C&E: What was the reaction from colleagues in more establishment Republican circles when you started working for Paul?Downs: I think it was mixed. My feeling on this is what I said when I met with the campaign—a lot of who Ron Paul is simply isn’t understood by the general public or the consulting community for that matter. I felt like he had such a great story to tell, especially given where we were as a party—dealing with issues of spending and big government. These are things this guy has been saying forever. Not only is he right on the issues, but he’s so credible on this. And those are the two key ingredients right now. Obviously on foreign policy there are some differences with the party. But I was excited to tell his story. There were certainly some people who didn’t see the full picture as I did—the establishment types. But while it certainly wasn’t just my ads that did it, I do think through that race a lot of people were able to see Ron Paul in a different light.
Movers & Shakers: Jon Downs
