Singlehanded! You don't even have to have a particularly powerful internet connection. Just a few professional or social connections, chutzpa, no values or scruples to tie you down, and a couple of spare hours.
In the insular but fast-growing world of super PACs and other independent outfits, there are no cranky candidates, no scheduling conflicts, no bitter strategy debates with rival advisers. There are only wealthy donors and the consultants vying to oblige them.
The transformation drew new attention last week with the revelation that Fred Davis, a prominent Republican advertising strategist, had sought financing from a conservative billionaire for a $10 million campaign linking President Obama with the fiery, race-infused sermons of the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., Mr. Obama’s former pastor. The proposal was condemned by, among others, Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign, which has been trying to keep the focus on the economy.
Mr. Davis’s plan quickly collapsed, but not before highlighting how a single donor matched with an aggressive consultant could have an almost instant impact on an election — and with far greater ease than from inside a rival campaign, with its bureaucracy, constant travel and potentially cautious candidate.
“You don’t have to go anywhere,” Mr. Davis said in an interview this month, before details of his proposed campaign against Mr. Obama became public. “You don’t have to get on a small prop plane to New Hampshire. You don’t have to stay at the Holiday Inn Express. You can stay home and manage everything during normal office hours.” ...NYT
