--- title: The First Task for Donald Trump’s New Campaign Chief: Manage the Candidate description: Kellyanne Conway is accustomed to dealing with difficult clients. In 2012, the Republican strategist advised Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin, who peddled the phony notion... canonical: https://time.com/4465745/the-first-task-for-donald-trumps-new-campaign-chief-manage-the-candidate/ author: Alex Altman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-25T10:33:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T00:11:42.274Z article:section: Politics og:title: The First Task for Donald Trump’s New Campaign Chief: Manage the Candidate og:description: Kellyanne Conway is accustomed to dealing with difficult clients. In 2012, the Republican strategist advised Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin, who peddled the phony notion... og:url: https://time.com/4465745/the-first-task-for-donald-trumps-new-campaign-chief-manage-the-candidate/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The First Task for Donald Trump’s New Campaign Chief: Manage the Candidate twitter:description: Kellyanne Conway is accustomed to dealing with difficult clients. In 2012, the Republican strategist advised Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin, who peddled the phony notion... twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # The First Task for Donald Trump's New Campaign Chief: Manage the Candidate > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=2d82ed07-dfae-4129-9c61-b4999fc5b6ab&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/subscribe?i=2d82ed07-dfae-4129-9c61-b4999fc5b6ab&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's politics newsletter? D.C. Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Alex Altman](https://time.com/author/alex-altman/)  ## Alex Altman Altman is the executive features editor and deputy Washington bureau chief at TIME. Aug 25, 2016 10:33 AM UTC  by [Alex Altman](https://time.com/author/alex-altman/)  ## Alex Altman Altman is the executive features editor and deputy Washington bureau chief at TIME. Aug 25, 2016 10:33 AM UTC Kellyanne Conway is accustomed to dealing with difficult clients. In 2012, the Republican strategist advised Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin, who peddled the phony notion that in cases of “legitimate rape,” a woman’s body has mysterious powers to prevent pregnancy. The remark helped sink the GOP’s shot at controlling the Senate. And it would turn Conway into something of a specialist in helping Republican candidates refine their pitch to female voters. At a 2013 House Republican retreat, she instructed members that rape was a “four-letter word” that shouldn’t ever be uttered in political campaigns. Now the veteran pollster, 49, has another Akin-size challenge on her hands. Donald Trump named Conway his campaign manager on Aug. 17, making her the third person in as many months to lead his struggling crusade. The announcement coincided with a clear shift in Trump’s behavior. He (again) started reading off teleprompters at rallies, staged a photo op in the floodplains of Louisiana, expressed regret for causing offense with past remarks and signaled he might soften his hard-line stance on immigration. Long a fixture on cable news shows, Conway has run her own Washington firm for more than two decades and advised Trump on and off for several years. She worked on behalf of Texas Senator Ted Cruz during the 2016 GOP primary. But she has never led a presidential campaign, let alone one that requires such a dramatic makeover. Her plan for Trump this fall is to put the focus back on Hillary Clinton, who suffers from her own high disapproval ratings, while pitching Trump as the change candidate to a restive electorate. Allies say she is up to the job. “An outsize ego is no match for Kellyanne Conway,” says GOP strategist Rick Tyler. The first task: win Trump another look from the nearly 7 in 10 female voters who have a negative view of him. “She has thought more about the concerns of women,” says former House Speaker and Conway client Newt Gingrich, “than any other Republican I know.” The outcome is ultimately not in Conway’s hands. She can provide sage counsel. Then it’s up to the candidate to tame his own tongue. –ALEX ALTMAN, ZEKE J. 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