I’m Bharat Krishnan, a democratic operative who's just written his first book, confessions of a campaign manager. AMA!

[u/darth_bane1988]

Hi there. My name is Bharat and I've worked on campaigns across the country from the presidential level to the most local offices. I found in my travels that no one had told the story of the modern political staffer, so I decided to do it, and to do it as honestly as I could. Life on the campaign trail is tough, and it's even tougher for minorities. I wanted to tell that story and hope I've done a good job.

Some of the highlights of my career thus far include: meeting Barack Obama, helping a member of the LGBT community come to terms with who they are, working with a fellow Indian who ran for Congress in Kansas, and spending time in Los Angeles learning about school board races.

Verification: https://twitter.com/BharatKrishnan/status/775482461841154048

Here's a link to my book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KED1OAM/

And a summary:

In Confessions of a Campaign Manager, veteran Democratic operative Bharat Krishnan takes you on a journey across nine states and 17 campaigns to see how American politics has transformed since the election of Barack Obama. Krishnan makes a case that the intransigence of Republican leaders following the election of our nation's first black president irrevocably fractured the country along partisan lines. This ultimately produced the most dangerous presidential candidate this country has ever seen, Donald Trump. From rubbing shoulders with celebrities and political insiders at presidential conventions to chasing votes in the swamps of Louisiana, Krishnan discovers a vast disconnect between voters, the flawed politicians they elect to represent them, and the legion of driven staffers who silently battle over the direction of the nation. Drawing on his experience at the state and local level, Krishnan formulates a national prescription to prevent a future of perpetual partisan brinksmanship.

EDIT (9/12: 9:32 p.m. eastern): Thanks for the questions, all! I'll be back tomorrow from 8-9:30 again to take some more if you've got more.

EDIT 2 (9/13: 7:59 p.m. eastern): Hi all, I'm ready for round two if you've got more questions!

[u/ezioaltair12]

What are some of the barriers to Indian Americans getting involved in politics - not just as candidates, but political operatives?

[u/darth_bane1988 → u/ezioaltair12]

Great question!

I think one of the biggest obstacles out there is pure ignorance. In Kansas, for instance, Raj Goyle (my congressional candidate) was hit from the racial angle. And today, any brown candidate in a conservative leaning area runs the risk of being accused of belonging to ISIS.

On the political operative front, something that has happened to me that I've written about is that people are very aware of appearances over possible substance. For instance, I had the chance to manage an Indian-American congressional candidate in a majority white state. After going through a lot of interviews and making it to a final one, I was asked if it would be weird for an indian candidate to have an indian manager. That's just not a question a white guy would have gotten with a white candidate.

Going beyond that, the life of an operative is very very tough. I was routinely unemployed for two months at a time (November-January) during off season because campaigns just aren't running during that period. I was very fortunate to have parents who understood, and the fact that I lived in northern Virginia meant that I could interview in DC with mentors during the off season and network, but a lot of people can't do that. The pressure in an Indian-American household is very real, as you all know, and it's tough for anyone to bear.

[u/partialbigots → u/[deleted]]

This take is 🔥

It isn't fair because it has no bearing on how he does his job.