I spent one night in the company of James Carville and Mary Matalin, in the course of being their onstage moderator at the Bushnell. My lasting impression was that these were two people whose primary loyalty was to each other. To an unusual degree, when there was down time, they wanted to be alone, together, door closed. I don't know how they sort out their extreme political differences, but I think the answer lies somewhere in what I just said.
One of Connecticut's most famous power couples is nominally purple. Pat Sullivan is a Republican. His wife Paddi Leshane is a Democrat. That means the powerful lobbying and PR firm of Sullivan & Leshane is never preemptively shut out of any activity, no matter who's in power. This hour, you meet purple couples who aren't so high profile. They may give hope to a divided land.
To see the video of some of the inter-political couples talking about their experiences, click here: "Strange Bedfellows - When Democrats Wed Republicans."
You can join the conversation! Comment below, email colin@wnpr.org or tweet us at @wnprcolin.
GUESTS:
- Cynthia Farrar is the Founder, CEO, and Executive Producer of Purple States.
- Aprill Shines is the owner of Shines Publications, is a communications consultant with the Republican party, and a member of the Manchester Republican Town Committee. She is married to Otis Dancy.
- Otis Dancy is a union organizer with SEIU (Service Employees International Union). He is married to Aprill Shines.
- Mike Bixby is an atheist school teacher who is married to Maria Peyer, who is Lutheran.
- Maria Peyer is a Lutheran Oncology Nurse who is married to Mike Bixby, an atheist.
- Anne Runolfsson is married to Donald Weinbach, a Democrat.
- Donald Weinbach is married to Anne Runolfsson, a Republican.
