Editing Paul Begala

{{Short description|American political consultant}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Paul Begala
| image = Paul Begala by Gage Skidmore.jpg
|caption=Begala in 2012
| office = [[Counselor to the President]]
| president = [[Bill Clinton]]
| alongside = <!-- [[Mack McLarty]] -->
| term_start = August 17, 1997
| term_end = March 10, 1999
| predecessor = [[Bill Curry (politician)|Bill Curry]]
| successor = [[Ann Lewis]]
| birth_name = Paul Edward Begala
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1961|5|12}}
| birth_place = [[New Jersey]], U.S.
| residence = [[Virginia]], U.S.
| death_date = 
| death_place = 
| party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| spouse = Diane Friday
| children = 4
| education = [[University of Texas at Austin]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]], [[Juris Doctor|JD]])
}}

'''Paul Edward Begala''' (born May 12, 1961) is an American political consultant and political commentator, best known as the former advisor to President [[Bill Clinton]].

Begala was a chief [[strategist]] for the [[Bill Clinton presidential campaign, 1992|1992 Clinton-Gore campaign]], which carried 33 states and made Clinton the first Democrat to occupy the [[White House]] in 12 years. As counselor to the President in the Clinton White House, he coordinated policy, politics, and communications.

Begala gained national prominence as part of the [[political consulting]] team Carville and Begala, which he formed with fellow Clinton advisor [[James Carville]]. He was a co-host on the political debate program ''[[Equal Time (TV program)|Equal Time]]'' on [[MSNBC]] from 1999 to 2000, and a co-host on the similar debate program ''[[Crossfire (U.S. TV program)|Crossfire]]'' on [[CNN]] from 2002 to 2005. He now appears regularly on CNN as a Democratic pundit. He is an Affiliated Professor of Public Policy at [[Georgetown University]]'s [[McCourt School of Public Policy]].

== Early life and education ==
Begala was born in [[New Jersey]], to an [[Irish American]] mother, Margaret "Peggy" (née Cass), and a [[Hungarian American]] father, David Begala. He was raised in [[Missouri City, Texas|Missouri City]], [[Texas]], where his father was an oil-field equipment salesman.<ref name="ref92">{{cite news| last=Grove| first=Lloyd| title=Nailing the Lid on the GOP; Clinton Strategist Paul Begala Learned His Politics at the Hardware Store|newspaper=The Washington Post| date=November 5, 1992|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/74060250.html?dids=74060250:74060250&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+05%2C+1992&author=Lloyd+Grove&pub=The+Washington+Post+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&esc=Nailing+the+Lid+on+the+Gop%3B+Clinton+Strategist+Paul+Begala+Learned+His+Politics+at+the+Hardware+Store&pqatl=google|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121106171753/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/74060250.html?dids=74060250:74060250&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+05,+1992&author=Lloyd+Grove&pub=The+Washington+Post+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&esc=Nailing+the+Lid+on+the+Gop%3B+Clinton+Strategist+Paul+Begala+Learned+His+Politics+at+the+Hardware+Store&pqatl=google|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 6, 2012|access-date=January 28, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/thirdtermwhygeor00bega|url-access=registration|title=Third Term: Why George W. Bush (Hearts) John McCain|first=Paul|last=Begala|date=September 9, 2008|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=9781439102138 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref> In 1979, Begala graduated from [[Dulles High School (Sugar Land, Texas)|Dulles High School]] in [[Sugar Land, Texas|Sugar Land]], Texas.

He earned both his [[Bachelor of Arts]] and [[Juris Doctor]] from the [[University of Texas at Austin]], where he taught briefly. While at the University of Texas, Begala was a candidate for student government president. However, he finished second to a [[Write-in candidate|write-in campaign]] for Hank the Hallucination, a character from the campus comic strip ''[[Eyebeam (comic)|Eyebeam]]''. Following his loss, Begala wrote a [[tongue-in-cheek]] complaint for the ''[[Daily Texan]]'', arguing "I cannot help but feel Hank's platform is illusory at best...I must say that the candidate himself lacks substance". Begala was declared the winner, following a ruling that imaginary characters could not hold the position.<ref>[http://www.dailytexanonline.com/media/paper410/news/2004/04/19/TopStories/Sg.Helps.Foster.Future.Leaders-664368.shtml?norewrite&sourcedomain=www.dailytexanonline.com SG helps foster future leaders] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930210058/http://www.dailytexanonline.com/media/paper410/news/2004/04/19/TopStories/Sg.Helps.Foster.Future.Leaders-664368.shtml?norewrite&sourcedomain=www.dailytexanonline.com |date=2007-09-30 }}, ''The Daily Texan'', April 19, 2004; accessed February 5, 2008.</ref>

