The Selling of 'McCain 2.0'

Schriefer sees no problems in McCain's position.

"McCain has already talked about things he would have done differently than Bush, and he'll continue to do that," he says. "I think McCain absolutely can be a change agent. The guy's had a career of being independent, of reaching across party lines."

What about complaints that the onetime maverick has trimmed his sails to become an establishment candidate? "Some people wanted him to be the guy running against George Bush. When he's not, because Bush isn't in the race, they become disappointed, and that's okay," Schriefer says.

The secret to breaking through the Washington static, in his view, is to capture the courage that McCain displayed as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, as recounted in the memoir that Schriefer reread before joining the campaign.

"There's a certain sense that we need to tell the McCain story," Schriefer says. "It's using the story to compel the McCain vision of what he wants to do as president. The trick of the advertising is to bring those two halves together, the personal and the policy."

Still, Schriefer is quick to observe that he and the other Bush strategists, unlike such longtime confidants as John Weaver and Mark Salter, are not yet part of McCain's inner circle. "They've asked me to steer the train, make sure everyone is onboard and collect the tickets from time to time," he says. "But you can't expect us to walk in and be the go-to guys for McCain when you have people who've surrounded him for years."

Striking an Emotional Chord

Media consultants are critical players in presidential elections, because television advertising is the largest single expense and helps drive the campaign dialogue. Even in the Internet age, a barrage of 30-second bursts is the heaviest artillery available.

Schriefer's signature ads involve testimonials by family members or supporters that attempt to strike an emotional chord with viewers. When Tom Ridge ran for Pennsylvania governor in 1994, Schriefer put him in a leather bomber jacket on a frozen Lake Erie while his mother called, "Tom, put your hat on." The spot got people taking about the little-known congressman.

While Schriefer's firm has represented its share of Southern conservatives, it is most closely associated with Northeastern moderates such as Ridge and Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., the former Maryland governor, whose loss last year is described by friends as heartbreaking for Schriefer. He had helped Ehrlich win election to Congress in 1994 with spots that featured the candidate's parents sitting on a porch.

"The first commercial he made in my first race, people still come up and talk to me about that," Ehrlich says. "Russ is terrific, a real pro. He's not a hothead. . . . He does not have a reputation of coming in as a black hat, running ugly and negative ads."

Schriefer has churned out plenty of attack ads, but he tends to avoid harsh music and special effects in favor of barbed humor and documented charges. "Negative ads motivate people to vote," he says. "If you go too far and you step over the line, you get called on it and it winds up hurting your campaign."

But Schriefer isn't averse to playing rough.