During the 2010 election cycle, Arthur Lieber ran for Congress in Missouri\u2019s 2^{nd<\/sup> Congressional district.\u00a0 By percentages, Lieber lost badly to the heavily favored incumbent Todd Akin.\u00a0 But the final vote tally is not as compelling as the story behind the numbers.\u00a0 In a year when Democrats were positioning themselves as centrists, Lieber was openly progressive.\u00a0 In a year when candidates of all parties chased donor money more frantically than ever, Lieber ran his campaign on a tiny budget and accepted no monetary donations.\u00a0 \u00a0And in a year when mud-slinging and smears were far more common than reasoned dialogue, Lieber\u2019s campaign was relentlessly civil.\u00a0 In fact, Lieber\u2019s run for office was the most principled, unconventional campaign that most Missourians never heard of.\u00a0 In his book, An Unlikely Candidate: Reflections on My Run for Congress,<\/em> we find out why.<\/p>\n}

In the interest of full disclosure, I should begin by saying that I have known Arthur Lieber for over half my life.\u00a0 Many years ago I met him when I was a high school student participating in Civitas\u2019 Model United Nations program, and in my more adult incarnation I actually coordinate middle school programs for Civitas.\u00a0 I am not an unbiased reviewer.\u00a0 That said, I think anyone who picks up his book will find it a compelling read.\u00a0 At its core it\u2019s the tale of a thoughtful human being attempting to navigate the all-too-often inhumane process of campaigning for elected office.<\/p>\n

Part one of Lieber\u2019s book is a narrative of the congressional campaign itself.\u00a0 \u00a0Upon reading this section, one immediately is struck by how draining (physically, mentally, interpersonally) a political campaign is.\u00a0 Canvassing, candidate forums, phone calls, candidate questionaires\u2026and Lieber readily admits that by refusing monetary contributions he avoided the hugely time-consuming (and soul crushing task) of fundraising.\u00a0 To maintain one\u2019s sense of self in the face of such a process is a daunting task, it seems, and one that requires the sense of humor and irony that Lieber evidences again and again in the first section of the book.<\/p>\n

Impressively, Lieber manages to give readers a true \u201cinsider\u201d look at the campaign without engaging in petty character slams against those who slighted his candidacy or were less than genuine in their interactions with him.\u00a0 In reading the book you gain insight into local media figures and politicos, but you never feel like Lieber was simply using his book to settle scores.\u00a0 He is as quick to lavish praise as he is to level reasoned criticism.\u00a0 Whether discussing Don Marsh, Bill McClellan, or Jack Danforth, he paints portraits of local personalities in a way that feels insightful but not exploitive or gossipy.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, there are no sacred cows in Lieber\u2019s book.\u00a0\u00a0 In one of the most powerful passages, he recounts his long standing respect (and financial support) of Planned Parenthood, and how he ultimately lost some of his esteem for the organization once he saw the process by which the organization endorsed\u2014or didn\u2019t endorse–candidates.\u00a0 Leading and narrowly designed candidate questionaires, frustrating communication difficulties with the Planned Parenthood office, and an unwillingness to endorse a candidate unless they looked like they would win, all forced Lieber to look more critically at an organization he has long supported (and may well continue to support).<\/p>\n

Part two of Lieber\u2019s book focuses more on policy than narrative and attempts to layout concrete steps that could be taken to improve the political process. \u00a0In this section, Lieber is brave enough to offer unorthodox policy suggestions but also humble enough to admit that he doesn\u2019t have all the answers.\u00a0 His chapter on the need for schools that prepare students for democracy is particularly strong.\u00a0 Does Lieber tilt at a few windmills here, suggesting changes to our current political and education system that seem to be highly unlikely at best?\u00a0 Definitely.\u00a0 But if more candidates were willing to engage in such thoughtful, unconventional problem solving, our political discourse would certainly be richer and more fruitful.<\/p>\n

Upon finishing\u00a0 An Unlikely Candidate,<\/em> one can\u2019t help but wonder how our country would be different if those who ran for office approached it more like Lieber.\u00a0 Impossible?\u00a0 Given our current system of funding campaigns and educating the electorate, it probably is.\u00a0 But it\u2019s exciting to imagine nevertheless.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During the 2010 election cycle, Arthur Lieber ran for Congress in Missouri\u2019s 2nd Congressional district.\u00a0 By percentages, Lieber lost badly to the heavily favored<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":7622,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[162,29,784,119,16],"tags":[230,120,528],"yoast_head":"\n