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48-482: The Sacramento-based GOP political consulting firm Russo Marsh and Rogers founded the Tea Party Express through its political action committee Our Country Deserves Better (OCDB) in the summer of 2009. Russo Marsh and Rogers is a campaign consultancy specializing in promoting conservative candidates and causes. Sal Russo of Russo Marsh and Rogers serves as the chief strategist for Tea Party Express. Russo worked on

96-503: A campaign manager differ depending on the scale of the political race. Olympia Snowe Olympia Jean Snowe ( née   Bouchles ; born February 21, 1947) is an American businesswoman and politician who was a United States Senator from Maine from 1995 to 2013. Snowe, a member of the Republican Party , became known for her ability to influence the outcome of close votes, including whether to end filibusters . In 2006, she

144-726: A few years, disease would also claim her uncle's life. Snowe attended St. Basil's Academy in Garrison, New York , from the third grade to the ninth. Returning to Auburn, she attended Edward Little High School before entering the University of Maine in Orono , from which she earned a degree in political science (1969). Shortly after graduation, Bouchles married her fiancé, Republican state legislator Peter T. Snowe , on December 29, 1969, in New York City. Snowe entered politics and rose quickly, winning

192-497: A flashpoint to eliminate filibusters on nominees through the so-called nuclear option ). The Gang-brokered compromise precluded further filibusters and the implementation of the nuclear option for the remainder of the 109th Congress ; under its terms, the Democrats retained the power to filibuster a Bush judicial nominee in an "extraordinary circumstance", and nominees ( Janice Rogers Brown , Priscilla Owen and William Pryor ) received

240-752: A huge number of staffers and volunteers in a variety of departments; while also coordinating closely with the candidate and outside consultants. In the United States, increasingly, campaign management has been a speciality occupation. The top-tier of managers will move throughout the country working on a different campaign each election cycle. The challenges of building a successful operation from scratch in less than 2 years makes experienced professionals increasingly valuable. In addition to their past experience, experienced campaign managers also bring with them knowledge of campaign management tools and relationships with political consultants . The pay ranges for

288-480: A political party, is in reality a pretty good political operation. This is a more sophisticated political operation than they've been given credit for." Salon , in reference to its backing successful candidates in Republican primaries, has called the Tea Party Express a "kingmaker (and queenmaker)." According to The New York Times the Tea Party Express is considered "one of the movement's most successful players" of

336-570: A potential blow to Republicans, who needed just a handful of seats to regain control of the Senate; Snowe was considered one of their safer incumbents. On May 23, 2005, Snowe was one of fourteen senators dubbed the Gang of 14 , who defused a confrontation between Senate Democrats (who were filibustering several judicial nominees) and the Senate Republican leadership (who wanted to use the nominations as

384-508: A quiet-looking street scene as "proof" that the situation in Iraq was far safer than the media was reporting was revealed in the media to have actually been taken in Turkey. Kaloogian was also a force behind the successful 2003 campaign to recall California Gov. Gray Davis . Conservative radio host Mark Williams served as the spokesperson for the Tea Party Express until he resigned amid controversy over

432-459: A racially charged letter posted on his blog and comments made to the media. Russo Marsh and Rogers has been a financial beneficiary of Tea Party Express' success. According to Federal Election Commission filings, more than 75% of the money spent by the PAC, about $ 1 million out of $ 1.3 million spent, went to Russo, Marsh or King Media Group, which has close ties to Russo. Kaloogian and Russo also founded

480-677: A rally at the Capitol during the Supreme Court 's oral arguments regarding the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act . The Tea Party Express began developing a reputation for aggressive action in January 2010, spending nearly $ 350,000 to back Republican Scott Brown 's bid for Senate, helping him win an upset victory in Massachusetts . Scott Brown garnered support from

528-557: A rally in Washington, DC. Its goal was to rally Americans "to oppose the out-of-control spending, higher taxes, bailouts, and growth in the size and power of government". The focus was opposition to government-run health care. A second tour began October 25, 2009 and stopped in 38 cities, ending November 11, 2009. It highlighted "some of the worst offenders in Congress who have voted for higher spending, higher taxes, and government intervention in

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576-471: A range of establishment Republican campaigns going back three decades. He was an aide to Ronald Reagan when Reagan was governor of California. Russo has also worked for Orrin Hatch , Jack Kemp , and George Pataki . Tea Party Express co-founder Howard Kaloogian is a former California state lawmaker and onetime congressional candidate whose campaign was marred with controversy when a picture posted on his website of

