Try Things and Fight - No Not That!

This is a continuation of a theme of the last few days, both from Kay and Joe. Kay’s observation that we should try “hundreds of new ideas and approaches” and Joe’s take that we need to be authentic are both happening in Kat Abughazaleh’s campaign for Congress.

One of the things that her campaign has been doing is helping the community. This doesn’t sit well with some failed candidate / pundits:

Almost the first thing that Abughazaleh’s campaign did was an event where they collected menstrual products for distribution in the district. I told this to my wife, still pretty much a political normie, and she thought it was a great idea and was genuinely touched by it. I’ll also note that AOC does this kind of thing all the time: turkeys on Thanksgiving, backpacks and school supplies before school starts, etc.

But Will Stancil, a pundit whose sole political experience is losing in the primary for a House race in Minnesota, didn’t like this. One of the things he trotted out was something I really hate: the “too busy” observation. Abughazaleh’s campaign manager should be “too busy” to deliver tampons (it wasn’t just tampons, btw).

“Too busy” doing what? Lining up call time for her? Not needed — she’s a small donation powerhouse. Cozying up to journalists? She’s all over media already. Doing some other dumb thing that the DCCC says he should do? Probably.

You know who’s not “too busy” to spend over an hour on Instagram live just talking, unscripted, on pretty regular occasions? You might recognize her:

Oh, and another generational political talent who I’ve mentioned once or twice spends an unthinkable amount of time (2+ hours not including prep) talking to the press every weekday. She also “wastes time” touring the country endlessly (she logged enough air and land miles to circle the globe 8 times in 2025):

Now I don’t know if Kat Abughazaleh is an AOC or a Claudia, but I do know that she’s trying lots of stuff, including:

• Limited edition sticker runs for donors

• Getting off of Twitter and challenging her opponents to do the same

• Lots of different livestreams, including one making gingerbread houses with one of her campaign staffer (is that “wasted time”?)

• Featuring her cat (Heater) heavily in the campaign

• Evening events (iirc, karaoke is one example) that people under 40 might attend

She’s also getting her ass kicked at anti-ICE protests and getting arrested.

Caution killed the Harris campaign — if you don’t believe me, watch this video that Sepideh shared in the comments yesterday, where the host of Subway Takes recounts how some consultant ruined her episode. Endless fundraising calls, private donor fundraisers and time spent courting DC press is “wasted time”. Yet that’s what most consultants want their candidates to do. It’s a losing strategy and we need something new.