Is Statesmanship Obsolete? – with Dr. David Bobb

Dr. David Bobb is one of the nation’s foremost experts on statesmanship and the American founding fathers. He joins us today to examine the nature of statesmanship, it’s component virtues and whether they’re obsolete in 2019.

Today we’ve got a unique conversation to share. Once again I’ll be talking to an expert in politics and campaigns but the focus of our conversation is going to be different than most. In nearly every other episode, we talk about strategic or tactical campaign issues. And while we do discuss those in this interview, our focus, more broadly is Statesmanship.

Dr. David Bobb was a professor of mine at Hillsdale College and a couple months ago we caught up at a political conference. The event was a good one but midway through the weekend, I grew frustrated with some of the more esoteric panels and asked him to come out and talk for a while. We ended up spending quite a bit of time together, talking about our nation’s current state and what it is going to take in order to positively influence her future.

Starting Early and Campaigning Hard – Andrew Sorrell

Andrew Sorrell won the tightest race in the Alabama State Legislature by starting early and campaigning hard. This interview with Andrew is among our most in-depth on the tactical level decisions that help win campaigns and I had a blast talking with him!

Thank you to Campaign Sidekick for supporting this podcast. Sidekick just came off an incredible election cycle with over 1.5 million doors knocked, launched their new native app in the iTunes and Android app stores and helped pull off incredible victories in races like the Georgia Governorship and Senate/Governor wins in Florida.

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Our guest this week just started serving his first term in the Alabama State House after being elected last November. We conducted the interview just a week or two after his successful election since I wanted to catch him before things got too crazy with the work of actually being a legislator!

Andrew Sorrell is a 33-year-old entrepreneur, private pilot, advanced SCUBA diver, Eagle Scout and well known in his local community as an anti-tax activist. He’s been volunteering in politics at an early age but was an entrepreneur even before that.

Starting at the age of 16, Andrew and his brother Matthew started an online textbook sales company that has grown to employ over 30 people and they’ve sold more than half a million books. He also owns an upscale pawn shop and invests in rental property.

Senate Service as a Millennial – Hans Zeiger

Hans Zeiger left Grad-School to take on a State House incumbent in his home district. His 29-vote win margin set him on a course that now puts him in the center of important debates within the Washington State Senate. Millennials are having a growing impact within state legislatures and Hans joins us today to talk about what that means to him.

I first got to know Hans while we both studied undergrad at Hillsdale College. Since graduating, Hans has done remarkable work and emerged early as aa distinguished alumnusand fantastic elected official.

Our conversation on the podcast today tracks that road and we get to break down some of the major lessons he’s learned along the way. They’re all lessons I think you’ll enjoy and benefit from! He’s got some fantastic advice and has learned a great deal during his time in office.

Be open to advice from anyone. But never act on advice blindly.

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• Be open to advice from anyone. But never act on advice blindly.

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Candidates specifically, and campaigns more broadly, get advice from every possible corner. EVERYONE knows something you should be doing more of, less of or differently…and there are a ton of folks around you who are willing to share this free advice.

It’s very easy to get in a habit of letting this advice go in one ear and out the other. Free advice, as it’s often said, is frequently worth what you pay for it.

The problem with this approach is two-fold. First, there are likely some pearls of wisdom mixed in with the less helpful advice. Second, folks can tell when you’re blowing them off and that’s hardly a way to engender stalwart support.

Instead, here’s what you should do. Listen to their advice carefully, write it down and set aside time for your team to review the list. This doesn’t need to be an involved process but I highly recommend that it be skimmed.