Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Thursday, May 1, 2014
THE POLITICS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
MAY 2014
THE POLITICS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
Let’s turn this column on its head from
being “The role of public relations in politics.” Let’s look at the role of
politics in public relations. All of us who have worked for agencies will sigh
in understanding! There is no workplace more fraught with politics than the
public relations workplace; there is no comparable industry where politics play
such an enormous role. However, we’re not going to delve into individual firms
- this time.
STUDENTS
MATTER
Instead, let’s look at a very effective
public relations campaign which began earlier this year, a very aggressive campaign,
waged around a lawsuit in California, which challenged teacher evaluation and
tenure. Students Matter, a non-profit founded by Silicon Valley entrepreneur,
David Welch, hired the law firm of Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher and the issue
advocacy firm of Griffin|Schein. In fact, Students Matter is run from the
office of Griffin|Schein. Felix Schein, a former journalist and NBC producer,
developed a “communications and advocacy campaign designed to leverage the
lawsuit as a platform to reframe the debate around education reform to refocus
on protecting the rights and serving the best interests of students.” A mouthful, to be sure, but take a look at
Griffin|Schein’s innovative and engaging way of telling the daily story of the
trial: http://studentsmatter.org/trial-tracker/
THE
CALIFORNIA TEACHERS ASSOCIATION
The media blitz, so described by the
California Teachers Association President, took the CTA very much by surprise.
President Dean Vogel said that they would refuse to fight a communications
campaign funded by bottomless pockets. Vogel went on to say that “what people
want is not flashy PR but real substantive conversations with teachers that
they deal with every day. Our focus is not on the media show, but getting out
into the community and engaging with parents and community stakeholders.”
A
COMMUNICATIONS WAR?
Whether that plan is working for the
CTA or not, the PR campaign is doing exactly what it set out to do. It is making the voice of Students Matter
heard on a national level. The campaign, described by some as a ‘one-sided
communications war’, is changing the way lawsuits in general will be tried in
this country. What would have been a quiet case tried in a small Los Angeles
courtroom is now on the national radar. The Griffin|Schein PR campaign is now
shaping public opinion far beyond the State of California. How did they pull
this off?
ITS
ALL ABOUT EMAIL AND TWITTER
Well, for starters, a very effective
email campaign was put in place long before the trial opened on January 27 of
this year. The weekend prior to the start of the trial, a tweet sheet was sent
out in an email, with hashtags and twitter handles included. That is powerful
communications right there. Griffin|Schein and Students Matter were not just
asking people to get involved, they were giving people the tools to get
involved in a very meaningful way. Then, just before the trial opened, Students
Matter called a press conference to alert the media. They held another press
conference on opening day, with all of the students named in the lawsuit in
attendance. They were making it real for people. These were no longer mere
names on a legal document; here were real students. Real students who matter,
and who need your help. Also, not to be overlooked, that morning, Students
Matter released a series of emails sent at 5 am. The timing was strategic, as
many online news outlets picked up the story.
LIVE
FROM THE COURTROOM
In a ground-breaking move, a 54-slide
PowerPoint was emailed to reporter’s minutes after the trial opened, including
a ‘Trial Tracker’ promising daily highlights and footage. At the end of the
day, another email went out giving details of the students’ first day in court.
As part of the media campaign, the founder of Students Matter, David Welch,
published several op-eds in the local press. At the end of that day’s trial an
email goes out to reporters every day. Why is that important? Students Matter
is crafting the message it wants to be heard, and they are doing it very
effectively.
Well, Vergara v. California continues
to be a one-sided communications engagement, with neither the CTA nor the State
of California countering the Students Matter campaign. CTA President Vogel has
accused the non-profit of wanting a court of public opinion trial rather than a
courtroom trial. It is possible that Students Matter has gone too far in their
effort to control or influence the trial. What do you think?
Margaret Mulvihill is Director of Communications at Lawson
Mulvihill in Washington, DC. Follow her
on Twitter: @LawsonMulvihill
Saturday, March 22, 2014
Friday, December 6, 2013
WHEN PR AND POLITICS COLLIDE
Many of us remember Y2K as
the transition year from the twentieth century to the twenty-first. A
major melt-down in financial and other institutions was widely anticipated,
with corporations working tirelessly to prevent that from happening, and
failing that, to have systems in place as a protective measure.
Against that backdrop, as
we successfully transitioned over to the twenty-first century, child advocate
Heather O’Neil was working tirelessly to increase awareness of the unique needs
of foster children. Her efforts in pulling diverse people together in
common cause were so successful that year that the State of New Jersey
designated December 12, 2000 as Foster Children's Day. A Senate Joint
resolution (#13) of the 29th Legislature,
sponsored by Senators John Lynch and Jack Sinagra, and co-sponsored by Senators
Vitale, Matheussen and Assemblyman Cottrell, was pre-filed for introduction in
the 2000 session.
USING A MIX OF PR
AND POLITICS TO INCREASE AWARENESS
The special day was
created to increase awareness of the unique needs of foster children - children
placed in the state's care to provide them with a temporary yet secure safety
net until their family environment became safe enough for them to return.
When then-Governor of New
Jersey Jim McGreevy was signing the proclamation into law back in 2003, he
called on state and local government, private organizations and the general
public to become more involved with foster children, and to acknowledge that these
special children were important and loved. While in office, Governor McGreevy
took aggressive steps to safeguard vulnerable children in the system, notably
creating the Child Advocate, an independent watchdog with far-reaching legal
powers to protect the children he serves. McGreevy urged more people to
become foster parents.
