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You are here: Home / Uncategorized / LEGENDARY DEMOCRATIC CAMPAIGN GURU GT LONG PUBLISHES ‘HOW-TO’ BOOK ON MICHIGAN POLITICS

LEGENDARY DEMOCRATIC CAMPAIGN GURU GT LONG PUBLISHES ‘HOW-TO’ BOOK ON MICHIGAN POLITICS

June 20, 2022 by tbreport 13 Comments

From his beloved Horton Bay in the northwest Lower Peninsula of Michigan, GT Long has penned a political memoir entitled “A Distant Rumble — The Unnoticed, Unreported World of Grassroots Politics.”

It’s a hoot — an absorbing, funny page-turner of only 122 pages divided into a Prologue and some three and a half-dozen very brief chapters, from which readers will learn a lot. You won’t want to put it down. The chapter on “Kidnapping Ted Kennedy” alone is worth the modest $12 book price.

Long’s base of operations in the small village of Horton Bay (pop. less than 50) is located in the southwest corner of Bay Township, on the shores of Lake Charlevoix. Boyne City is only six miles away, the city of Charlevoix about 10 miles distant. Horton Bay was the setting for some of Ernest Hemingway’s early short stories, including “The End of Something.”

The book is dedicated to Long’s longtime buddy, state Senate photographer Gary Shrewsbury, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s first husband and the father of her two children., as well as to James Ballor and Bridget Swartz Foltz.

As reported recently by Sean Miller of The Petoskey News-Review, “A Distant Rumble” is a tome that Long takes pride in because it’s “not a tell-all book slamming a politician.” Rather, it’s a series of stories told through Long’s perspective working on multiple political campaigns over the last four decades.

Stories of grassroots politics, going door to door, and using fortune cookies to campaign are all shared throughout the book, giving readers a deeper insight into campaigning without a political agenda.

“Every damn book about politics today is either about Donald Trump or is used as a way to slam someone,” says Long. “This one is filled with stories I’ve been telling in bars for years. They’re some really funny and crazy stories that I think people will really enjoy and may even find useful.”

The front cover of G.T. Long's latest book titled "A Distant Rumble."

As journalist Miller notes, the book opens with a kind of “how-to” guide into running for office and is followed by story after story of Long’s time working in politics.

Long — who is known in his neck of the woods for his love of Horton Bay and its community events — got into politics in 1972 when he first got out of the Air Force. He was going to college and worked for a campaign in Sault Ste. Marie that set the tone for the rest of his political career.

Over the years, Long worked on so many campaigns it makes your head spin. He shares stories from many of these campaigns in his book.

“The stories are all true. I did use some aliases and changed the name of a few places to save people from embarrassment, but all of the stories are true,” he says.

The book is about the many different aspects of running a campaign, some with a humorous twist. Some of the stories may be sad and poignant but, at its heart, Long says the book is about the people behind grassroots campaigns and the little details — like changing one’s opinion on something — that can make or break a campaign.

“I hope when people read this book they really get an insight into what politics is outside of CNN or FOX,” he said. “I think it would also be great for political science majors and classes because you can have conversations about each little story, but the book is really for those looking for a fun read about politics and what it really is.”

Long has a number of other self-published books — a trilogy through Embassy Paperbacks on “Sundays in Horton Bay,” for example– which are all available for purchase at www.lulu.com.

The Ballenger Report asked Long a number of questions relevant to what’s going on in Michigan politics right now.

Question 1): What’s “GT” stand for, anyway?

LONG: Gregory Thomas.

Question 2): What campaigns did you work on?

LONG: The list is extensive. I have been hired by two Speakers of the House (Gary Owen and Lew Dodak) and four Democratic party chairmen  (Gary Corbin, Mark Brewer, Lon Johnson, and Brandon Dillon). During that time I was on loan to numerous campaigns both as a manager, field director, or just to help. I often taught campaign seminars all over Michigan for Democrats.

Question 3): How about specific candidates and officeholders?

LONG: This is a list of the folks I worked for: U.S. Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow; U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak; state Senators Mitch Irwin, Mark Schauer, and Mike Prusi; state Reps. Pat Gagliardi, Gary McDowell, Lon Johnson, Rich Brown, Paul Tesanovich, Mike Lahti, Dave Anthony, Doug Bovin, Andy Neumann, Dan Scripps, Matt Gillard, Dale Sheltrown, and Judy Nerat, plus Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel.

Question 4): Anything outside of Michigan?

LONG: I also worked for NDI ( National Democratic Institute) in Russia, helping train 110 Russian mayors to re-elect Boris Yeltsin. In 1992 and 1994, I myself ran for State Representative in the old 106th district but lost close races. My last campaign was in 2020 working for Mike Bloomberg for President.

