David "Mudcat" Saunders is a Democratic political strategist and author. Saunders was a senior advisor in the 2008 Presidential campaign of

John Edwards Johnny Reid Edwards (born June 10, 1953) is an American lawyer and former politician who served as a U.S. senator from North Carolina. He was the Democratic nominee for vice president in 2004 alongside John Kerry, losing to incumbents George ...

. He is widely credited with playing important roles in the election of Mark Warner to the office of Governor of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

in 2001 and the election of

Jim Webb James Henry Webb Jr. (born February 9, 1946) is an American politician and author. He has served as a United States senator from Virginia, Secretary of the Navy, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, Counsel for the United States ...

to the U.S. Senate in 2006. Saunders encourages candidates to show respect for rural culture in order to break through some of the social barriers currently keeping some rural white males from voting for Democrats in larger numbers. He often says that once you can break through the culture, people will listen to what you have to say about the issues. He is co-author, with political strategist Steve Jarding, of a book on the topic, ''Foxes in the Henhouse: How the Republicans Stole the South and the Heartland, and What the Democrats Must Do to Run 'em Out''. In a 2005 interview with the blog SouthNow, Saunders was asked, "Why did the Democrats lose in 2004?": Many feature articles have been written about Saunders, including two cover articles by Matt Labash in the Weekly Standard. In one, he expresses his opinion of "inside the beltway" wisdom: In 2006, Saunders was a senior advisor in the 2006

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

campaign of

in Virginia. He is credited by Jim Webb himself for convincing Webb to run for Senate, as described in this article in Rolling Stone magazine: In 2006, Saunders also served on the Advisory Board of the Commonwealth Coalition, a group organized to oppose the Marshall/Newman amendment (2006 amendment to the Virginia constitution banning gay marriage). In regards to Virginia's anti-gay marriage amendment, Saunders was quoted as saying the following:

References

External links

Mudcat's BlogEdwards: Getting Ready to Run?When Bubba Meets Obama
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saunders, David American political consultants Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Virginia Democrats Year of birth missing (living people)