== Career ==
[[Image:PaulBegala.JPG|thumb|left|175px|Begala in 2005]]

Begala, along with business partner [[James Carville]], helped then-[[Governor of Arkansas]] [[Bill Clinton|Clinton]] win the [[U.S. presidential election, 1992|1992 presidential election]]. Begala was a chief strategist for the 1992 Clinton–Gore campaign. Clinton carried 33 states and became the first Democrat elected president since 1976. Begala later served as a counselor to the President in the Clinton White House, where he coordinated policy, politics, and communications.<ref name="BegalaCon">{{cite web |url=http://conversationswithbillkristol.org/transcript/paul-begala-transcript/ |title=PAUL BEGALA TRANSCRIPT |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= 18 February 2015 |website=Conversations with Bill Kristol |publisher=The Foundation for Constitutional Government |access-date=6 June 2018}}</ref>

Aside from the 1992 presidential election, Begala and Carville had other well-known political victories including the [[United States Senate special election in Pennsylvania, 1991|1991 Pennsylvania U.S. Senate victory]] of [[Harris Wofford]], the 1988 re-election campaign of incumbent New Jersey U.S. Senator [[Frank Lautenberg]], and the gubernatorial victories of [[Robert P. Casey|Robert Casey]] in Pennsylvania in 1986, [[Wallace G. Wilkinson]] in Kentucky in 1987, and [[Zell Miller]] in Georgia in 1990. Begala later revealed he had favored his former client, Pennsylvania senator Harris Wofford, over [[Al Gore]] as Bill Clinton's running mate in the 1992 presidential election.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://conversationswithbillkristol.org/video/paul-begala/?start=1175&end=1974/|title=Paul Begala on Conversations with Bill Kristol}}</ref>

He was a contributor to [[John F. Kennedy, Jr.]]'s political magazine ''[[George (magazine)|George]]'' in the late 1990s.

From 1999 until its cancellation in 2000, Begala co-hosted the political debate show ''[[Equal Time (TV program)|Equal Time]]'' with [[Oliver North]] on [[MSNBC]].<ref>{{cite web |title=MSNBC is out of 'Time' |url=https://variety.com/2000/tv/news/msnbc-is-out-of-time-1117790679/ |publisher=Variety |first=Paula |last=Bernstein |date=December 17, 2000}}</ref> From 2002 until its cancellation in 2005, he co-hosted the political debate show ''[[Crossfire (U.S. TV program)|Crossfire]]'' on [[CNN]], alternating with Carville as the left-wing host, while the position of right-wing host alternated between [[Robert Novak]] and [[Tucker Carlson]].

As an author and co-author, Begala has written five political books: ''Is Our Children Learning?: The Case Against George W. Bush''; ''Buck Up, Suck Up and Come Back When You Foul Up'' (with James Carville); ''It's Still the Economy Stupid''; and ''Third Term: Why George W. Bush (Hearts) John McCain''.

He was an early supporter of [[Hillary Clinton]] during the [[Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2008|2008 presidential primaries]]. However, after she dropped out of the race, he became a backer of [[Barack Obama]].

On January 12, 2008, Begala appeared on [[NPR]]'s radio show ''[[Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!]]'', playing the game Not My Job. He won by answering two out of three questions correctly.

Begala was a consultant in the service of mortgage lender [[Freddie Mac]], an arrangement that ended in September 2008.<ref>Calmes, Jackie; Kirkpatrick, David D. [https://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/24/us/politics/24davis.html?ei=5124&en=914a8b3d514bafae&ex=1379908800&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink&pagewanted=all "McCain Aide's Firm Was Paid by Freddie Mac"], ''New York Times'', September 23, 2008; accessed November 8, 2008.</ref>

Begala is currently a CNN political commentator and a research professor of public policy at [[Georgetown University]]'s [[McCourt School of Public Policy]].

