, cousin of Senator Sam Ervin, and Adrienne Smith and was raised in Bronxville, New York, along with her twin brother Angus, and older siblings Ashley and Toby. But Smith is still sour that de Blasio let her hang out to dry. [20] She was a senior advisor on Corey Johnson's 2021 campaign for New York City Comptroller, and raised $3.5 million in funds for a PAC supporting Andrew Yang's 2021 mayoral campaign. This is what day two looks like. Oversaturation? Smith ended up dropping most of her other clients, politicians and nonprofits alike. This 35-Year-Old Mayor From Indiana Is Wowing National Democrats The New Republic declared. She was also communications director for Dan Seals' 2008 Illinois House race. Inside the Shrinking Newsroom of the Paper That Shapes the PrimariesBy Tim Alberta. But it was one of those moments where I had to go with my gut. Other candidates, they dont need to do it. Smith: So with John Edwards, I was a college student. But its not just about the 18-year-old girl. The way Smith tells it, she thought she was done with presidential politics after OMalleys campaign fizzled in 2016. The New York Post is looking into you and Eliot, Smith wrote, adding, Well, fk. I think thats probably the biggest misconception about me. There is nothing too big for her. | Scott Olson/Getty Images, Lis has an insurgent mentality, said Axelrod, a top aide for both of President Obamas campaigns. I think its just shaped up to be a perfect role for him. As a thirty-something mayor of a medium-size city, Buttigieg faced a credibility threshold with the national press. After his loss in the primary, Smith went to work on the winning election campaign and then the transition of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. I want political people to read this book, because I think its fun. AFP via Getty Images She dished about the former mayor's. The White House Correspondents Dinner is shrinking back to the boring awards ceremony journalists claimed to prefer. You couldnt have pulled off that strategy with a Bill de Blasio. He shoots her a look and gives a mock shrug, as if it's an inside joke between the three of us, now old chums: I mean, a little I guess., Buttigieg makes an appearance on "The View." On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. | Oh really, you didnt know that? Wren: Tell me about that five percent credited to you. Smith: One of the reasons I wanted to write this book was because when I was thinking at 19 or 20 about getting into this world, [a book like this] didnt exist. I have talked to all the guys who see in the shots. Political strategist Lis Smith casts Bill de Blasio as a "gross unshowered guy" who had good reason to be "pissed" about her romantic fling with Eliot Spitzer exposed by The Post especially. The two of us talked this week about Buttigiegs political future, whether Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow could jump into politics, and the ingredients of a good political candidate. Theyre out in country working on campaigns. Honesty is really, really important to handling a crisis because you have to have all the facts at your disposal. She was my girlfriend., Later, says Smith, when he was a state lawmaker, I would say to her, I am going to talk to such-and-such group, and she would tell me, This is what you should say. And I would say to her, Lis, I am not going to say that, its not my style, its not going to work. I was making the bet that I could run out the clock on disclosing our relationship until I got hired officially. Smith: Yeah. There were, Smith guesses, probably 150 such meetings with the national press corps, and when he traveled across the country, speaking to local county party dinners and fundraisers across the Midwest and Great Plains, they would make time for one-on-ones with the local political press there, too. Photo: amyandstuart.com@AmyandStuart. When I met him was right after Trump won the election, and Democrats are running around with their hair on fire for good reason. She puts the word fuck through every part of speech the word can be bent into: noun, pronoun, gerund, verb, term of endearment, sobriquet, epithet, honorific. The late Lisa Marie Presley is a grandmother. [42] The relationship ended her role in de Blasio's mayoral campaign after tabloids published stories about it. I wasnt born yesterday. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. I am a liberal Democrat, but I was so into the McCain thing. Tommy McArdle. He weighed in after the shooting in Uvalde. Smith plotted the rollout of Pete Buttigiegs longshot presidential campaign. Martin OMalley, who shed worked for, performing poorly in the Iowa caucuses. [13][14], Smith met Pete Buttigieg on the recommendations of Axelrod and OMalley when he was considering running for Democratic National Committee chair in 2017 and became a consultant for the campaign. | It was total bullst. What do I get if I pay for your consulting services? Im horrified. Former communications director, Pete Buttigieg's presidential campaign. [44] Smith plays the violin.[44]. These days, Smith seems to be heavily involved in promoting her new book. The private Terry is a lot more low-key, and lot more humble, a lot more thoughtful. Eliot Spitzer while working for incoming Mayor Bill de Blasio.. He doesnt yell and scream, take the most extreme positions on issues, or tweet incendiary things. So what I try to do is to meet candidates where they are, and to help work with them on what their strengths are and not to erase the things in them that are quirky or not, but see if we can use them as assets. He's on his way into a black car to do Maddow. Lis Smith (born October 15, 1982) is an American political strategist affiliated with the Democratic Party. Then, in an instant, everything changed, Smith writes in her tell-all, Any Given Tuesday., It came in the form of a text from [fellow consultant] Hari [Sevugan]: `Call me. Theyre just not looking in the right places. Buttigieg has gotten a number of lavish long-form features, so many that some have jokingly wondered whether Smith is getting paid by the profile. Letting Terry be Terry. And the fact that hes everywhere, from cable TV to Ebony to your local NPR show to your favorite sports podcast, means that a guy with no name recognition is suddenly hard to avoid. [9] Smith was credited with implementing a campaign strategy that emphasized one-on-one interactions between Buttigieg and the press which helped raise his profile from the mayor of the fourth-largest Indiana city to a top-tier presidential candidate. The guy didnt have time to say hello before Smith could hear screaming over the line. Even in decline, AM radio matters more than you might think. After McCaskill's win, she joined the 2007 Kentucky gubernatorial campaign of Bruce Lunsford and Greg Stumbo as traveling press secretary. She knew Axelrod from 2012, when she worked as director of rapid response for President Barack Obamas reelection effort. | Elijah Nouvelage/REUTERS. Eliot Spitzer]. Still, she still sought to rationalize her relationship with Spitzer. Because it would drive me nuts during the campaign hearing all his wonky, wonky talk about infrastructure, about roads, about smart sewers. On a cornier side, I think because he is such a good person, he made a lot of us better people throughout, because politics can be sort of a nasty business. He was also married. Wren: You mentioned that some people might view you as radioactive. Seeing how Pete cuts through with people and what a truly effective messenger hes become for the Democratic Party, it makes you realize: Theres not just one Mayor Pete. Hold on, Im sorry. The Democratic bench isnt going to be found on Meet the Press every Sunday, and its not going to be found on cable news. [6] She became communications director for the Democratic Governors Association in 2011. Eliot Spitzer wasted no time Wednesday in cozying up to his new girlfriend's family. Each was the political id the candidate couldnt, or wouldnt, express. She is not letting Buttigieg read her book, Any Given Tuesday: A Political Love Story, ahead of publication day. A report by New York Attorney General Letitia James showed that Smith was working behind the scenes to protect Cuomo from the allegations. [24], Smith authored the 2022 book Any Given Tuesday: A Political Love Story. Letting Claire be Claire. 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