James Carville and Mary Matalin, both campaign consultants and political pundits, shared their experiences with students in Lee Hall as part of the third annual Leadership Summit.
Carville, a liberal Louisiana native, and Matalin, a conservative from Illinois, differ greatly in their views. In a talk Tuesday night at Bettersworth Auditorium hosted by the College of Business, both commented on the partisanship in government as of late and the difficulties facing the U.S.
Carville, campaign manager for former President Bill Clinton, touched on a number of issues including health care and President Barack Obama’s ability to lead in an increasingly heated political climate.
“Clinton had to face it, and Bush did too,” he said, referring to the tense political climate. “It does seem to have a morbid tone lately, but no extreme is held over time.”
Carville, notorious for his political commentary, was less judgmental of the Obama administration. He said the President has shown his ability to give a speech and get through a news conference, but now it’s time for him to start breaking bones.
“This whole health care debate has been going on since 1947,” he said. “Most of the people who are opposed to Obama, those teabaggers, don’t support it anyway.”
Matalin, a former assistant for President George W. Bush, and campaign consultant, was less optimistic.
She said Obama has misread his mandate.
“It’s not republicans versus democrats right now; its democrats versus democrats,” she said. “Too much is happening too fast; there’s still a lot of room for debate.”
Matalin said she thinks Obama is a great leader for our time, but that he is at risk of losing his following.
“One problem of the President is that they’ve put too much weight on his back,” she said.
Yet, as much as the husband and wife duo disagree politically, their advice to students in their speeches was remarkably similar. Matalin said she urges students not to become cynical toward politics.
“The future is young people,” she said. “They must understand the nexus of the world they live in, and of public policy and history. This is the first generation in history to have been born and raised in the generation age. They’re a very practical generation.”
And as a cell phone began to ring in a press conference, Matalin said the younger generation is immune to the cacophony of noise the modern society presents to them.
Carville also spoke to those students who feel fed up with the partisanship and who have become increasingly apathetic and incensed toward politics.
“If you are [frustrated], get involved. You often hear the loudest voices from the extremes,” he said.
“Somebody has to learn how to shout from the center.”
Both Carville and Matalin stressed the importance of student involvement at the summit.
Other featured speakers included Ali Velshi, CNN’s senior business correspondent; Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream; Kenneth “Hap” Klopp, founder of The North Face; and Roy Ruby, who served the university as interim president until Mark Keenum was hired last fall.