The national statistics
are cold and hard, drawn from the Administration for Children &
Families. There were 423,773 children in foster care nation-wide on
September 30, 2009, with a median age of 9.7 years. Plainly put, that
means that most of our foster children today are just under 10 years old and
spend an average of 15 months in the system. The attached pdf makes for grim
reading.
THE POLITICS OF
PUBLIC RELATIONS
However, no matter how
grim the statistics, Heather has neither given up nor given in. She has
made many friends and drawn even more people to the cause. Senator Joe
Vitale has performed great work on behalf of the foster children of New
Jersey, organizing the BackPack Campaign (in partnership with Stand for
Children, New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS),
and New Jersey Foster and Adoptive Family Services), which gives foster
children in New Jersey backpacks donated by area individuals and
businesses that contain notebooks, stuffed animals and personal items.
Bert Baron, the host of
New Jersey TODAY (1450 WCTC) was recognized recently for his work in
highlighting the plight of foster children. This recognition aired live and
online, with Edison Mayor Antonia Ricigliano presenting a special proclamation
marking Foster Children's Day in New Jersey. Former First Lady Lucinda Florio
and Commissioner Allison Blake of the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family
Services (DYFS) also participated, along with Heather. Senator Vitale called
in to the show to offer his support and congratulations.
A NATIONAL DAY FOR
FOSTER CHILDREN
While the State of New
Jersey, then, has recognized its foster children and continues to contribute in
a meaningful way to these young lives, we need to recognize that this is not a
single-state issue. New Jersey is not the only state in the union with
children in foster care. This is a nation-wide issue, and Heather now
brings the cause to Washington, DC. She is calling on Congress to recognize
our nation’s five hundred thousand plus foster children, each with their own
unique needs and experiences, by giving them their own day: National Foster
Children's Day. These children deserve their own day. They deserve our
help in overcoming the odds and becoming outstanding citizens like Heather
O’Neil. This is a call to arms, a call to get behind Heather and give her the
support she needs to enlighten our congressmen and women on the issues of our
foster children nation-wide. In this election year, contact your local
representative and get their support for Heather and the Foster Children of the
United States of America.
NEW JERSEY STATE
SENATE CANDIDATE JAN BIDWELL
As New Jersey State Senate
candidate Jan Bidwell said in support of Heather’s
work:
“Among my most respected heroes are the children who have been removed from their biological homes due to abuse and neglect, and who find their way to leading happy, productive lives. Foster children face odds that most can’t comprehend. When offered the chance to do better, to be better, most often those children jump at that chance. All too often, foster kids aren’t given enough chances to do all that they want to do. All too often, they aren’t offered more chances because Americans simply don’t know what foster kids face. Heather O'Neil's proposed National Foster Children's Day is one avenue to help America to be informed about the realities facing our foster children. Heather O’Neil is a shining example of what can be done, as a child excelling as she came through the system, and as a person helping foster children have a better chance of making it. I hope America recognizes National Foster Children’s Day. I hope these heroes of mine get the nation’s respect and attention they deserve.”
Margaret Mulvihill is Director of Communications at Lawson
Mulvihill in Washington, DC. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/lawsonmulvihill
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Friday, November 8, 2013
PUBLIC RELATIONS IN POLITICS ~ NOVEMBER 2013
A SPLIT DECISION IN TWO STATES
When it comes to
politics, is there any difference between public relations messaging and
branding? I don’t believe so. Much is being said these days about the implosion
of the Republican Party brand - many believe that the electorate sees little or
no difference between the GOP conservatives and the Tea Party ultra-conservatives. If that belief continues to take root and
grow, the 2014 political landscape will be a very interesting one for all of us
observers and commentators. Tomorrow’s candidates will need to be clearly
identifiable, preferably with a one-word campaign slogan (think FORWARD). They need to offer new ideas and a positive vision
for the future to the electorate.
WAR
ON WOMEN
An almost text-book
example of messaging, the negative versus the positive, comes from the recent gubernatorial
elections. Two races, one in Virginia and one in New Jersey, caught the
interest of the nation and have been hot topics of discussion across all media
platforms. The Republican Party was branded in the early stages of the Virginia
campaign as a party waging a “War on Women.” It is vital to note that this branding was
foisted on them by their opposition, the Democratic Party. I can’t stress it enough, brand yourself or
someone else will do it for you. Make your message or someone else will make it
for you.
NEW,
NOW, NEXT
At the conclusion of
the first race, Terry McAuliffe (D) eked out a narrow win over Ken Cuccinelli
(R), the former Virginia Attorney General. Almost as soon as the votes had been
counted, Peter Shumlin, Vermont Governor and chairman of the Democratic Governors
Association was putting his party’s spin on the outcome, terming it “a rebuke
to the GOP”. He went on to call the victory a foreshadowing of the
midterm governor’s races coming up next year. While neither candidate
actually came up with anything new for the electorate, the McAuliffe public
relations team managed to surround him in a glow of positive branding. Better
known as a Clinton fund-raiser, he gained that new, now, next appeal.
