Joe Lieberman-Campaign Organization

Joe Lieberman for President, Inc. through 03/31/03
Senator Joe Lieberman announced his presidential campaign and filed papers with the FEC establishing his presidential campaign committee on January 13, 2003. Craig T. Smith is Campaign Director and Senior Advisor. The campaign operated out of offices in the same building where ROCPAC was located, at 236 Massachusetts Avenue NE in Washington, DC, through the end of March 2003.

Joe Lieberman for President, Inc. Leadership

Campaign Director and Senior Advisor

Craig T. Smith

Responsible for setting the overall strategy and direction of the campaign.
(Announced Jan. 31, 2003) Senior Vice President at mCapitol Management, a government and business relations firm; previously President of the public affairs firm Chief Advantages. Smith is a native Arkansan and spent almost all of the 1990s working for Bill Clinton and Al Gore. He served as Finance Director of the Clinton for President Exploratory Committee; Field Director of the 1992 Clinton/Gore campaign; Political Director of the DNC; Deputy Director of White House Personnel; Deputy Director of White House Office of Political Affairs; Deputy Campaign Manager and Political Director of the 1996 Clinton/Gore reelection campaign; Co-Executive Director of 53rd Presidential Inaugural Committee; White House Political Director; Campaign Manager for Gore 2000 from January 1999 until it moved to Nashville.

Chief of Staff

Sherry Brown

Responsible for day-to-day operations.
(Announced Jan. 31, 2003) Lieberman's chief political aide since 1982. Campaign Manager for his successful Attorney General bid in 1982, his 1986 reelection campaign, his 1988 Senate victory, and two Senate re-election campaigns. Starting in 1989, in between campaigns she served as State Director in Lieberman's Senate office. Most recently she served as Executive Director of ROCPAC, the leadership PAC Lieberman established in March 2001.

P O L I T I C A L

Deputy Campaign Director for Political Affairs

Joe Eyer

Helping to oversee the campaign's day to day political operations.
(Announced Feb. 10, 2003) Eyer served as Political Director for ROCPAC, Lieberman's leadership PAC, 2001-02. In the 2000 general election campaign, Eyer directed the Gore-Lieberman effort in Oregon. He worked at SpeakOut.com for six months. From Jan.-Oct. 1999 he worked on fundraising for the Gore campaign. In 1998, he was the Northeast Political Director for Gore's leadership PAC, Leadership '98. Prior to that, Eyer served as a special assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff for then Vice President Al Gore,1995-98. Eyer has a Master's degree in political science from OU (1995).

C O M M U N I C A T I O N S

Press Secretary

Jano Cabrera

(Announced Jan. 31, 2003) Served as former Vice President Al Gore's spokesman from January-December 2002. Previously spokesman for the Recording Industry Association of America. Deputy National Spokesman on the Gore-Lieberman 2000 campaign; worked in the White House communications office. Started as an aide to Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA).

F I N A N C E

Finance Director

Shari Yost

(Announced Feb. 10, 2003) Overseeing the campaign's fundraising operations.
Vice President for Government Affairs at Cablevision Systems Corporation. Previously served as Finance Director for the DSCC under U.S. Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle. Served as Daschle's Finance Director.

Deputy Finance Director

Jennifer Yocham

(Announced Feb. 10, 2003) Yocham worked at the DSCC starting as Midwest Deputy Finance Director, then Northeast Regional Finance Director and then Senior Advisor to DSCC Chair, Sen. Patty Murray and National Finance Director to Sen. Murray's re-election campaign. She began her career on Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon's re-election campaign in 1996 and worked on his US Senate campaign in 1998.

Senior Advisor for Finance

Fran Katz Watson

(Announced Feb. 10, 2003) Served as the Finance Director for ROCPAC and is President of the Katz Watson Group. National Finance Director for the DNC from 1997-99 and Senior Advisor to the DNC Chairs through the 2000 Presidential election. Deputy Political Director of AIPAC from 1992-97. Prior to that Watson was National Finance Director for the McCarthy for Senate race in California and the Deputy Finance Director at the DSCC.

National Finance Co-Chair: Mitchell Berger

A N D

Campaign Manager for Hadassah Lieberman

Cynthia Jasso Rotunno

Manage campaign appearance and events for Hadassah Lieberman.
(Announced Feb. 10, 2003) Previously served as the Southwestern States Campaign Director for the DNC. She has also served the DNC in the Chairman's Office, the Campaign Division as Deputy Director of Latino Outreach & Base Vote, and as the Deputy Southern Political Director in the '94 Coordinated Campaign. In the Clinton/Gore Administration, Jasso Rotunno served as Special Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff for the White House Office of Political Affairs. She was Deputy Director for Government, Business and Community Affairs on the 53rd Presidential Inaugural, and Deputy Public Liaison Director on the '96 Clinton/Gore Re-Elect
Campaign.

