Anita Dunn

Anita B. Dunn (born January 8, 1958) is an American political strategist who served as Acting White House Communications Director from April through November 2009. She is managing director at SKDKnickerbocker, a strategic communications firm in Washington, D.C.,[1] and currently serves as a senior advisor to the presidential campaign of Joe Biden.[2]

Anita Dunn
White House Communications Director
Acting
In office
April 21, 2009 – November 30, 2009
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byEllen Moran
Succeeded byDaniel Pfeiffer
Personal details
Born (1958-01-08) January 8, 1958
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Bob Bauer
Children2 sons
EducationUniversity of Maryland, College Park (BA)

Personal life and family

Dunn was raised in Bethesda, Maryland, the daughter of Albert E. Babbitt and Carol Hutto Babbitt. Her father's brother was the modernist composer, Milton Babbitt.

Dunn is married to Robert Bauer, former partner at Perkins Coie and former personal counsel to President Obama and the White House Counsel.[3] Bauer was also the general counsel of Obama for America since January 2007.[4][5]

In 2008, Newsweek named Dunn and Bauer the new "power couple" in Washington, D.C.[6]

Career

Dunn began her career in the Carter White House,[7] first as an intern for White House Communications Director Gerald Rafshoon and then worked for chief of staff Hamilton Jordan.[8]

She worked on the campaign of U.S. Senator John Glenn (D-OH) in 1984,[7] and on Capitol Hill before joining the firm founded by Bob Squier and William Knapp in 1993. She has been the adviser and communications director to Senator Bill Bradley (D-NJ),[9] and served as the chief strategist for his presidential campaign.[8][10] Dunn also served as advisor to Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN), former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD)[11] and as communications director for Al Gore's presidential campaign in 2000.[12] In 2004, Anita produced the media for Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX).[13] In 2006 she was hired by then-Senator Barack Obama to direct communications and strategy for his political action committee, The Hopefund. This move signaled to many that Obama was planning to run for the presidency. While advising Hopefund and Obama in 2006, she was instrumental in the preparations for the launch of Obama for America, and brought many key staffers to the Obama campaign with whom she had worked in Bayh's and Daschle's offices.[11]

Obama campaign

In April 2008, it was announced that Dunn, who had joined the Obama campaign in February, would be the director of communications, policy and research operations for Obama for America, where she held the title Senior Adviser[14] and was one of the major decision makers of the Obama campaign. She was featured as one of four top advisers (along with David Axelrod, David Plouffe, and Robert Gibbs) in a 60 Minutes interview held after then-President-elect Obama's November 4, 2008, victory speech at Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois. She was described, in the 60 Minutes interview, as, "a relative newcomer who handled communications, research and policy."[15] During the presidential transition of 2008-09, Dunn trained White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.

White House Communications Director

Dunn served as interim White House Communications Director from April to November 2009.[8][16] She took the lead in the Obama administration's criticism of the Fox News Channel.[17][18]

On Sunday, October 11, 2009, she appeared on CNN's Reliable Sources and was asked to discuss a statement she made to Time magazine regarding Fox News, "it's opinion journalism masquerading as news."[19] She responded by saying, "if you were a Fox News viewer in the fall election, what you would have seen would have been that the biggest stories and biggest threats facing America were a guy named Bill Ayers and something called ACORN. The reality of it is that Fox News often operates almost as either the research arm or the communications arm of the Republican Party."[20] She added, "And it's not ideological. Obviously, there are many commentators who have conservative, liberal, centrist, and everybody understands that. But I think what is fair to say about FOX and certainly the way we view it is that it really is more a wing of the Republican Party."[21]

Dunn left her interim post at the end of November 2009 and was replaced by her deputy Dan Pfeiffer.[22]

After leaving the White House, Dunn rejoined SKDK. Although working for a lobbying firm, White House records show that Dunn maintained strong connections with the administration where visited over 100 times since her departure in 2009.[23] At the same time the firm announced a “major expansion” emphasizing strategic communications and advocacy work for business.[24] The firm added about a dozen Obama administration insiders as the firm's staff doubled in size.[23] Among the major clients the firm took on were General Electric, AT&T, Time Warner, and Pratt & Whitney.[24] In particular, SKDKnickerbocker corporate clients have included such controversial companies as the for-profit Kaplan University and TransCanada Corp., the developer of the Keystone XL pipeline.[25] At the same time that Kaplan Education hired SKDK to block Obama’s crackdown on predatory for-profit colleges, Dunn was known as “a close friend of President Obama.”[26] The progressive social change organization CredoAction mounted a petition calling on Dunn to stop her work on behalf of TransCanada, calling it a "betrayal of the commitments that so many of us worked so hard for, and that Dunn herself played a huge role in shaping."[27] Another client, The Association of American Railroads (AAR), is also associated with oil pipeline infrastructure necessary to make ventures like the Keystone XL successful.[28] SKD Knickerbocker helped AAR produce advertisements aimed at suppressing support for union workers.[28][29]