He is a member of the board of directors of [[Democratic Majority for Israel]], an organization that promotes U.S.-Israel cooperation and whose political arm, DMFI PAC, ran attack ads against Senator [[Bernie Sanders|Bernie Sanders's]] candidacy before the [[2020 United States presidential election|2020 presidential election]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://demmajorityforisrael.org/board/ |title=Board of Directors|publisher=[[Democratic Majority for Israel]]|access-date=2020-01-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215132957/https://demmajorityforisrael.org/board/ |archive-date=2019-12-15 | url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/28/us/politics/bernie-sanders-attack-ads.html |title=Pro-Israel Democratic Super PAC to Air Attack Ads Against Bernie Sanders|work=The New York Times|publication-date= 2020-01-28|access-date=2020-01-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200128225202/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/28/us/politics/bernie-sanders-attack-ads.html|archive-date=2020-01-28 | author=Lisa Lerer | author2=Sydney Ember |date=28 January 2020 | url-status=live}}</ref>

Looking back at his career and the U.S. political scene, Begala has remarked that a "presidential campaign is like a film. It never comes together until it's scored and tracked".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/270691/take-it-easy-baby-robert-costa|title=Take It Easy, Baby|website=[[National Review]] |date=28 June 2011 }}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Begala and his wife, Diane Friday, have four sons. They currently live in [[Virginia]].<ref>Halperin, Mark; [[David Chalian]], Teddy Davis, Sarah Baker, Jonathan Greenberger, Katie Hinman, Emily O'Donnell, Mike Westling, Dan Nechita. [https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/TheNote/story?id=1621792 "The Note: Gang of 1"], ''ABC News'', February 15, 2006.</ref>

Begala is [[Roman Catholic]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/PaulBegala/statuses/172498863645663232|title=I'm observant Catholic. Wearing ashes. Just referring to Santo's weird Satan speech. MT|publisher=Twitter}}</ref>

== Bibliography ==
* ''Is Our Children Learning?: The Case Against [[George W. Bush]]'', New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000. {{ISBN|0-7432-1478-1}}
* ''It's Still the Economy, Stupid: George W. Bush, The GOP's CEO'', New York: Simon & Schuster, 2002. {{ISBN|0-7432-4647-0}}
* ''Third Term: Why George W. Bush (Hearts) [[John McCain]]'', New York: Simon & Schuster, 2008. {{ISBN|1-4391-0213-9}}
* ''You're Fired: The Perfect Guide to Beating Donald Trump'', New York: Simon & Schuster, 2020. {{ISBN|1-9821-6004-7}}

'''Co-authored with James Carville'''
* ''Buck Up, Suck Up... and Come Back When You Foul Up: 12 Winning Secrets from the War Room'', New York: Simon & Schuster, 2002. {{ISBN|0-7432-2422-1}}
* ''Take It Back: Our Party, Our Country, Our Future'', New York: Simon & Schuster, 2006. {{ISBN|0-7432-7752-X}}

== References ==
{{reflist|40em}}

== External links ==
{{wikiquote}}
* [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-begala/ Paul Begala] at the [[Huffington Post]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051208054747/http://www.tpmcafe.com/author/begala Paul Begala] at the group [[blog]] TPMCafe
* {{IMDb name|66669|Paul Begala}}
*{{C-SPAN|23636}}
{{s-start}}
{{s-off}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Bill Curry (politician)|Bill Curry]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Counselor to the President]]|years=1997–1999}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Ann Lewis]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{CNN Anchors}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Begala, Paul}}
[[Category:1961 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:21st-century American male writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:21st-century Roman Catholics]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:American people of Hungarian descent]]
[[Category:American people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:American political commentators]]
[[Category:American political consultants]]
[[Category:American political writers]]
[[Category:American Roman Catholic writers]]
[[Category:Clinton administration personnel]]
[[Category:CNN people]]
[[Category:Counselors to the president of the United States]]
[[Category:Dulles High School (Sugar Land, Texas) alumni]]
[[Category:McCourt School of Public Policy faculty]]
[[Category:Senior advisors to the president of the United States]]
[[Category:Texas Democrats]]
[[Category:University of Georgia faculty]]
[[Category:University of Texas School of Law alumni]]
[[Category:Writers from Houston]]
[[Category:Writers from New Jersey]]