He had the poise of a veteran but the keen smile of a newcomer as he slipped into the governor’s conference room demurely through the back entrance. Inaugurated just 19 days earlier, Gov. Scott McCallum made his first intimate appearance to the news media at a Dec. 5, 2001, press conference preceding his first biennial budget address.

The new executive assured restless camera operators his staff was running a few minutes late and the briefing would begin shortly; he even darted a smile to one eager college reporter.

But since then, the 2001-2003 budget has been a central factor in the graying of McCallum’s hair, destruction of his public opinion, and disintegration of his key staff.

A recent poll by St. Norbert’s/WPR shows McCallum’s approval rating is down to 40 percent. Certainly, this is no Gallup job, but since Gov. Tommy Thompson packed his bags for D.C., Republicans in the Capitol have been getting more flak — and it’s not that they are necessarily doing that much differently, except dealing with the shadow of the budget.

In his first budget address — the one before the repair bill was introduced — McCallum forecasted stormy weather . . . both political and personal.

“There can be no doubt this will be a difficult budget process and I am sure the debates will sometimes be fierce, but there is no need for our political differences to spill over into our personal relationships,” he said, just before thanking the audience in the Senate Chamber.

In politics, personal relationships are fostered and monitored by communications offices; a lot has changed in the governor’s press office in the past two years — namely, every paid press staff member. According to Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin, a citizen advocacy group, McCallum intentionally built a new office staff in order to build a new, neo-Thompson identity.

“The first thing McCallum did as governor was bring in his own team, but that broke down continuity from the popular Thompson administration,” Heck said. “Consequently, the popularity did not transfer.”

An independent, informal study by The Badger Herald zeroed into the press office’s functionality. One Herald staff member called the governor’s press secretary twice daily for five consecutive weekdays. She never answered the phone, so each time a voice mail message requesting a returned telephone call was left. The Herald received two returned phone calls.

“If you would have called the press office during the Thompson administration, they would have gotten back to you,” Heck said.

Flaws in McCallum’s leadership have received national attention. The New York Times criticized McCallum’s leadership style. The article said disgruntled supporters of McCallum were unhappy with his response to constituents.

The “personal” aspects of his leadership have clearly come to the forefront of his campaign. A campaign staff overhaul is the most recent indication of tumult in the executive office, but maybe staff changes are McCallum’s attempt to set the ship back on course. Gene Kussart, from the Department of Transportation, is now serving as McCallum’s chief of staff, and former Executive Director of the State Republican Party Darrin Schmitz is taking over as his campaign manager.

“The changes came suddenly and were made swiftly . . . obviously they needed to do something,” Heck said.

— Christine Lagorio ([email protected]) is news editor of the Badger Herald. She is a junior majoring in journalism, history and English.