Other SKD Knickerbocker clients include a half-million subcontract from Paul Weiss Rifkind to lobby for Carlos Ghosn, the ousted Nissan CEO who was arrested in Japan and escaped in January 2020,[30][31] New York City landlords and real estate associations resisting stronger rent protections for tenants,[32] big food companies such as General Mills, Pepsi Co, Nestle, Kellogg, Viacom, and McDonalds in their fight to resist Obama-era nutritional standards for marketing foods to children,[33][34] and Google and Pfizer in their campaign to cut taxes on foreign profits.[33] Some of Dunn’s own clients at SKD Knickerbocker include pro-charter lobbying groups Students First and Families for Excellent schools, as well as Amazon.[35][36][37]

Anita Dunn also personally partnered with Republican political advisor Greg Mueller to pitch PR strategies to hedge fund managers. This PR strategy aimed to give financiers a “home field advantage” by harnessing trusted local media sources and running a grassroots public affairs campaign aimed at increasing local confidence in the financial industry.[38]

As Dunn left her position as White House communications director, her husband Bob Bauer was named White House counsel.[39] The White House granted Bauer a waiver to ethics rules intended to prohibit administration officials from working on issues affecting their former clients for two years.[40] This exemption allowed Bauer to represent the White House, Obama's campaign, and Obama as an individual all at the same time.[41]

2012 Obama campaign

During the 2012 Obama campaign, Dunn helped Obama prepare for the debates.[42]

Harvey Weinstein

Ahead of reporting in The New York Times about Harvey Weinstein's alleged sexual abuse, Weinstein reached out to Dunn for public relations advice. Dunn told Weinstein "you should accept your fate graciously, and not seek to deny or discredit those who your behaviour has affected." [43] Dunn's firm stated that she was not paid for this, "was asked to speak with him by a friend" and that Weinstein was not a client of hers.[44]

2020 Biden campaign

Dunn was hired as a senior advisor to Joe Biden's 2020 presidential campaign in 2019 to assist with communications strategy. After Biden's disappointing fourth place finish in the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses, Dunn was elevated to a more senior position managing overall campaign strategy, personnel, and finances.[45] Dunn's prior association with Weinstein has reportedly created serious friction with former Bernie Sanders progressive staffers as the two teams look to defeat Donald Trump in the general election.[46]

Controversy

Dunn said "The third lesson and tip actually comes from two of my favorite political philosophers: Mao Tse-tung and Mother Theresa". Her reference to Mao Tse-Tung as one of her favorite political philosophers has drawn criticisms [47]. The speech was given at the Washington National Cathedral for St. Andrews Episcopal High School's (of Bethesda Maryland) graduation on June 5, 2009.

