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Sununu won by a 65-33 spread in New Hampshire in 2020 (but you know that!) in a year when top of the ticket Donald Trump lost the state. His example shows the importance of retail politics that makes New Hampshire work. Unfortunately, retail politics is a lost art here in California. 

He stressed the importance of listening.  His story of Mink the bear and her cubs was a reminder that constituents reward you when you really listen to their concerns. Everyone loves animals, there's nothing partisan about it. Republican leaders in California can connect with voters on nonpartisan issues as well. Sadly, that talent is inherently lacking in my party at the moment.

And Sununu certainly caught our attention when he talked about your legislators getting paid $100 a year, thereby attracting people who are dedicated to true public service. California, in contrast, gives its 40 senators and 80 assemblymen six-figure salaries and a handsome benefits package. So part of our problem is structural. 

But perhaps the most important lesson Sununu conveyed to this California crowd was the power of just being pleasant.

Likability goes a long way and Sununu has it in spades. He was charming, warm, and in the moment. He talks like a regular person, not an Ivy League snob. (I say this as an Ivy League graduate.) I want someone who can communicate to everyone with simple common sense solutions, not someone who uses language to divide. If you can't convey complexity in simplicity, voters will likely conclude you don't know what you're talking about.

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