624-516: A seat on the Board of Voter Registration and working for Congressman (later U.S. Senator and U.S. Secretary of Defense ) William Cohen . Tragedy struck Snowe again in 1973, when her husband was killed in an automobile accident. At the urging of family, friends, neighbors and local leaders, Snowe ran for her husband's Auburn -based seat in the Maine House of Representatives at the age of 26 and won. She

672-412: A simple majority vote by the full Senate. The Gang later played an important role in the confirmation of Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito , as they asserted that neither met the "extraordinary circumstances" provision outlined in their agreement. Snowe ultimately voted for both Roberts and Alito. Snowe shares a centrist ideology with Susan Collins , her former colleague in

720-475: A state legislature and both houses of the U.S. Congress. She never lost an election in her 35 years as an elected official, and in the 2006 midterm senatorial elections, she won with a reported 73.99% of votes. However, on Tuesday, February 27, 2012, citing excessive partisanship and a dispiriting political environment, Snowe announced she would not run for re-election in November 2012. Her unexpected decision delivered

768-563: A wide margin, defeating Republican Peter Hoekstra by 21 points. Long-time Republican Representative Mike Castle (R-DE) , whose popularity in his state, combined with the Republican-favored political environment, led many observers to expect that he would defeat Democratic Senator Chris Coons in 2010 before he lost the primary to Christine O'Donnell , a controversial candidate who lost to Coons by almost 17 points, told The Washington Post , "The Tea Party Express, which claims it's not

816-465: Is a member of the Greek Orthodox Church . When she was eight years old, her mother died of breast cancer , and less than a year later, her father died of heart disease . Orphaned, she was moved to Auburn , to be raised by her aunt and uncle, a textile mill worker and a barber, respectively, along with their five children. Her brother John was raised separately by other family members. Within

864-404: Is in the center of every policy debate in Washington." She received an honorary degree from Bates College in 1998, and another from the University of Delaware in 2008. Snowe did not miss any of the 657 votes on the Senate floor during the 110th Congress from 2007 to 2009. She was one of only eight senators who did not miss any votes during that session. Snowe is the fourth woman to serve on

912-708: The Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 . In 2004, she opposed the accelerated implementation of the Bush tax cuts citing budget concerns and she was joined by Senators Collins, McCain, and Chafee. Snowe is a member of the Republican Main Street Partnership and supports stem cell research . She is also a member of Republicans for Environmental Protection , the Republican Majority for Choice , Republicans for Choice and The Wish List (Women In

960-525: The McCain-Kennedy bill to give citizenship to undocumented immigrants. However, she voted against the DREAM Act in 2010. She also voted to continue funding to ' sanctuary cities ', voted against eliminating the 'Y' guestworker visa program, but she also voted in favor of building a fence along the southern border and voted to make English the official language of the United States. "In October 2009, Snowe

1008-655: The Senate Armed Services Committee and the first to chair its seapower subcommittee which oversees the Navy and Marine Corps . In 2001, Snowe became the first Republican woman to secure a full-term seat on the Senate Finance Committee . Snowe was the youngest female Republican ever elected to the United States House of Representatives ; she is also the first woman to have served in both houses of

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1056-475: The United States House of Representatives from 1983 to 1986, McKernan representing the 1st District. While Snowe was First Lady of Maine from 1989 to 1995, she served as a member of Congress of the United States. Tragedy struck Snowe once more in 1991 when her stepson Peter McKernan died from a heart ailment at the age of 20. In 1994 , when Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell declined to run for re-election, Snowe immediately declared her candidacy for

1104-528: The Bush administration drew attacks from conservative Republicans; the Club for Growth and Concerned Women for America label her a " Republican In Name Only " (RINO). In October 2002, Snowe voted in favor of the War in Iraq . In February 2006, TheWhiteHouseProject.org named Snowe one of its "8 in '08", a group of eight female politicians who could possibly run and/or be elected president in 2008. Snowe voted in favor of

1152-569: The GOP primary to State Senator Deb Fischer , who went on to win the general election. Snowe chose not to run for re-election, but the Republican nominee to replace her was defeated by Independent Angus King , who caucuses with the Democrats. Lugar lost his primary to the Tea Party-backed candidate, Indiana Treasurer Richard Mourdock , but Mourdock lost to Democrat Joe Donnelly after making controversial statements about rape. Stabenow won re-election by

