Roll Call: Pragmatist Tom Cole on Legislative Success, Working the Press
Pragmatist Tom Cole on Legislative Success, Working the Press
By Matt Fuller
Rep. Tom Cole may not make the decisions for House Republicans, but he’s often the one explaining them.
Credit is due to any lawmaker constantly willing — eager, even — to talk to reporters. Love him or hate him — and there are plenty lawmakers from both parties who privately express frustration with his seemingly outsized influence in the media — Cole has emerged in recent years as a fixture for the Capitol Hill press.
He’s simply everywhere.
He’s in the second paragraph of a story headlined with the words “GOP lawmaker.” He’s in a basement hallway of the Capitol, staring down the business end of a dozen recorders. He’s in a corner of the Speaker’s Lobby, giving any reporter willing to chat the time of day.