Strategizing a New Start

Washington Post
May 26, 2005
By Judy Sarasohn

Can there be too much strategy?

Four veteran political strategists don't think so. Tucker Eskew , Matthew Dowd and James S. Taylor and Blaine Bull are merging their public affairs strategy shops into one bipartisan company: ViaNovo , the new way or new path.

"We can never have enough strategy. We have enough tactics but not enough strategy," Dowd cracked.

The strategists are not lobbyists. Their services for corporations and nonprofits include strategic planning, crisis communications, issue campaigns, coalition building and grassroots mobilization.

Dowd, Taylor and Bull earlier were founders of Public Strategies . Dowd, whose most recent shop was Dowd Strategic Consulting , was chief campaign strategist for Bush-Cheney 2004. Taylor, whose company was CIMA Strategies , was a special assistant to former senator Lloyd Bentsen (D-Tex.). Bull, who started the StratCom Group , was a legislative director for Bentsen.

Eskew of the Eskew Strategy Group was a spokesman and strategist for the Bush-Cheney campaign and deputy assistant to President Bush for global communications.

They declined to discuss clients.