1200-406: The PAC had mistakenly attributed the donations of the dead woman's husband to her. Campaign manager A campaign manager , campaign chairperson , or campaign director is an individual whose role is to coordinate a political campaign 's spending, broad tactics, and hiring. They lead operations such as fundraising , advertising , polling , getting out the vote (with direct contact to

1248-496: The PAC in the first place. According to FEC filings, from July through November 2009, OCDB spent around $ 1.33 million, and of that sum, $ 857,122 went to the consulting firm Russo, Marsh, and Rogers. OCDB was founded by Sal Russo of the Russo, Marsh, and Rogers. In January 2011, OpenSecrets reported that a dead woman had donated thousands of dollars to the Tea Party Express' political action committee, though an investigation indicated that

1296-650: The Senate Health Care Reform Bill . Snowe again voted against health care reform when she voted "no" on the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 . When Snowe announced in February 2012 that she would not seek re-election, it was reported that she and Democrat Ben Nelson , who also did not seek re-election, had the closest overlap of any two members of the U.S. Senate. In 2012, Snowe endorsed Republican candidate Mitt Romney for President of

1344-664: The Senate and House), a group of pro-choice Republican women. Her highest composite conservative score according to the National Journal was a 63% in 2010 and her highest composite liberal score was a 55.5% in 2006. She voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment , an amendment aimed at banning gay marriage, in 2004. She voted against banning gay marriage in 2006 for a second time. In 2005 and 2007, she voted to support embryonic stem-cell research. In 2008, Snowe endorsed Republican candidate John McCain for President of

1392-407: The Senate from Maine, who still serves in the chamber. Collins is considered a "half-turn more conservative" than Snowe. Snowe supports abortion rights and gay rights , and though she previously voted to block the repeal of " Don't ask, don't tell ", she was one of eight Republican senators to vote for the act's repeal on December 18, 2010, ending the policy. In her 2006 re-election campaign, she

1440-581: The Senate. Her seat went to former governor Angus King , a former Democrat and current independent. Snowe is a senior fellow for the Bipartisan Policy Center and co-chairs its Commission on Political Reform. Snowe was born Olympia Jean Bouchles in Augusta, Maine , the daughter of Georgia ( née Goranites) and George John Bouchles. Her father emigrated to the United States from Sparti , Greece , and her maternal grandparents were also Greek . She

1488-540: The Tea Party Express, was widely denounced in the summer of 2010 for writing a letter in praise of slavery in the voice of "colored people" on his blog. He was forced to resign his Tea Party Express spokesperson position. A December 28, 2009 article in Talking Points Memo detailed that OCDB directed almost three-quarters of all its funding to the Republican-affiliated political consulting firm that created

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1536-518: The United States . In the 111th Congress , Snowe backed the release of additional Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act . While she opposed President Obama 's budget resolution, she pledged to work in a bipartisan manner on the issues of health care reform and energy. In 2007, Olympia Snowe was among the Republicans who voted in favor of

1584-403: The United States. After leaving the Senate, Snowe announced her support for same-sex marriage . Snowe has been on the board of directors for the investment counsel firm T. Rowe Price since 2013. She opposed Donald Trump as the GOP nominee in 2016. She said that Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton were the least partisan 2016 presidential candidates. On November 8, 2020, five days after

1632-655: The conservative group Move America Forward . As with the larger Tea Party movement, the Tea Party Express is actively opposed to several federal laws, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 , the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 , and a series of health care reform bills , and promotes conservative ideals and candidates. The Tea Party Express' nominal activity is organizing cross-country bus convoys of Tea Party activists. The first, in September 2009, stopped in 33 cities and ended with

1680-508: The election, while President Trump and some other members of the Republican Party were claiming he had won the election , Snowe congratulated President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris . On January 9, 2021, following the January 6 United States Capitol attack , she called on President Trump to "resign from office now to allow our nation to begin to heal and prepare for

1728-425: The lives of American families and businesses." Several tours for 2010 have been organized. In addition to organizing national bus tours of Tea Party activists, Tea Party Express leadership has endorsed conservative candidates running for state and federal offices such as Christine O'Donnell , Joe Miller , Marco Rubio and Sharron Angle . In March 2012, the Tea Party Express and Americans for Prosperity organized