BRANDING
In contrast to
Shumlin’s spin, there was silence from Bobby Jindal, Louisiana Governor and
chairman of the Republican Governors Association. Silence, that is, until the Cuccinelli camp complained
to Matt Lewis, columnist at the conservative Daily Caller website, that Bobby
Jindal and his team “totally blew it.” The
RGA rebuttal was that they had “a close working relationship with the Cuccinelli
campaign and were surprised by the criticism.” They said that the RGA wanted to start running
negative ads very early on in the race, but the Cuccinelli campaign was fearful
of being the first to attack. Again, brand yourself or someone else will do it
for you. Make your message or someone else will make it for you. Be the first
if that’s what it’s going to take.
SPIN
From these two
examples, we see that messaging and spin are critical. A social media strategy
allied to a digital campaign is essential for success in today’s political
environment. A weak Democratic candidate with a superior understanding of public
relations and messaging won. The former
State Attorney General, with no social media presence to speak of, no digital
footprint, and a less than stellar public relations/messaging effort, lost. Indeed, Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas) and Chairman of the House Rules
Committee, called on the GOP to do everything it can to win back the senate by
focusing on messaging. He believes that everything the party does should be messaged
with an eye to winning big in 2014. Only
time will tell if anyone listens to his sage advice.
NEW
JERSEY
Very similar to the
Virginia race, the gubernatorial election in New Jersey was a contest between a
weak Democratic candidate in Barbara Buono, and the controversial incumbent,
Chris Christie. His campaign was lively,
forceful and loud. The governor came with baggage, having warred with the
teachers’ unions and made unpopular decisions on property taxes and state
pensions. His public relations team did
an outstanding job of melding Christie’s outspoken personality to the carefully
crafted image of an aggressive, unrepentant reformer. Christie was and remains his
own brand and his own message.
THE BLAME GAME
Barbara Buono’s (D-NJ)
public relations campaign was clearly not as successful as Christie’s. Although the candidate had a presence across
several social media platforms, there was a glaring mismanagement of messaging
from the beginning. With two weeks to go in the race, Buono started to pull her
message together. It was too late. Again,
the golden rule of branding and messaging – brand yourself or someone else will do
it for you. Make your message or someone else will make it for you. In an honest concession speech she
blamed her own party:
"The Democratic political bosses some elected some not made a deal with this governor despite him representing almost everything they're against," she said. "They didn't do it for the state. They did it to help themselves politically and financially. but we did it our way and I'm proud of that."
The Democratic Party
bosses in New Jersey may share in the blame for Buono’s election trouncing, but
the candidate’s own team needs to revisit their public relations strategy,
messaging and branding plan.
PERSONALITY
Contrasting the two
separate elections in Virginia and in New Jersey, where one conservative lost
in a purple state and one conservative won in a blue state, the GOP has
attempted to downplay the Christie win, saying that his personality contributed
to the landslide win, just as Cuccinelli’s reportedly dour social conservatism
helped lead to his loss. If it were only that simple! Personality matters, yes, but effective
branding and messaging are critical to the mix. In this case, I believe it was
that Christie’s team has remained on-point not only during his gubernatorial re-election
campaign, but throughout his career. It was hardly an accident that Christie
refused to campaign with Cuccinelli. Sometimes, public relations people need to
keep candidates away from each other. Looking down the New Jersey turnpike
towards Virginia, Christie’s team must have seen Cuccinelli as “off-brand” -
conservative, but too much so.
Christie understood
the importance of refining his brand and sticking to it. In the end, what is it with him? Personality
or messaging? Maybe a little of both.
Margaret Mulvihill is Director of Communications at Lawson Mulvihill in Washington, DC. Follow her on Twitter: @lawsonmulvihill @currentpolitic
Monday, October 7, 2013
RESPONSIBLE GUN LAW REFORM
On one of our recent talk radio shows, broadcasting live on CURRENT (Rapid Radio Network) the discussion centered around gun law reform, primarily because of the terrible events that unfolded at the Navy Yard in Washington, DC the previous Monday morning. Co-host and DC are public affairs correspondent BB Lawson, guest John F. McMullen and I talked about the rights and wrongs of gun law reform. Gun control, responsible gun control, doesn’t have to curb anyone’s constitutional rights. Gun rights activists toss the Second Amendment around with impunity, choosing to read into the simple sentence that they have an almost God-given RIGHT to bear arms. Here it is, unedited, direct from the Library of Congress:
THE SECOND AMENDMENT
The Second Amendment, one of the ten amendments to the Constitution of the United States comprising the Bill of Rights, states: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” The meaning of this sentence is not self-evident, and has given rise to much commentary but relatively few Supreme Court decisions.
SUPREME COURT
Indeed, interpreting this one sentence seems beyond the capabilities of a majority of Supreme Court justices, which baffles me. That amendment was written in 1791. I take no issue with my fellow citizens being allowed to bear the arms of 1791, given that they would have been individually crafted by a gunsmith, and equipped with rudimentary rifling. Loaded through the muzzle, a single shot would have been fired with a flintlock. I do have issue, however, with my fellow citizens being allowed to bear the military-level arms of 2013 – automatic weapons that can kill and maim multiples of people in minutes. The question arises as to whether a document written in 1791 can be interpreted to mean that ordinary individuals who are not part of a “militia” are granted the right to “bear” high-capacity semi-automatic military weaponry.