References
  1. "Anita Dunn". SKD Knickerbocker. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  2. Scherer, Michael (March 12, 2020). "Joe Biden appoints Jen O'Malley Dillon as new campaign manager". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  3. "After Months of Denials, Greg Craig Out As White House Counsel". abcnews.com. Archived from the original on November 15, 2009. Retrieved November 13, 2009.
  4. "Anita Dunn". Archived from the original on October 6, 2009. Retrieved October 19, 2009.
  5. "Bob Bauer". Washington Post Company. Archived from the original on November 16, 2009. Retrieved October 19, 2009.
  6. "The D.C. Powers – Under Obama, there will be a new elite in Washington. Some of its members:", Newsweek, December 20, 2008
  7. Horowitz, Jason (October 14, 2009). "Profile of Anita Dunn, White House Communications Director". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
  8. Martin, Jonathan (April 30, 2009). "Anita Dunn heads to the White House". Politico. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  9. Cook, Dave (October 22, 2009). "Who is Anita Dunn?". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
  10. Berke, Richard L. (October 1, 1999). "Gore and Bradley Poised to Engage in Early Debates". The New York Times. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
  11. Cillizza, Chris (April 8, 2008). "Obama Prepares for Fight With McCain". voices.washingtonpost. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
  12. Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (November 10, 2009). "Communications Director Leaves". The New York Times. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
  13. Squier Knapp Dunn bio. Archived February 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Company Web site. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
  14. "In the Obama press shop". POLITICO. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  15. "Obama's Inner Circle Shares Inside Story". CBS.
  16. "White House Fellows" (PDF). obamawhitehouse. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  17. Horowitz, Jason. "Newly Out In Front for White House: An Ol' Pro: Interim Media Strategist Leads Salvo Against Fox", The Washington Post, October 14, 2009; accessed October 16, 2009
  18. Stelter, Brian (October 11, 2009). "Fox's Volley With Obama Intensifying". The New York Times. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  19. "TIME" – via www.time.com.
  20. "White House Escalates War of Words With Fox News". Fox News. October 12, 2009. Archived from the original on October 17, 2009. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
  21. "CNN Reliable Sources". CNN. October 11, 2009. Archived from the original on October 16, 2009. Retrieved November 1, 2009.
  22. Cillizza, Chris (November 10, 2009). "Dunn leaving White House, Pfeiffer takes over". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  23. Lichtblau, Eric; Lipton, Eric (October 19, 2012). "Strategizing for the President, and Corporate Clients, Too". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  24. Lichtblau, Eric; Lipton, Eric (October 19, 2012). "Strategizing for the President, and Corporate Clients, Too". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  25. Lichtblau, Eric (October 19, 2012). "Anita Dunn, Both Insider and Outsider in Obama Camp". The New York Times.
  26. Lichtblau, Eric (December 9, 2011). "With Lobbying Blitz, For-Profit Colleges Diluted New Rules". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  27. "Sign the petition". credoaction.com.
  28. "Obama's Former Communications Director's Firm Does PR For Keystone XL Pipeline, Tar Sands Rail Transport". DeSmog. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  29. Elk, Mike; Fang, Lee (July 27, 2012). "Unions Contract Out to PR Firms That Work for Anti-Worker Groups". Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  30. NW, The Center for Responsive Politics 1300 L. St; Washington, Suite 200; info, DC 20005 telelphone857-0044. "Ghosn, Carlos Lobbyists". OpenSecrets. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  31. "How did Carlos Ghosn escape from Japan?". BBC News. January 8, 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  32. Wang, Vivian (June 10, 2019). "Inside the Stealth Campaign for 'Responsible Rent Reform'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  33. Fang, Lee (April 13, 2012). "The Real Hilary Rosen Scandal". ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  34. Fang, Lee (February 28, 2020). "Joe Biden's Chief Strategist Lobbied to Undermine Barack and Michelle Obama's Signature Initiatives". The Intercept. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  35. Elk, Mike; Fang, Lee (July 27, 2012). "Unions Contract Out to PR Firms That Work for Anti-Worker Groups". Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  36. "Pro-Charter School Group Spent Nearly $6 Million in Media Blitz | WNYC | New York Public Radio, Podcasts, Live Streaming Radio, News". WNYC. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  37. Vielkind, Jimmy (December 5, 2018). "Amazon Hires Public-Affairs Firms to Aid New York Efforts". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  38. McLean Clark LLC. "Hedge Funds and a New Vision for Public Affairs" (PDF). freebeacon.com.
  39. Landers, Peter (November 13, 2009). "Bob Bauer, Anita Dunn: In and Out at the White House". WSJ. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  40. "A Limited Waiver for Bob Bauer". whitehouse.gov. May 7, 2010. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  41. Vogel, Kenneth P. "W.H. waives ethics rules for counsel". POLITICO. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  42. Lichtblau, Eric (October 19, 2012). "Anita Dunn, Both Insider and Outsider in Obama camp". The New York Times.
  43. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/10/nyregion/harvey-weinstein-bezos-bloomberg-aniston.html
  44. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/stevenperlberg/former-obama-adviser-anita-dunn-helped-harvey-weinstein
  45. Glueck, Katie; Martin, Jonathan (February 7, 2020). "Joe Biden Shakes Up Campaign Leadership, Elevating Anita Dunn". The New York Times. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  46. https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/03/staffers-lash-out-in-bernie-world-meltdown-299545
  47. https://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/16/beck.dunn/index.html
Political offices
Preceded by
Ellen Moran		 White House Director of Communications
Acting
2009		 Succeeded by
Dan Pfeiffer
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