1776-499: The national tea party organizations. In September 2010, the Tea Party Express was one of the top five most influential organizations in the Tea Party movement, according to The Washington Post . In addition, the group co-sponsored a debate during the 2012 Republican presidential primaries along with CNN, in Tampa, Florida in late 2011. Radio host Mark Williams , the former chairman of

1824-437: The nominations of John Roberts , Samuel Alito , Sonia Sotomayor , and Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court . In April 2006, Snowe was selected by Time as one of "America's 10 Best Senators". She was the only woman so recognized. Time praised Snowe for her sensitivity to her constituents, also noting that: "Because of her centrist views and eagerness to get beyond partisan point scoring, Maine Republican Olympia Snowe

1872-532: The non-partisan National Journal gave Snowe a composite 57% conservative score and a 43% liberal score. Snowe supported both President Clinton's involvement in Kosovo and President George W. Bush 's invasions in Afghanistan and Iraq . On fiscal issues, she has voiced support for cutting taxes as economic stimulus, although she joined fellow Republican senators Lincoln Chafee and John McCain in voting against

1920-473: The public), and other activities supporting the effort, directly. Apart from the candidate, they are often a campaign's most visible leader. However, modern campaign managers, particularly at the presidential level, are mostly concerned with executing strategy, not setting it. The senior strategists are typically outside political consultants , primarily pollsters and media consultants. Particularly for large, well-funded campaigns, campaign managers often manage

1968-702: The seat. The Democratic nominee was her House colleague, 1st District Congressman Tom Andrews . Snowe defeated Andrews 60–36%, carrying every county in the state. Snowe was part of the Republican election sweep of 1994, when the Republican party captured both the House and Senate for the first time since 1954. Snowe was easily re-elected in 2000 over State Senate President Mark Lawrence , increasing her winning margin to 69%–31%. She cruised past Democratic opponent Jean Hay Bright in 2006 , winning by 74% to 20.6%. She won every single county in Maine in all three of her elections. Snowe

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2016-760: The state, including Bangor and her hometown of Auburn. She served as a member of the Budget and International Relations Committees. Snowe voted for the bill establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday in August 1983 and the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987 in March 1988 (as well as to override President Reagan 's veto). Snowe married John R. McKernan, Jr. , then Governor of Maine, in February 1989. Snowe and John McKernan served together in

2064-515: The tea party by making defeat of President Obama 's healthcare plan a signature issue. In the 2012 cycle, the Tea Party Express identified two Democrats and two Republican targets for political defeat: Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE), Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME), and Senator Dick Lugar (R-IN). None were successful. The group endorsed Nebraska Republican Attorney General Jon Bruning to defeat Ben Nelson . Nelson decided not to run for re-election, and Bruning lost

2112-441: Was an important voice during the Senate's 1999 impeachment trial of then-President Bill Clinton . She and fellow Maine Senator Susan Collins sponsored a motion that would have allowed the Senate to vote separately on the charges and the remedy – a "finding of fact" resolution. When the motion failed, Snowe and Collins voted to acquit, arguing that Clinton's perjury did not warrant his removal from office. Her occasional breaks with

2160-420: Was named one of America's Best Senators by Time magazine. Throughout her Senate career, she was considered one of the most moderate members of the chamber. On February 28, 2012, Snowe announced that she would not seek re-election in November 2012 , and retired when her third term ended on January 3, 2013. She cited hyper-partisanship leading to a dysfunctional Congress as the reason for her retirement from

2208-477: Was one of two Republican Senate candidates endorsed by the prominent gay rights organization the Human Rights Campaign (the other was Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island , who became a Democrat in 2013 and a Libertarian in 2019). According to GovTrack , Snowe was the most liberal Republican senator in 2012–13 being placed by GovTrack's analysis to the left of every Republican and several Democrats. In 2012,

2256-509: Was re-elected to the House in 1974, and, in 1976, won election to the Maine Senate , representing Androscoggin County . That same year, she was a delegate to both the state and national Republican conventions. Snowe was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1978 and represented Maine's 2nd Congressional District from 1979 to 1995. The district included most of the northern two-thirds of

2304-562: Was the sole Republican in the Senate to vote for the Finance Committee’s health care reform bill." However, she stated that she might not support the final bill due to strong reservations. Snowe was one of three Republicans to break with their party and vote with Democrats to end a filibuster of a defense spending bill; the filibuster was meant to delay or stop the vote on health care legislation. In December 2009, Snowe voted against cloture for two procedural motions and ultimately against

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