Question 5): Looking at what just happened to five Republican candidates who were denied ballot access for this year’s August 2 primary because of the fraudulent petitions they filed, what is your reaction?
LONG: Regarding the recent petition fraud scandal, I mention in one chapter (“Petitions”) the necessity to have all your i’s dotted and t’s crossed to make sure your candidate gets on the ballot. I even give examples of candidates who made simple mistakes and did not make it. Whoever was running the petition drive for these Republicans was either an amateur, or a fool, or both. Normally when someone is running for an office that needs a lot of signatures they hire a company that specializes in petition drives, but that costs money. They obviously tried to do this on their own and failed miserably. I would think it was less about fraud, than about incompetence, but who knows? I mention in that chapter WHERE to get names, and HOW to get names. If someone from those failed campaigns had read my book, they might still be running.
Question 6): Could you run a campaign today the same way you did across four decades in northern Michigan, or has everything changed?
LONG: I would run my campaigns the same way today as I did in the past, except I would add more social media, and take advantage of any high tech advances. Campaigns in my opinion are won by creating energy. My book describes the techniques to do so. I applied some of these techniques in 2018 for Dana Nessel and she got the nomination. It still works.
Question 7): As you know, the Democratic Party has suffered a slow-but-steady ‘reversal of fortune’ in northern Michigan, to the point where there is only one Democratic state legislator left (in Marquette) north of Michigan’s so-called “knuckle.” Why is this?
LONG: This so-called demise of the Democratic Party in the north has many reasons. One, a lot of the organizations that supported Democrats are gone. When the mines closed in the U.P., the unions left. That hurt Democrats in a big way regarding money, manpower, and education. Secondly, radio was and is dominated by right wing programs. Radio is still listened to Up North, in all the tourist shops, and by citizens who have to drive long distances, and all they get is right wing propaganda. Thirdly, term limits hurt Democrats Up North even more than elsewhere. We once had Dominic Jacobetti, Pat Gagliardi, Joe Mack, etc., and they all held positions of power which guaranteed results for our communities, and money and attention for all Democrats running Up North. Term limits took away all that seniority, and shifted that power to downstate. Fourthly, The MDP and other Democratic groups quit investing time and money in the north. Outside of Marquette, we are a fly over zone. You can’t recruit good candidates if they know they will never be given help, or targeted to win. It takes time to build a farm team. Sometimes you have to run more than once to win, but you won’t get people to do that if they don’t get support from Lansing or Washington. We may have a couple this year, around Muskegon and Traverse City. We’ll see.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Tom Kunse says

    June 20, 2022 at 8:39 am

    I checked Amazon, they do not have it. Can you tell me how to order the book?
    Thank you,

    Reply
    • Tom Kunse says

      June 20, 2022 at 10:00 am

      Man – read the article twice and missed it both times. Thank you for pointing it out.
      I’m off to get more coffee.

      Reply
  2. David S. Haynes says

    June 20, 2022 at 8:51 am

    This book is really worth a read. It is fun, fast paced and you actually learn something reading it! And not a nasty, negative thing in it…a rarity these days. Go buy it. Now. You will enjoy it. Worth your time and money.

    Reply
    • Kurt OKeefe says

      June 20, 2022 at 10:23 am

      how did you find it?

      Reply
      • Mr. Stuart Dow says

        June 20, 2022 at 11:39 am

        entered it in google and they directed me to lulu press. just ordered it. easy

        Reply
  3. Whuffagowie says

    June 20, 2022 at 12:54 pm

    Democrats are presiding over the demise of the Republic. Totally incompetent morons are cabinet secretaries. Stabenow says, “let them eat cake”, revealing her true feelings about ordinary Americans that just want to be able to afford to drive back and forth to work. That pesky Constitution doesn’t really mean what it says, they think. The feckless attorney general won’t enforce the law, allowing enraged mobs to harass SCOTUS justices in their homes and the justice department is weaponized to go after any conservative politician who tries to defend the Constitution. Republicans and concerned parents are called terrorists and schoolchildren are being groomed into a perverse culture of wanton sex and indoctrination. What’s next? I wouldn’t contribute one Nickel to purchase anything written by a supporter of any of the above activities.

    Reply
    • Dave says

      July 5, 2022 at 5:37 pm

      Yawn. Nice try Ronna.

      Reply
  4. Bruce B says

    June 20, 2022 at 9:42 pm

    After reading the book, I think some of Hemingway rubbed off on GT Long. It seems Hemingway’s style was all about what he experienced, and GT Long experienced what he wrote about as well…only I think GT did it better…something Hemingway never did…published the humor around us all. Great job! And I can only hope more people buy his book.

    Reply
  5. Matt Crehan says

    June 20, 2022 at 10:48 pm

    Guys like this make politics FUN! Can’t wait to read his book!

    Reply
  6. Bill Perry says

    June 22, 2022 at 8:12 pm

    An excellent read. I highly recommend it.

    Reply
  7. GT Long says

    June 27, 2022 at 1:19 pm

    THANK YOU, for the Review. Thank You also to all the folks who commented who enjoyed the book. The book was not written with a political agenda. I think it could help any political party or any person running for political office or working on a campaign. And…it just might make you laugh, something sorely needed in today’s environment. If you want to order “A Distant Rumble” go to lulu.com Bookstore, type in title, hit enter, and order. Thanks Again!! GT Long

    Reply
  8. Joe Paczkowski says

    August 16, 2022 at 10:39 am

    Great book! G.T. Brings home the excitement and sense of accomplishment campaigning in Michigan. I have heard these stories many times over the years and I am glad that he has memorialized them for others to enjoy.

    Reply
  9. Terri Mulholland says

    February 22, 2023 at 5:17 pm

    Fun times.

    Reply

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