THE WASHINGTON NAVY YARD DEAD
Police have now identified all the fatalities resulting from the shooting at the Navy Yard in Washington. The shooter, a 34-year old from Fort Worth, Texas, called Aaron Alexis, managed to fatally shoot twelve people and seriously injure another eight before he also was killed that morning. The shooting is one of the worst massacres in living memory at a U.S. military facility, and one of the deadliest single events ever in the nation’s capital. The dead have been identified by police as:
Arthur Daniels, 51
Mary Frances Knight, 51
Gerald L. Read, 58
Martin Bodrog, 54
Richard Michael Ridgell, 52
Michael Arnold, 59
Sylvia Frasier, 53
Kathy Gaarde, 62
John Roger Johnson, 73
Frank Kohler, 50
Kenneth Bernard Proctor, 46
Vishnu Pandit, 61
As we go to press, we are still waiting on a list of the injured, estimated by D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray as being an additional eight people. Gray reported that the injured include a D.C. police officer, Scott Williams, shot in the leg while responding to the tragedy. While there are no guarantees, his doctors say they hope Williams will be able to walk again. I wish him well, and hope his recovery period is not too long.
AMERICANS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS
Captain Mark Kelly, the husband of former Rep. Gabby Giffords, expressed his and Gabby’s condolences on Monday for the Navy Yard victims saying “Gabby and I have been there.” Kelly is a retired Navy pilot and NASA space shuttle commander, who has, along with his wife, co-founded the PAC “Americans for Responsible Solutions.” Giffords was shot in the head by a gunman in 2011 while meeting with constituents in Tucson, Arizona. Since Giffords stepped down from Congress last year, she and Kelly have become ever more vocal and involved gun control advocates. Today, Giffords and Kelly said that “Responsible gun owners should feel outraged when criminals and the dangerously mentally ill can get their hands on guns and use them to harm children and families. While Congress may be divided on how to stop this problem, Americans simply are not.”
SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
It seems like yesterday that the name Adam Lanza was foresront in everyone’s minds – on December 14, 2012, he armed himself with ten 30-round magazines for his Mother’s semiautomatic Bushmaster .223 caliber model XM15 rifle and bullets for two handguns and a shotgun, all purchased by his Mother. Lanza didn’t make it home alive that day. Nor did the 26 people he murdered, 20 of them school children ages six and seven. He shot them dead in less than five minutes, every two seconds firing a bullet. That was the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, CT.
MENTAL INSTABILITY AND PARANOIA
Aaron Alexis was reportedly suffering from paranoia and armed with several weapons, at least one a concealed-carry handgun. My co-host BB Lawson read that Alexis legally purchased a shotgun; was not allowed to purchase a handgun in the state of Virginia; and that the handgun he used in the Navy Yard was one he found there. Even so, the Navy Yard is a secure military facility with armed guards posted throughout. Police regularly patrol the perimeter, yet Alexis was able to take twelve lives and destroy countless others indirectly. With a history of emotional and mental instability compounded by violence and several arrests, it is puzzling indeed as to how he qualified for a concealed-carry permit in Texas, and more so, that he was able to purchase weapons and ammunition.
THE DO-NOTHING CONGRESS
Monday’s tragedy raises the question again of why Congress is not taking appropriate action to tighten the loopholes in our country’s existing gun laws. Mass shootings are taking place all over America and we are doing nothing about it. A brave few are standing up to the gun lobby, receiving very little support in political circles. Our lax gun laws were created with the assistance of the gun lobby, and unless real change occurs, we are all at risk. Our children and our grandchildren are at risk.
NO MORE NAMES
Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City, is now the nationally-recognized face of gun control and gun law reform, whether that was his intention or not. He pulled together a group of like-minded mayors to found Mayors Against Illegal Guns, who work to reduce gun violence. As an organization of more than 1,000 mayors, the group actively campaigns for new gun control measures. The Mayors have specifically targeted senators who voted against a bipartisan measure to expand background checks on gun sales. They have taken to the campaign trail this year, with the No More Names rally traveling across the country. They claim to have visited twenty five towns in each state, reading the names of the more than 9,000 Americans who have been killed by guns since the Newtown shooting last year. At each stage they have been joined by local officials wanting to highlight the need to reduce gun violence in America. Today’s rally in D.C. was the culmination of the No More Names tour, where the members got to meet their members of Congress and Senate.
GUN LAW REFORM - ACT NOW
When it comes to talking about gun reform, now is the time to act. The painful prospect of yet another mass shooting is just too awful to contemplate, and we must not stand by doing nothing.
For all the lives we can save going forward, for all the pain and suffering that can be avoided, stand up for gun law reform now – DO SOMETHING!
By Margaret Mulvihill - Twitter @LawsonMulvihill
THE ROLE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS IN POLITICS
The Role of Public Relations in Politics is a monthly column
written by WWPR member Margaret Mulvihill, examining the role of PR in politics
from a historical and present-day vantage point.
Public Relations and Politics have always gone hand in hand
since Roman times, possibly dating as far back as Ancient Bablyon in 1800
BC. In Ancient Greece and Rome, the art
of rhetoric was taught, with much emphasis on “persuasive speaking.”
POLITICAL PUBLIC RELATIONS THEN
Andrew Jackson, who served as the seventh President of the
United States from 1829 to 1837, famously used a former newspaper editor, Amos
Kendall, as a close advisor. Many of the
practices put in place by Kendall are still in use today – polls, speech writing,
and article reprints for hand-outs.
President Grover Cleveland, a New Jerseyan who was both our 22nd
President (1885-1889) and our 24th President (1893 – 1897), availed
himself of the services of another newspaper journalist, George F. Parker, to
manage his public image and to craft and hone his message. Parker was one of the first to circulate
Presidential speeches in advance, which earned, for Cleveland, increased media
share and higher approval ratings.
