Staffers

I just watched a six part documentary on staffers of political candidates during the 2004 election. Apparently it was shown on the Discovery Channel a couple of years ago.

Because I met some of the Barak Obama's advance team, I found myself curious about and interested in their stories. This documentary followed a young woman with the Dean campaign, an actor who was the "Body Guy" for Wesley Clark, the "Body Guy" and other staffers for John Kerry, a young woman who worked for Kucinich and some staffers for Lieberman.

You saw the crazy schedule and the pressure and the high of this life in the bubble. It really was instant intimacy and they became a family as they worked together. It was mostly young people. As the campaigns folded you also saw their disappointment. For all of them it was really a once in a lifetime occasion. They all respected their candidates and wanted them to win badly. And, of course, none of them did.

What I liked was the risk they took - I guess it is the risk of the young, but I found myself envying the life. The only time I get anything close to that is working at church camp - as a bunch of adults come together for a week for a great purpose. And you do form a bond in that week and have your own humor and goofing around. But you don't get to drink at night :)!

I googled a couple of the people and found out that Marvin Nicholson who was John Kerry's "Body Guy" (Personal Assistant) and learned that he is still at it. He is working for Barak Obama and had a run in with Bill O'Reilly.

Anyway, it is always interesting to get a peek into other people's lives!