The Cossacks Work for the Czar

"I like Hillary," writes the mighty Atrios, "I just don't really like the people she surrounds herself with (with some notable exceptions). As the campaign goes on it'll be harder and harder to rationally distinguish between the two."

I'm not sure I really grasp the content of the distinction. Mark Penn doesn't become a person's political guru by accident. It's worth noting that the general approaches of the sort of political consultants who might do work on a presidential campaign are sufficiently well-known that, by hiring the strategist who determines the strategy, the candidate is, in fact, determining in advance which strategy he or she will be advised to adopt. In short, you don't run a certain sort of campaign because you hired Penn, you hire Penn because you've decided to run a certain sort of campaign. This phenomenon become famous with regard to Bob Shrum, but it's more-or-less true for everyone in the business.