However, it was not until 1900, when The Publicity Bureau
was founded, that Public Relations became a formal career option.
POLITICAL PUBLIC RELATIONS NOW
Political messaging takes form and takes shape with the aid
of a good public relations team. The
role of public relations in politics has changed greatly since the 1990’s, when
there was a phenomenal growth spurt in the field. Agencies have consolidated now to become more
professional, with constantly evolving, ever improved messaging. This in turn
has led to a more sophisticated end-product – the ultimate example being our
current President, Barack Obama.
Messaging, also understood as the creation of a consistent
story, is essential in the world of politics today, as he and his public
relations team showed during both of his presidential election campaigns, in
2008 and again in 2012. Mr. Obama’s
public relations team used a wide variety of mechanisms and social media
platforms not only to disseminate his message, but also to engage with
potential voters.
The team identified its target audience early in the process
– a very basic technique employed in everyday public relations, inside and
outside of politics. They then tailored
or segmented the message to appeal to a very broad demographic. Potential voters before long became major
stakeholders, who were in turn deployed to get the message out in an ever
widening circle, in a successful effort at garnering votes.
OPPOSITION POLITICAL PUBLIC RELATIONS
Mitt Romney, who challenged President Obama for the
Presidency last year, is also a highly skilled operative in the world of public
relations. He and his team held their
ground - almost - right up to the end of the 2012 presidential campaign, using
every social media tool and platform available to them. While they did successfully get a message
out, it was not a consistent message.
This did not help the team when it came to shaping Mr. Romney’s
image. Still, he was doing well, until
that memorable occasion where he was videotaped while speaking at a private
event, and without benefit of the protection of his public relations team.
Romney was recorded by a hospitality worker telling his
supporters that democrats (47%) would never vote for him, no matter what. He continued on to awkwardly describe the 47%
in a very negative manner. The tape was
a sensation all over the world when it was released by Mother Jones. I think we can all agree that that particular
video cost him the White House. On
Election Day, while candidate Romney did well in the vote-getting, candidate
Obama did better, holding on to the White House.
WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THIS?
From this brief introduction to the role of public relations
in politics, we learn that:
- The structure and protection of a good public relations team is as essential in politics today as it was back in 1900 and before
- Once a political message has been crafted, it must be honed and polished until it outshines every other Political message in the field
- Once a political image has been defined, it must be protected and supported
- Public Relations in Politics is an ever changing, ever evolving process, becoming more polished and sophisticated as new media platforms, social messaging and media tools are created
This, then, is the Role of Public Relations in Politics
Today. What was it yesterday? What will
it be going forward?
Stay tuned – there is much more to come!
Margaret Mulvihill is a media communications specialist with
Lawson Mulvihill in Washington DC. She
is also co-host of a new talk radio show on the Rapid Radio Network called “CURRENT.”
Follow here on Twitter at https://twitter.com/lawsonmulvihill
Friday, October 4, 2013
A LOOK AT MENTAL HEALTH
A
few weeks ago, we broadcast a radio show* about gun law reform. The topic of mental health screening came up –
this was the same week that Aaron Alexis killed 12 people at the Washington
Navy Yard. Many of our panelists and
callers raised questions about the inadequacy of mental health screening in the
United States. We agreed we would do a
show on mental health in the near future. That future has accelerated towards us.
US CAPITOL BUILDING, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
US CAPITOL BUILDING, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Yesterday,
a young lady was shot and killed by police outside the US Capitol building.
Today we are hearing conflicting reports that she may have been suffering from
post-partum depression following the birth of her daughter last year; and that
she has suffered from severe mental health problems all her life. We may never know the truth. Miriam Carey, a 34
year old mother of one, was a dental hygienist who lived in Stamford,
Connecticut – and a college graduate.
WASHINGTON NAVY YARD, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
WASHINGTON NAVY YARD, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Just
20 days earlier, on September 13, Aaron Alexis, also 34, took the lives of 12
colleagues and injured eight more at the Washington Navy Yard. A former full-time Navy reservist (an
aviation electrician’s mate third class) with a concealed-carry permit in
Texas, Alexis received an honorable discharge in January 2011. He received the Global War on Terrorism
Service Medal and the National Defense Service Award – minor awards, but awards
nonetheless.
While
appearing to function normally, Alexis was plagued by mental health and anger
management issues. Arrested several
times, he apparently began suffering from paranoia, even calling police in
Rhode Island when he felt threatened by microwaves emanating from the ceiling.
He told police he was hearing voices. The police informed the Navy who took no
action, resulting in a morning of carnage at the Navy Yard.
SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
On
December 14 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut, a troubled young man, 20 year old
Adam Lanza, shot and killed his mother Nancy at their home before driving to
Sandy Hook Elementary School. There he
shot and killed 20 children aged between six and seven years old, along with
six adult staff members, firing 154 rounds with a rifle. Experts say he had to stop and reload the
thirty-round magazine frequently. When he realized that police had entered the
building and seen him, Lanza shot himself in the head with a Glock 10mm hand
gun.
STATISTICS
STATISTICS
In this country, there
have been 8,957 deaths by gun since that dreadful day in December 2012
(statistics compiled by Slate ** ) and it is estimated that
there have been 168 mass shootings in this country since 2006. After all these shootings, the pattern seems set, with gun permits apparently being handed out like candy to the mentally impaired
with little or no screening.
A
public discussion ensued between the gun lobby, mainly represented by the
powerful National Rifle Association (NRA) and the various gun control groups,
chief among them the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) and now, Americans
for Responsible Solutions (ARS).
