An old classmate is a hoot - and making a nice little career as a writer

[BedellBrave]

The Perfect Republican Stump Speech

By Barton Swaim

for 538 - Link

[Runnin]

The Perfect Republican Stump Speech

By Barton Swaim

for 538 - Link

That's far too complicated for a Republican crowd.

[cajunrevenge]

Barton now polling as the new leader in the GOP primaries.

[Oklahomahawk]

Cool name for a politician too!!! And this is every bit as sincere as anything else the R's ever say, and twice as sincere as anything Hillary says.

[BedellBrave]

He certainly knows lying, insincere, idiotic, preening politicians since he wrote speeches for a fairly notorious one...

[Oklahomahawk]

He certainly knows lying, insincere, idiotic, preening politicians since he wrote speeches for a fairly notorious one...

I guess I missed it, but who did he used to write speeches for?

[AerchAngel]

That's far too complicated for a Republican crowd.

If that is the case, the Dems have no chance of understanding considering how stupid and naive they are.

[BedellBrave]

I guess I missed it, but who did he used to write speeches for?

A guy who liked to hike the AT...

Link

"The Speechwriter"

"An intimate and hilarious look inside the spin room of the modern politician: a place where ideals are crushed, English is mangled, people are humiliated, and the opportunity for humor is everywhere.

Everyone knows this kind of politician: a charismatic maverick who goes up against the system and its ways, but thinks he doesn’t have to live by the rules. Through his own experience as the speechwriter for a controversial governor, Barton Swaim tells the story of a band of believers who attach themselves to this sort of ambitious narcissist—and what happens when it all comes crashing down.

The Speechwriter is a funny and candid introduction to the world of politics, where press statements are purposefully nonsensical, grammatical errors are intentional, and better copy means more words. Swaim paints a portrait of a man so principled he’d rather sweat than use state money to pay for air conditioning, so oblivious he’d wear the same stained shirt for two weeks, so egotistical he’d belittle his staffers to make himself feel better, and so self-absorbed he never once apologized to his staff for making his administration the laughing stock of the country. On the surface, this is the story of one politician’s rise and fall. But in the end, it’s a story about us—the very real people who want to believe in our leaders and must learn to survive with broken hearts."