Creating America: My campaign manager was Roosevelt

Chapter 44 My Campaign Manager is Roosevelt

Leo stood up and walked to the whiteboard in the office.

He picked up a marker and wrote three capital letters "M" on the whiteboard.

Message.

Money, funds.

Mobilization.

"These are the three core elements that any successful political election must have," Leo said, adding that he had integrated all of Roosevelt's teachings and made them his own.

"Our message, our narrative, is to tell all the people of Pittsburgh that we are the ones who can bring real change to this city."

"Sarah, your task is to deliver this message clearly and powerfully through 'The Heart of Pittsburgh' and all the media channels we can utilize."

"Our funding, the vast majority of which will come from the people who support us, is going to turn this election into a war between the people and their financial backers."

"Sarah, you need to build the most convenient and transparent small donation system in the entire United States on our website."

"Our mobilization will reach every community and every street corner in this city."

"Frank, your mission is to organize the strongest ground force in all of Pittsburgh. We need to go door to door, talk to every voter, and get them away from the television and into the polling station."

A clear "trinity" campaign framework was thus established.

Frank looked at the clear strategic map on the whiteboard, scratched his head, and looked like a student seeking knowledge from his teacher.

"Leo, I've never thought about any of this before. I can do the mobilization work, but how can I do it more efficiently, and how can I coordinate with your information and funding? You have to teach me."

Sarah added, "Me too. Designing a website and a donation page is just a technical skill for me, but how to accurately deliver our message through media promotion is a much deeper skill that I also need to learn."

Facing the trusting and inquisitive gazes of his companions, Leo felt an even greater weight on his shoulders.

His small team, after experiencing the growing pains of division, is now truly maturing.

Leo laughed and said, "Of course. From today onwards, I will share everything I know with you without reservation."

……

The next morning, the prefab office was filled with a completely new atmosphere.

Sarah and Frank arrived earlier than usual.

They discussed all sorts of details, from the design of the flyers to the colors of the volunteer T-shirts.

But soon, they encountered a tricky problem.

Sarah stopped typing and looked at Leo with a serious expression.

"Leo, we've discussed so many specific implementation details, but we've overlooked the most important aspect."

"A professional campaign team can do without expensive celebrity consultants, but it absolutely cannot do without a campaign manager who can oversee the whole situation and coordinate all departments."

"This person is responsible for formulating all the core strategies, allocating limited resources, and making the right decisions at the first moment when a crisis occurs. He is the real brain of the entire campaign team."

Frank, unusually, also put aside his boisterous temper and nodded.

"That's right, neither Sarah nor I can do this job. It requires an extremely experienced veteran who has been through the quagmire of elections."

"Although Senator Murphy's Karen is annoying, I have to admit she's quite capable. Shouldn't we spend money to hire a professional like her?"

Leo shook his head, smiled, and said, "No, we don't need any outsiders."

"Our campaign manager was already part of our team."

"Moreover, I can assure you that he is the greatest campaign strategist in the history of this country."

Frank and Saran exchanged bewildered glances, completely baffled as to what Leo was talking about.

When did such a great master end up in our little makeshift troupe?

Leo took out a photo frame he had always treasured from the bottom drawer of his desk.

It was a black and white photograph.

In the photograph, Franklin Delano Roosevelt is sitting at a table covered with huge military maps.

With a cigarette dangling from his mouth and a pencil in his hand, he was strategizing and directing a war that would determine the fate of the world.

Leo gently placed the photograph at the very center of the conference table.

"It's him," Leo said. "Mine, and also our campaign manager."

Frank and Sarah were stunned for a moment when they saw the photo.

Then, they suddenly realized.

But then, their faces were filled with deep worry.

Sarah cautiously began to persuade him, "Leo... I understand what you mean. You want to take President Roosevelt as your role model, learn his strategic thinking, and personally manage this campaign, right?"

"But...it's just too difficult, Leo. For a candidate to personally take on the role of campaign manager means you're responsible for giving speeches, participating in debates, and winning over voters, as well as managing the entire team and making all the strategic decisions."

"You'll exhaust yourself! There's practically no successful precedent for this in the history of modern American elections!"

Frank got impatient and slammed his hand heavily on the table.

"Yes, Leo. You need to focus all your energy on being a good candidate! Leave the dirty work of planning and crisis management to us behind the scenes!"

Despite his companions' attempts to persuade him, Leo simply smiled and offered no explanation.

He pointed to Roosevelt's deep eyes in the photograph and said, "No, you've all misunderstood."

"I don't mean to think like him, but rather, he should think for us himself."

"Franklin Delano Roosevelt is the manager of our campaign."

"You just need to trust me, and trust him too."

"Starting tomorrow, Pittsburgh will witness an unprecedented mayoral election that will be written into future political science textbooks."

Frank and Sarah looked at Leo's eyes, which were filled with a mysterious confidence. Although they couldn't understand the true meaning of Leo's words at all, they still felt a sense of reassurance from that confidence.

They chose to believe.

They had no idea that the election they were about to participate in was actually orchestrated behind the scenes by one of the greatest politicians in American history.