AMERICANS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS
AMERICANS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS
Americans
for Responsible Solutions was founded by former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Arizona)
and her husband, Mark Kelly, a retired Navy Captain and NASA astronaut, as Giffords recovered from a
gunshot to the head delivered by Jared Loughner on January 8, 2011. Loughner, 23, shot and killed six people that
day in Tucson Arizona, including US District Court Judge John Roll, and 9 year old Christina Taylor-Green, and injured 14 more. Giffords and Kelly pledged to support both the 2nd
Amendment and safer communities by more encouraging elected officials to engage in a more direct communication with their
electorate.
MIRIAM CAREY
Then, yesterday, Miriam Carey drove into Washington, DC in her black Infiniti and attempted to ram
the White House gates. In the ensuing melee
and car chase, shots were fired by police at the apparently unarmed and
troubled young mother. In this hi-tech
world of ours, several bystanders shot video footage of the entire
confrontation. Piecing it all together, Carey approached the driveway leading
to the White House at speed, trying to pass security at 15th and
Pennsylvania.
When
armed officers turned and drew their weapons, she spun the Infiniti around, running
down a 23-year veteran Secret Service agent as she sped away.
Secret Service agents and Capitol police chased her to the Capitol at
speeds of up to 80 miles per hour. They
opened fire on her at Garfield Circle. There
was a collision between the Infiniti and a Capitol Police cruiser at
Constitution and Second, causing Carey to hit the barricades outside the Hart
Building. An eye witness said the car was attempting to get away when an
officer drew his weapon and fired into the car, fatally injuring the driver.
Why
did she do it? The initial incident at the White House gate does not appear to
have been an accident. Cathy Lanier, Metropolitan Police Chief, says she is
confident it was not an accident.
HEAD INJURY
A
former employer, Dr. Brian Evans, told us that Carey suffered a head injury
after falling down stairs just before discovering that she was pregnant. After
working for him for two years, he fired her after Carey displayed anger
management issues in the workplace. Family members are admitting that Carey
suffered from emotional problems, and was then hit by post-partum depression following the
birth of her daughter in August 2012.
DEPRESSION
So
here we get to the core of the mental illness spectrum. Anxiety, Depression, Post-partum,
Paranoia, Bipolar – many labels, many tags. What are we as a society doing
about any of it? There is an easy answer to that – we are doing nothing. We tend to ignore the entire mental health
issue as an embarrassment almost. It is viewed as something that should not be
discussed in polite society, and something that should never be allowed out in
the open. It is one of those touchy topics that we figuratively put in the
closet under the stairs, while we lock the door and hope that nobody ever finds
the key.
BIPOLAR CELEBRITIES
BIPOLAR CELEBRITIES
Several
celebrities have “come out” as suffering from bipolar disorder, the most recent being actress Catherine
Zeta-Jones, the beautiful wife of actor Michael Douglas. Zeta-Jones has Bipolar II, a condition which is difficult to diagnose. Frequently mistaken for depression, it is difficult to know when you have the disorder. It is possible to function at a high level with BP-II, and of all those diagnosed with depression, between 40 and 50% turn out to have either BP-I or BP-II. Other celebrities suffering from a bipolar disorder include actress Carrie Fisher, actor Mel
Gibson and politician Jesse Jackson, Jr.
COMING OUT
COMING OUT
With
all these high profile people readily admitting to needing pharmaceutical
treatment for mental illness, surely the time is right for the US Government to
shine a light in that direction. In the area of gun law reform, mental
instability leaps out at us, begging us to run deep background checks on anyone
applying for a gun license. In the immediate aftermath of any public violent act, gun law reform comes to the fore and the 2nd Amendment
debate heats up. Then the talk turns to
ammunition size and gun capacity, and before we know it, we’ve done nothing
about anything, while another incident blows up to take over the headlines.
The
time for studying and improving mental health provisions and screening is now.
It’s here. Let’s deal with it.
by MARGARET MULVIHILL
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
THROUGH THE EYES OF AN ORPHAN
I went on a long train trip recently, from Washington –
District of Columbia all the way to Boston – Massachusetts. It was a rainy late spring day, blustery and
a little chilly. The only thing to do
was settle back with a glass of wine and read the book I had packed for the
trip, Author Heather O’Neil’s, “Through the Eyes of an Orphan”. It’s a heartbreaking story about life in the
foster care system. While it’s loosely
based on her own experiences, she’s quick to point out that some of the worst
events described are fictional. All
told, this book is a must-read for all of us.
CRUELTY AND MENTAL INSTABILITY
CRUELTY AND MENTAL INSTABILITY
Heather grew up in the foster care system, and in this
novel, she tells us what mainstream media does not. She tells of cruelty, abandonment and
harshness, of instability and illness. Many of the characters are either based
on people she knew, or are composites of people she came into contact with. It’s
a revealing book, chilling in places, with the underlying theme being the
reminder that there exist children in our society who are unwanted by their own
families.
ABANDONED
Without giving away too much of the story, the two main
characters are simply abandoned by their parents. They are left in the empty apartment, which
they accidentally set on fire in an effort to stay warm as the cold night air
settled in. The little girls, aged four
and five, ended up that night in a state-run orphanage.
Meanwhile the
authorities searched in vain for their parents, or indeed any family members.
None were found, which began their terrible journey through the foster care
system.
