Politics

7 Tips From James Carville And Karl Rove For Lawyers Who Plan To Enter Politics

Lawyers and law students are more equipped than most to shape our nation's agenda over the next several decades.

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vote voting politics politicians election 2016“The people’s champ must be everything the people can’t be / I’m getting artsy-farsy, house full of some Hebru Brantley’s / You must’ve missed the come up, I must be all I can be / Call me Mister Mufasa, I had to master stampedes.” – Chance the Rapper

Earlier this month, I attended a lively debate between James Carville and Karl Rove. The two famed politicos sparred over the issues and sentiments of the upcoming election. They discussed everything from mental health to political biases and William Jennings Bryan to Donald Trump.

In the spirit of this political season, I asked both Carville and Rove, “What career advice do you have for law school graduates who plan to enter the world of politics – as a politician, political consultant, campaign manager, or otherwise?”

James Carville stated that for someone to truly succeed in politics, “you must know yourself and the times.” In addition to knowing yourself, he believed there were two immeasurable traits someone new to politics should possess:

You must have the ability and the passion to study hard.

You must enjoy and strive to continually meet people unlike themselves.

Karl Rove offered five bits of wisdom to succeed in politics:

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Your political success is a direct relationship to your ability to say ‘no.’

There is an inverse relationship to your ability to say ‘no’ and your income. It will dent your pocketbook in the short-run, but it will be good for you in the long-run.

Find a passion outside of politics – ‘don’t be that guy.’

You can participate in politics anywhere, go where you want to live [Rove chose Austin, Texas early in his career].

Be ready to walk away when the time comes, because the time will come.

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Many believe the JD is one of the most portable degrees, others not so much. Regardless of which side of the fence you are on, it would be hard to debate that any other degree provides better training for crafting legislation, statutes, laws, rules, and regulations.

Numerous legislators, policy makers, and lobbyists are law school alumni. Nearly two out of every five United States senators is a lawyer. Both POTUS and FLOTUS are former attorneys. One of our current presidential candidates and her husband both have their JDs as well. And of course, James “The Ragin’ Cajun” Carville is a 1973 graduate of the LSU Law Center.

Both Carville’s and Rove’s advice to succeed in politics is just as applicable to success in life. Just as a party of order or stability and a party of progress or reform are both necessary elements of a healthy state of political life, so too is civic responsibility a necessary element of a healthy state of community.

Whether you just plan on voting this year or plan on making a career in politics, you are more equipped than most to shape our nation’s agenda over the next several decades.

Some of us went to law school specifically to enter the world of politics, while others could not care less about entering this bloody arena. But really, could you imagine our political system without lawyers? For better or worse, there has been a noticeable decline of lawyers in our political system.

At the very least, we should exercise our civic duty and vote. If we are dissatisfied with the current political landscape, then we must vote to facilitate change. For many minority communities, change often happens through participation in grassroots efforts. We need to be the change we so actively seek. It begins and ends with us.

Just think, even if your presidential nominee doesn’t become president-elect this year, you can always vote for Kanye West in 2020. God bless America, where anything can happen.

Renwei Chung attends SMU Dedman School of Law. He has an undergraduate degree from Michigan State University and a MBA from the University of Chicago. He is passionate about writing, technology, psychology, and economics. You can contact Renwei by email at projectrenwei@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter (@renweichung), or connect with him on LinkedIn.

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