
Uber Picks Obama’s Former Campaign Manager to Wage Its Regulatory Battles - kanamekun
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/20/technology/uber-picks-a-political-insider-to-wage-its-regulatory-battles.html
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adestefan
If the taxi industry hired the same guy, then HN would be up in arms about how
the industry is dying and that lobbying is destroying the world.

The hypocrisy is astounding.

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bandhakavi
I think this is where innovation will plateau and BAU wars will start

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elicash
He's got a high profile and is smart, sure, but the lobbying world is
completely different than the campaign world. Seems like an odd choice to me.

Unless he'll be handling more of a grassroots approach than an inside-game
strategy? Stuff like:
[http://go.uber.org/california/](http://go.uber.org/california/) maybe?

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dubcanada
How is the lobbying world any different then campaign? They seem exactly the
same too me.

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jbooth
Plouffe ran an exceptional 'outsider' campaign, where a lot of the party
apparatchiks were already pledged to Clinton, and the Obama campaign built
their own outside infrastructure to compete.

Lobbying is about 'insiders'. You can nudge them with popular pressure, of
course, but it's not like an election where the party insider only has 1 vote
they completely control at the end of the day.

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georgemcbay
Yeah.. but he won, so now he's an insider. I'm sure he's adjusted to the
status change by now, 6 years later.

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elicash
He's not dealing with regulators, ever. It's not "insider" versus "outsider."

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fleitz
Brilliant idea.

Turn public opinion, city council pretty much has to follow. The free market
might appeal to us but it's not going to appeal to your typical city voter. If
uber can turn its message into something urban voters can identify with, they
can generate favorable legislation, and urban voters generally love Obama's
message.

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NickWarner775
Maybe this will be the push needed for Uber to take Lyft out of the
competition.

