Cygnal Pulse Podcast

Our guest this week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 18) is Eric Wilson, managing partner of the Startup Caucus, an incubator and investment fund for Republican campaign technology. As a part of the Startup Caucus, he is involved in the Center of Campaign Innovation. In 2016, Eric led Marco Rubio’s digital team during his campaign for president. He later served as digital director of Ed Gillespie’s ca...

Our guest this week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 17) is Jay Walker, Executive Director of the Georgia House Republican Caucus and political consultant. In 2020, Republicans kept their majority for the Georgia House of Representatives with all 180 seats in the chamber up for election in 2020. Ceding only two seats, the Republican Party ended up with a 103-77 majority. Inspired by Ronald Reagan, Jay...

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 16) is our first Pulse Pod of the year. Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer discuss what they see changing for lobbyists and public affairs practitioners as their interactions with legislatures this year will be significantly limited due to the ongoing pandemic. Polling will be more important than ever during this year’s legislative sessions. Our guest is Parker...

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 15), Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer take a break from talking about politics. Instead, they discuss the importance of reflecting on the past year and planning for the year ahead. Our guest is Eric Hollander, a GOP Operative, who just successfully managed Darrell Issa’s comeback bid in California. Eric also managed Ted Cruz’s reelection in 2018. Eric was wor...

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 14), Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer begin with a discussion about what it is like for an entrepreneur acquiring their first company; a timely topic as Cygnal recently acquired Harper Polling and this week’s guest is the firm's founder, Brock McCleary. This week’s guest is Brock McCleary, one of the country’s foremost experts on the political landscape of Co...

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 13), Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer begin by discussing what issue work looks like for lobbyists as they may not be allowed in the building to meet with legislators in the same way they have before. Polling can be the key to “get in the door.” This week’s guest is Bo Staples, Director of Political Action Committees and Governmental Reform for the Louisiana...

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 12), Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer examine the influence voter emotions had in the 2020 election and talk about the state of the polling industry after this week’s results. This week’s guest is Felix Cao, expert in neuromarketing and founder of Happy Buying Brain. Felix, the first non-political guest of Pulse Pod, describes to Brent how he got interested i...

A few days before the 2020 US general elections, Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer discuss how this election has more in common with a past election than most realize and what campaigns should be doing in the final days leading up to November 3rd. In this episode (Ep. 11), Brent hosts the renowned Liesl Hickey, former Executive Director of the National Republican Congressional Committee, ad produce...

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 10), Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer analyze the rise of the “rule of law” voter, and discuss the issue of defunding the police and its effect on the electorate. This week’s guest is Adam Piper, Executive Director of the Republican Attorneys General Association. Adam shares how a personal tragedy turned into the catalyst for his political career, as well as...

In this week’s Cygnal Pulse Pod, Brent Buchanan and Chris Kratzer talk about the upcoming Supreme Court nomination and its ramifications on the November elections, both for Republican nationally and at the state and local level. This week’s guest is the legendary Bob Thomas, owner of Thomas Graphics, an Austin-based direct-mail firm, who has been involved in every presidential campaign since 1980....

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 8), CEO Brent Buchanan and VP Chris Kratzer evaluate the importance of suburban women in campaigns and elections. This week’s guest is Art Hackney, former President, Chairman and now Chairman Emeritus of the American Association of Political Consultants. He and Brent discuss his path into politics, exchange insights from past races and share the recipe for su...

In this week’s Cygnal Pulse Pod, CEO Brent Buchanan and VP Chris Kratzer compare and contrast the 2020 Democratic and Republican National Conventions. This week’s guest is Casey Phillips, Creative guru, founder and partner in RedPrint Strategy, a campaign advertising and political strategy firm based in Virginia. He, Brent and Chris talk about how he launched his company, his different approach to...

This week on the Cygnal Pulse Pod (Ep. 6), CEO Brent Buchanan and VP Chris Kratzer discuss the importance of predictive analytics in political campaigns. This week’s guest is Dave Carney, a New Hampshire-based general consultant who helps candidates around the U.S. win BIG. He describes his unique experience in politics that brought him to consulting and looks back on the most significant races in...

In this episode of the Cygnal Pulse Pod, CEO Brent Buchanan and VP Chris Kratzer review how down-ballot candidates can differentiate themselves. This week’s guest is Saul Anuzis, the former Chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and current President and incoming Chairman of the 60 Plus Association. He and Brent discuss the events that led him to politics as well as interesting stories and impo...

On this episode of the Cygnal Pulse Pod, CEO Brent Buchanan, and VP of Research & Analysis Chris Kratzer, talk about “safety voters” and build revisit their previous discussion about voters’ emotions. This week’s guest is John Rogers, former Executive Director of NRCC. He and Brent talk about the wisdom and experience he acquired from his record four cycles at the committee. He discusses his great...

On the latest episode of the Cygnal Pulse Pod, CEO Brent Buchanan, and VP of Research & Analysis Chris Kratzer, discuss Vote-by-mail and how it’s impacting 2020 races. Then, Cliff Sims, author of “ Team of Vipers: My 500 Extraordinary Days in the Trump White House” , describes to Brent how he went from a guy playing in a band to working a state house race in Alabama and eventually working for Pres...

In this second episode of the Cygnal Pulse Pod, Cygnal’s CEO, Brent Buchanan, and VP of Research & Analysis, Chris Kratzer, explore the emotional drivers of voters. This episode’s guest is Austin Chambers, President of the Republican State Leadership Committee. He and Brent discuss his time in politics, his experience from the numerous campaigns he‘s run and the most important lessons he’s learned...

The introductory episode of the Cygnal Pulse Pod introduces you to our hosts, Cygnal’s CEO, Brent Buchanan, and VP of Research & Analysis, Chris Kratzer. The Pulse Pod is here to entertain and help conservative politicos, operatives, and people who are just interested in politics learn more about polling and other aspects of campaigning. Guests will include GOP committee members, campaign managers...