FOSTER PARENTS
FOSTER PARENTS
Their first foster parents were an abusive couple with a mix
of biological, adopted and foster children, who managed to persuade the
authorities for years that the two quiet little girls were rowdy
trouble-makers. After some years, their birth
father resurfaced, with a new wife and step-daughter, telling the children he
was going to take them home with him. This
caused their birth mother to surface, raising the girls’ hopes that she wanted
them to live with her. Sadly, she wanted
only revenge on their father, with the end result being that the girls were
kidnapped and transported across state lines, putting them in mortal danger.
That is all I am going to tell of the story itself, I do not
want to spoil it for those of you who have not read it yet. I will tell you, however, that this book is a
stinging indictment of our foster care system in general, and one can but hope
that potential foster parents are subjected to better screening today than they
were a decade ago.
TRAUMA
TRAUMA
Using the novel as a platform, Heather highlights the issues
that many foster children in the system face. These include emotional trauma,
feelings of abandonment, difficulty forming emotional attachments; not to
mention the practicalities, such as frequently changing schools, always trying
to make new friends, how to dress to fit in, and the worst possible outcome –
aging out of the system without being adopted.
She touches on all of these topics, and more, with a sensitivity born of
the reality of having lived the life.
AGING-OUT
AGING-OUT
Aging-out is an issue Heather advocates strongly for, citing
the trauma attached, and the very real possibility of ending up homeless at age
eighteen, on the streets. Very few States provide sufficient resources to teens
that are about to age out of the system.
With Heather’s tireless advocacy, the State of New Jersey leads the way,
first with a Foster Children’s Day, and now a new bill introduced by U.S. Representative
Frank Pallone, Jr., to recognize a National Foster Children’s Day, specifically
for those who have already aged out of the system.
THE SYSTEM
If you want to know a little more about the Foster Care
system in this country, read Heather’s book.
It will not answer all your questions, but it will provide you with food
for thought, and a clearly defined map of issues to research.
WHERE ARE THEY NOW
WHERE ARE THEY NOW
Most importantly, when you come to the end of the novel, and
you are wondering what became of those two little girls – well, we know that
one of them grew up to be a well-known civil rights activist, a major advocate
for foster children, and a damn fine writer!
Thursday, June 7, 2012
POLITICAL SHAKE-UP IN NEW JERSEY
“I WISH YOU WELL, STEVE”.
With these words, followed by a gracious thank you to his opponent, U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell (D – 9th Congressional District, State of New Jersey) underscored his landslide victory in what is sure to become known as the Battle of Bergen, Hudson and Passaic, June 5th, 2012. Even at the height of his landslide victory, Rep. Pascrell generously remembered his opponent, U.S. Representative Steve Rothman (D-9th District). He also remembered his supporters and his campaign staff. A veteran himself, he gave a special shout-out to his fellow Veterans. John Currie, the Democratic Chairman for Passaic County, was singled out for thanks.
PASSAIC COUNTY
PASSAIC COUNTY
With his loyal supporters gathered around him at the Passaic County Community Gym, Rep. Bill Pascrell reminded not only those in attendance, but all of us that the importance of working across the aisle for the benefit of one’s constituents has never been as important as it is today. This ability to reach out and negotiate is one of Pascrell’s strengths, a strength he shares with former President Bill Clinton, and with the late Senator Teddy Kennedy (D – MA). This had to be a factor in causing over 90% of yesterday’s votes in Passaic County to go his way.
DISTRICT 9 PRIMARY
DISTRICT 9 PRIMARY
U.S. House - District 9 - Dem Primary
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June 06, 2012 - 07:16PM ET
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New Jersey - 424 of 424 Precincts Reporting - 100%
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In the final days of the campaign, although Rep. Pascrell raised and spent more than his opponent, Rep. Rothman had some $1.3 MM cash on hand. Paul Swibinski, very visible on the Rothman team, noted that the candidate with the most money at the end “almost always wins”. Not this time.
The electorate of Northern New Jersey is sophisticated. They don’t take campaign statements at face value because they do not automatically believe what they are hearing on expensive television advertisements and reading in print. They observe, they listen, they consider, and they make informed decisions.
NO ROOM FOR NASTY
NO ROOM FOR NASTY
The nasty, divisive campaign run by the Rothman team turned off even the Bergen County stalwarts, who stayed home rather than support the home-county candidate. Due to slow population growth in New Jersey, a newly drawn 9th Congressional District resulted from the December 2011 redistricting operation, overseen by John Farmer, Chair of the Congressional Redistricting Commission.
REDISTRICTING
This same redistricting has cost New Jersey a House seat, and will drop the State’s representation in Washington, DC down to 12 after the coming November election cycle.
Rothman was unlucky in losing Fairlawn, his hometown. This caused his district to lean more Republican, pitting him against U.S. Representative Scott Garrett (R-5th District). Garrett, arguably New Jersey’s most conservative House member in Washington, DC, is known to his base as a popular and hardworking man. He likely would have given Rep. Rothman a good run for his money come November.
Rep. Bill Pascrell, on the other hand, found himself in a district more similar to the former Rothman district. Knowing that Rep. Pascrell would fight for his constituents no matter where he was placed, the Democratic Party’s Congressional leaders made it clear to Rep. Rothman that they wanted him to engage Rep. Scott Garrett (R-5th District). Undisclosed generous sums of money were promised to aid in this campaign; along with the promise of assistance should he run for the Senate.