Director of Delegate Operations

Matt Nugen

Help the campaign manage its relations with all potential delegates to the 2004 convention.
(Announced Feb. 10, 2003) Most recently served as Vice President of Operations for Kwame Building Group, Inc. In 2000, he was Deputy Chief Operating Officer for the 2000 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles. From 1998-2000, Nugen was the Deputy Director and then the Director for the Office of the Secretary at the DNC. He spent time as a regional field director for the '98 South Carolina Coordinated Campaign and as the field director for the 2000 South Carolina tracking operation.

Scheduler

Melissa Winter

Moved over from position as scheduler in Lieberman's U.S. Senate office in Washington, DC.

Campaign Treasurer

Francisco L. Borges

(Announced Feb. 10, 2003) President and CEO of Landmark Partners Inc., a private equity advisory firm based in Simsbury, CT. In 1998, he was Managing Director and a Member of the Board of Directors of Financial Guaranty Insurance Company. Borges served as Treasurer of the State of Connecticut from 1987-1993, and prior to that was Deputy Mayor of the City of Hartford and legal counsel for the Travelers Insurance Companies.

Mark Penn and Carter Eskew will also be part of Lieberman's team of advisers.

Key Early States:

I O W A

Iowa State Director

Ted Osthelder

(Announced February 12, 2003, to start March 1) Osthelder, a Wisconsin native, most recently served as director of operations for Bill Richardson's successful 2002 gubernatorial campaign in New Mexico. He was the campaign manager for Antonio Villaraigosa's 2001 Los Angeles mayoral campaign. In 2000 he managed Adam Schiff's challenge of Rep. Jim Rogan of California, one of the most expensive congressional races ever. Osthelder served as executive director of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin in 1996.

N E W H A M P S H I R E

New Hampshire State Director

Peter Greenberger

(announced March 3, 2003) Most recently, Greenberger served as senior advisor to the New Hampshire Democratic Party. He was Al Gore's trip director for New Hampshire during the 2000 primary, and Gore's state director for Western Pennsylvania in the general election. In 1998, Greenberger served as field director for Gov. Jeanne Shaheen's re-election campaign. He worked in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs from 1997-98. During the 1996 general election campaign he served as the New Hampshire political director for Clinton/Gore, and during the NH primary campaign he did field.

S O U T H C A R O L I N A

More States:

Arizona

Oklahoma

New York

The campaign's website went up on Jan. 13, 2003.
Ross Garber, Erik Josowitz, and Dan Higgins did the site

ROCPAC
Although Sen. Lieberman pegged a possible 2004 presidential run to Al Gore's decision, he prepared for over a year as if he would run. Lieberman launched his leadership PAC, the Responsibility, Opportunity and Community PAC (ROCPAC) in late March 2001. ROCPAC had its offices in the building at 236 Massachusetts Avenue NE in Washington, DC. By Election Day 2002, it had a staff of 11. Sherry L. Brown, who managed Lieberman's two campaigns for Attorney General and his three U.S. Senate campaigns, served as executive director. Fran Katz Watson was finance director, Joe Eyer political director, Christopher Koob director of operations, and Heather Picazio national scheduling director. Craig T. Smith, who served as political director in the Clinton White House, advised ROCPAC.

In contrast to some of the other '04 prospects' leadership PACs, ROCPAC did not take soft money (non-federal) contributions, meaning the maximum amount any individual or PAC could contribute in a calendar year was $5,000. Through Nov. 25, 2002 (Post-General FEC report), ROCPAC reported total receipts of almost $2.9 million, and total disbursements of close to $2.5 million, leaving cash on hand of $398,017. (See Finances). By Election Day, November 5, 2002, ROCPAC reported contributing a total of $729,878 to four gubernatorial candidates, 25 US Senate candidates, 87 US House candidates and 19 state parties, and Senator and Mrs. Lieberman had traveled to 31 states. Our analysis found $718,568 in contributions to candidates and committees, of which $98,600 (about 13.7 percent) went directly to New Hampshire candidates and committees and $ (about percent) went directly to Iowa candidates and committees.

Groundwork continued after the Nov. 5, 2002 midterm elections as Lieberman hosted receptions for operatives returning to DC from campaigns around the country. Sherry Brown stated, "Senator and Mrs. Lieberman hosted several receptions for political operatives who worked diligently in the 2002 campaign races across the country. The Liebermans particularly wanted to say thank you to them for their hard work and additionally, sought their counsel on the prospect of the Senator's running for President, if Al Gore decides not to run." On Dec. 15 Gore made that announcement.