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# Posted 3:54 PM by Patrick Belton

TODAY'S MUST-READ: Namely, TNR's Michael Crowley writing in Slate on the seven different factions vying for control of the Kerry campaign. Apart from the less interesting dueling-operatives jousting between Boston and Washington, the interesting policy fights are being fought between DLC hawkish centrists on the one hand (Bruce Reed, Gene Sperling, Richard Altman, Sarah Bianchi, Jamie Rubin) and fiery leftish populists drafted on a TDY basis out of Senator Kennedy's office (Bob Shrum, Mary Beth Cahill, Stephanie Cutter) and dovish Vietnam veterans (Tom Vallely, Chris Gregory, John Hurley) on the other, who respectively crave more class warfare and anti-war soundings out of the campaign. Interesting and useful analysis - and may the DLC folk win!

UPDATE: Matt has a different reading of Crowley's piece, and thinks Crowley's light tone extends both to his analysis as well as his presentation, as well as that the DLC faction (note to self: think up witty factional nicknames before end of campaign. then go back and put them here. result = really funny!) is running the more important policy shop rather than menial matters of political strategy. Matt's interesting as always, but I'm not sure I'm convinced yet. First, I think Crowley's analysis, as opposed to his metaphor of tribes and warlords, is meant to be fairly much taken at face value, but I guess in the final instance we could always just ask Crowley which of us is right. (Although Barthes might be grumpy.) Second, Mary Beth Cahill, a Kennedy office alumna, is Kerry's campaign manager, which seems like a more ponderous position to affect policy than from the issues staff. And incidentally, about the relationship of speechwriting to policies, there's actually an awfully interesting piece about how rhetoric can trap policymakers in being better than their intentions by some pundit daring to commit actual scholarship under the diabolically ingenious nom de plume of Adesnik.

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