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DEL.ICIO.USCardwell and Howard: Not quite peas, but once they were in the same TV pod
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In December 1995, WSB-TV advertised for a producer to assist the top-ranked consumer reporter in the South.
A fellow from a Nashville station applied, and got the job. And so, for the next three years, Dale Cardwell and Clark Howard worked side-by-side.
In June, Cardwell became a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate. More speculatively, Howard is considering a run for mayor of Atlanta in ’09.
Perhaps their joint employment is coincidence, but it’s a coincidence worth some examination. (For the benefit of conspiracy theorists, we hereby reveal that this newspaper is owned by the same company that owns WSB-TV.)
Both Howard and Cardwell consider themselves non-ideological outsiders to political systems they describe as broken. Both own philosophies that don’t fit well with standard views of what makes a Democrat, and what constitutes a Republican.
Cardwell, who describes himself as a Truman Democrat, was as fervent as any Republican in his denunciations of the immigration reform effort that died last week. He also wants to see the Internal Revenue Service disappear.
Howard calls himself a “mountain-state Republican.” He’s made campaign contributions to both U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, a conservative Republican, and Cathy Woolard, a lesbian and liberal Democrat who ran for Congress in 2004.
“I give money to politicians all over the spectrum. You can’t put me in a box, because I don’t think like an ideologue,” Howard said.
Howard and Cardwell split up in 1998. Cardwell went on to establish himself as an investigative journalist for the TV station. Howard, then as now, has a syndicated radio program that serves as his primary platform.
The two speak well of each other, but don’t appear to be overly close. Howard was as surprised as anyone else about Cardwell’s candidacy.
In many ways, Howard and Cardwell couldn’t be more different. Howard, who is Jewish, grew up in Atlanta, with — his phrasing here — “a silver spoon.” Cardwell is bedrock Southern Baptist, with a hard-scrabble biography as the son of a coal miner and his wife.
In separate conversations, Cardwell and Howard agreed that they didn’t talk about politics much when they worked together — not in the sense of Democrat versus Republican. Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell may have been another matter.
“[Cardwell] was working with me when I briefly considered running for mayor in ’97. I was as serious as a heart attack then,” said Howard.
It’s indisputable that each learned enough to take the other’s measure.
Said Howard of Cardwell: “He is a true, old-line Southern prairie populist.”
Said Cardwell of them both: “I hope I’m not speaking for him inappropriately, but I think we both came to the conclusion that people were not being served by their government. He’s a big believer — and I am too — in empowering people to make change for themselves. Because the government is not going to do it for you.”
There are differences, of course. “I may be more socially conservative than he is,” Cardwell said. But the biggest thing that separates the two, one-time colleagues is the fact that Cardwell has jumped into pool. He could face DeKalb County CEO Vernon Jones, who has not formally announced, in a primary.
Howard is still unsure.
“As far as running, I’m no more than 30 percent toward running for mayor,” Howard said last week. He intends to decide by August 2008.
As much as he’s been encouraged by people at the grass-roots level to run, Howard said he’s been warned by insiders that City Hall in Atlanta is an insular world with its own rules — and that even if he won, he might be so isolated that he couldn’t accomplish a great deal.
He’s given thought to something more ambitious than conquering the city limits of Atlanta. “I’ve been strongly discouraged from running for mayor, and strongly encouraged by people to run for something at the state level,” Howard said. “I have a couple problems with that. First, I have to have a political party.”
And a mountain-state Republican might not sell so well in the Georgia lowlands.
But perhaps the most important thing to remember about Howard is that he owns his radio show, and the syndication rights that come with it. If he runs for public office, that disappears — along with the 14 people he has working for him.
“I’m already helping people, which is something that’s important to me, and I’m already doing well with it,” Howard said.
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Comments
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By Athens, GA
July 1, 2007 7:10 PM | Link to this
Great work, Jim. This is one of the most interesting things I’ve seen you write in a long time. You should talk the powers that be at the paper into letting you write a longer piece on this and perhaps on the transition of media figures into politics.
Again, great job.
By Bitter EX democrackkk
July 1, 2007 7:12 PM | Link to this
What would be Clark Howard’s agenda for the city of ATL? Besides cost cutting…
By Odd Ogg
July 2, 2007 7:05 AM | Link to this
God, I miss Baxter.
By Tator Tot
July 2, 2007 7:08 AM | Link to this
WWBW: What Would Baxter Write?