Wednesday Open Line


The election cycle just passed engaged campaign managers in almost all levels of political races. The man usually credited with being America’s first campaign director, John James Beckley, operated decades before the advent of the news cycle and social media. He directed campaigns on behalf of the Democratic-Republicans in the late 18th century. After Thomas Jefferson won the presidency in 1800, the Library of Congress was founded, and Beckley was appointed the first librarian of that world-renowned institution this week in 1802. At lower levels, states employ 466 full-time librarians, while more than 88,000 librarians hush patrons in local government libraries. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at <www.census.gov>.