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From the Central Valley to the Center of World Politics

By Jeanne Winnick Brennan
Working as a field rep for the Republican Party for assembly candidates from the Central Coast, Bakersfield native Michael Deaver first met Ronald Reagan when he came to Santa Barbara seeking local party leaders’ support in his run against Gov. Pat Brown in 1966.
    Shortly thereafter, Deaver sidelined his plans to become an ad executive, took up residence in Sacramento
to work for newly elected Gov. Reagan, and soon met and married Land Park native Carolyn Judy.
    From Sacramento to Washington, D.C., Deaver and Reagan became the quintessential symbiotic political pairing. Peripatetic, driven and devoted, Deaver could be seen in the early days staging all the visuals in an arena, a ballroom or on a dais. Reagan would then step into the picture-perfect setting, connect with his audience and the cameras and deliver his message. Even during the White House years, Deaver could be seen at most events standing in the wings, surveying his minions of advance men and the visuals they’d create.
    “You have to know who you are – really understand who you are – or you can’t communicate clearly, and this is true whether you are a business, a country or a politician,” says Deaver. “That’s rule No. 1.”
    Now Edelman Worldwide’s international vice chairman as well as executive VP for the global public relations firm’s Washington office, Deaver, 67, provides strategic counsel to clients such as Nike, CSX, Nissan and Microsoft. For governments such as Portugal, India, Chile, Morocco and Panama, he oversees U.S.-based economic development plans and image programs.
    He often holds a messaging workshop to help a CEO chart a course for a company and discover who or what they are. “I tell the CEO to ‘get your team together,’ which is usually about four or five key people, and we lock them in a room until they can all agree,” says Deaver. “Only a management team in agreement can go forward with a clear and concise message.” This he admits he learned from Ronald Reagan, the master communicator he served for 30 years from Sacramento to Washington, D.C.
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