DEPARTURE FROM POLITICS
DEPARTURE FROM POLITICS
The likelihood that would now happen seems remote given last night’s rout, and it’s probably a good thing for Rep. Rothman that he has effectively resigned from elected officialdom. Unpopular with the North Jersey electorate, unpopular with his peers in Washington, the Representative should hold firm to his statement during his concession speech, “I don’t believe I’ll be running for political office ever again.” While he also pledged support to his “friend” Rep. Bill Pascrell, and to President Obama in November, it’s unlikely that either candidate would welcome his support.
Congressional redistricting did not force these two friends into battle. Rothman, of his own volition and against Democratic Party advice, made a choice to leave his own bailiwick and to challenge his friend. The voters clearly didn’t like that, and showed their displeasure at the polls. The question that hangs in the air is why the Rothman team en masse failed to read the signals. How did they not know that their nasty, negative campaign, impugning Rep. Pascrell’s impeccable political career, was turning off the voters?
BATTLE OF THE PRESIDENTS
An interesting side-issue was the media-titled “Battle of the Presidents”. Former President Bill Clinton visibly stumped for Pascrell, who had supported Hillary Clinton in 2008 in her bid for the party’s nomination; while Barack Obama gave a nod to Rep. Steve Rothman. The President stated that he was not endorsing Rep. Rothman as such; former President Bill Clinton had no such problem, openly and vigorously endorsing Rep. Pascrell. Probably the clincher for Rep. Pascrell was the ringing endorsement of civil rights hero John Lewis, taking the form of a Robo-Call.
CONGRESSMAN JOHN LEWIS
CONGRESSMAN JOHN LEWIS
“Hello, this is Congressman John Lewis from the state of Georgia urging you to vote for my dear friend, Bill Pascrell, for Congress today. As a life-long civil rights leader, I’m very concerned about reports of voter suppression and disenfranchisement in Paterson and Passaic by Pascrell’s opponent. We cannot let this team win, Bill Pascrell is the fighter north New Jersey needs in the House of Representatives and I ask that today you please come out and vote for Pascrell’s Democratic team. I hope I can count on you. We need Bill Pascrell now more than ever before.”
STRATEGY BLUNDER
At the end of the night, the contest proved to be needless and unnecessary between the two Democrats, one the Party could have done without in this Presidential Election year. It was also a major strategy blunder. Had Rep. Rothman remained loyal to his own constituency and run against the Republican Rep. Scott Garrett, he may well have won. Instead he chose to feed on his own party, essentially turning on a man who has been a good and trusting friend to him for close on twenty years.
In a bizarre challenge on Monday, Rep. Rothman questioned the validity of over 2,000 Passaic County absentee ballots. Shocking the electorate and elected officials alike because of its racist undertones, this challenge was thrown out when a Superior Court judged the ballots to be legal. The Pascrell team were critical of Rothman for using time-worn “Jim Crow” tactics against the largely minority demographic of Passaic County. This ill-judged and ill-timed action galvanized supporters, moderates and the undecided into supporting Rep. Pascrell.
By 10:30 PM, Rep. Rothman had conceded, bringing to an end of the nastiest and most hotly-contested races in the country.
Nancy Solomon provided two good sound bites on NPR’s Morning Edition today, to host David Greene,
ROTHMAN REVISES HISTORY
Listen to Rep. Rothman’s attempt at revisionist history, “They just happened to put the two of us together” and to Rep. Pascrell telling it like it is “As a lifelong Patersonian, my parents always taught me not to start fights, but to know how to end them. Tonight, we did just that. That’s what we did.”
What now does the future hold for Paterson’s mayor, Jeffrey Jones, given his endorsement of Rep. Rothman, who was New Jersey’s sole Jewish Congressman? His base did not appreciate the attack ads, whose content was so far from the truth that they earned him the feared “Pants on Fire” label from The Star-Ledger’s PolitiFact. Indeed, both The Star Ledger, and The Record of Hackensack, spoke about the inappropriateness of the attack ads when endorsing Rep. Pascrell.
LOU STELLATO
What of the future of Lou Stellato, Chairman of the Bergen County Democratic Committee? Already the murmuring has begun that he needs to step down, having negligently overseen this debacle.
Speaking to voters today, the majority said that an overwhelming desire for fair play pushed them to vote for Rep. Pascrell over Rep. Rothman. Several cited the raw undercurrent of ageism as the trigger point, given the senior candidate’s age, 75, used in the negative public relations campaign waged by his opponent’s team, suggesting that he should either run for Mayor when defeated, or retire.
THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA
THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Rep. Rothman’s social media campaign consisted of email blasts of negative press about his opponent. A quick look at the social media presence of both candidates, as of June 6th, is telling. Rep. Pascrell has 1,162 followers on Twitter, 3,843 on Facebook; Rep. Rothman has but 486 followers on Twitter, 1,470 on Facebook.
As the campaign rolled into its final day and hours, the Pascrell team took to Twitter to increase awareness and make its case, ably led by campaign strategist Sean Darcy. Supporters and followers tweeted and retweeted the GOTV message in easily digested bite-sized tweets. In stark contrast, the Rothman team was in relative absentia. One or two tweets at most, and three (exactly three) Facebook messages were posted in the final day of the election.
THE LAST WORD
THE LAST WORD
What more fitting end to this story can there be than the following quote from Representative Bill Pascrell on election night?
“Thank you for having my back,’’ Pascrell added. “We ran a competitive campaign, an above-the-board campaign. We never crossed the line of decency. I can sleep at night knowing that.’’
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