This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Washington • One cast an opponent as a demonized sheep and later created a YouTube sensation with his client's "I'm not a witch" ad. Another shepherded Sen. John McCain to a stunning victory in New Hampshire in 2000, only to find himself on the outs with the Republican Party shortly after.
Yet another had the ear of then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and one has been Jon Huntsman's right-hand man for years.
They are some of the key players in Team Huntsman, an eclectic mix of veterans and national political newbies working to put the former Utah governor in the White House.
With the exception of Huntsman's chief strategist, John Weaver, whom the ex-governor met years before, and Neil Ashdown, a longtime adviser, Huntsman hadn't met many on his top aides until he sat down with them in his home May 1.
"I didn't know anybody around the table," Huntsman told the Los Angeles Times. "They were all brand new."
They must be best friends now. With a campaign struggling to gain a foothold in national polls, these are the top minds who are striving to make it happen.
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John Weaver, chief strategist • The architect of Huntsman's bid, Weaver has twice before tried to land his candidate in the White House, falling short both times.
In 2000, Weaver orchestrated McCain's come-from-behind victory in the New Hampshire primary only to see the bid unravel in South Carolina amid a mud-flinging showdown.
Weaver blamed then-Gov. George W. Bush's top strategist, Karl Rove, for throwing out rumors that McCain had an illegitimate black child with a prostitute; McCain has an adopted daughter from Bangladesh.
The feud ended a long-standing relationship between Weaver and Rove. When Bush was elected president, Weaver found himself on the outs with the GOP establishment.
Weaver moved on, grabbing gigs with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to earn a paycheck.
"What can I say?" Weaver told Esquire magazine at the time. "Like me, all the moderate Republicans have been run out of the party by the right. I'm doing what I've always done politically; these guys just call themselves Democrats now."
Weaver returned to the Republican tent in 2007, again executing a plan to elect McCain president. That's when Weaver met Huntsman, who was one of the first to jump on the McCain wagon.
After the McCain campaign found itself virtually bankrupt, Weaver and several top staffers abandoned ship. The Arizona senator went on to seize the 2008 GOP nomination.
When Weaver learned Huntsman may be interested in his own White House bid, the strategist started laying the groundwork, preparing the former Utah governor to announce his presidential bid earlier this summer at the Statue of Liberty less than two months after returning from Beijing as President Barack Obama's ambassador to China.
"John [Weaver] demands a certain level of loyalty, and he often receives it back from people who have worked with him," said a former co-worker who spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to damage his relationship with Weaver.
Those who work with Weaver wind up in "one of two camps: either it was one of the most enjoyable, freewheeling experiences of your career or you just couldn't stand it," the former co-worker said. "He's got a style that rubs some people the wrong way."
The Huntsman campaign declined to participate in any profiles of its top staff and refused to allow an interview with Weaver.
Weaver also has faced accusations of participating in some underhanded tricks.
The Boston Globe reported last year that Weaver and three other strategists were being sued by Tim Cahill, former independent Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate, for breach of contract and unfair practices for allegedly orchestrating the departure of Cahill's running mate to a rival campaign.
Emails from the lawsuit show Weaver and other Cahill aides helped plan lieutenant-governor hopeful Paul Loscocco's defection from Cahill's ticket to join Republican Charles Baker's campaign, The Globe reported.
"The only moral obligation we have is to protect Paul," Weaver wrote in an email. The suit was later settled for an undisclosed amount with no admission of liability.
More recently, longtime Huntsman family friend David Fischer, who was squeezed out of the Huntsman campaign by Weaver, publicly scolded the organization, saying Weaver had thrown the effort into turmoil and was responsible for the resignations of a handful of staffers.
But Huntsman is sticking by his man.
"John Weaver is a critically important part of our team," Huntsman recently told reporters in New Hampshire. "He's our strategist, has been from day one and he will be. He's a great friend, and he's indispensable to this campaign."
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Fred Davis, media consultant • Fred Davis, who produced the curious videos of an anonymous motorcyclist zipping through Utah's Monument Valley to launch Huntsman's campaign, is pioneering a new wave of political commercials: quirky, odd, shocking, attention-grabbing.
He was the man behind the 2008 McCain spot putting Obama on par with Paris Hilton: "He's the biggest celebrity in the world," the ad intoned.
In 2010, he portrayed California Republican Tom Campbell as a wolf in sheep's clothing in the so-called Demon Sheep ad, which stirred up political circles. That same year, Davis helped then-Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, of Delaware, address a campaign accusation — that she had "dabbled in witchcraft" — by dressing her up in black and having her state straight-up, "I'm not a witch."
Davis argues that provocative equals traction.
"Almost every day I've got to convince someone to do something that's a crazy idea," Davis told The Washington Post last year. "If I picked what's on my tombstone, it would be: 'If you don't notice it, why bother?' "
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Matt David, campaign manager • Matt David, who took over the Huntsman campaign's top spot after the previous manager resigned amid a staff shake-up, is known as an aggressive and skilled manager, traits he likely picked up while working for Schwarzenegger.
David served as deputy chief of staff and communications director to the then-California governor. He also apprenticed under Steve Schmidt, a former top aide to then-President George W. Bush and to McCain's 2008 campaign team.
"In Matt David, the campaign has promoted a seasoned, aggressive pro," said Doug Heye, a GOP consultant and former Republican National Committee communications director.
David, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, ran Schwarzenegger's "take-no-prisoners, nonstop 'war room' rapid-response effort."
David still remains a part of the Huntsman communications team even as he oversees the campaign's operations.
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Tim Miller, press secretary • Tim Miller, the face of the Huntsman campaign for reporters, headed McCain's Iowa communications in 2007 before bolting when a summer meltdown saw a mass exodus of the Arizona senator's top aides.
Miller also served as a director of the Washington-based Glover Park Group's public-affairs shop before jumping to the Huntsman campaign.
An Esquire profile of Huntsman noted that fellow staffers have nicknamed Miller "Raincloud" because of his trademark pessimism. The candidate himself has picked up on the term.
Before a recent speech, Miller halted a reporter from interviewing Huntsman in the middle of an audience meet-and-greet, prompting Huntsman to respond, "Oh, Raincloud."
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Neil Ashdown, deputy chief of staff • When Huntsman packed up his bags and headed to Beijing, only one gubernatorial aide followed: Neil Ashdown.
A Wyoming native who was Huntsman's chief of staff in Utah, Ashdown has been a Huntsman confidant for years.
Natalie Gochnour, a former senior aide to then-Gov. Mike Leavitt, hired Ashdown to work in the governor's Office of Planning and Budget. Within a few years, Ashdown had vaulted to the top,unelected job in state government.
"He ended up having just an amazing meteoric rise in state politics," Gochnour said, noting Huntsman listens to Ashdown's advice. "That's a thing that any person of prominence would want — an inner circle of trusted, loyal people who are talented and can tell you the truth."