In 1990, I was covering politics in Minnesota and Paul Wellstone was down double digits in the polls in the waning weeks of the Senate race. I watched in amazement as Mr. Wellstone’s campaign staff continued to fight tooth and nail for every vote, something I wrote off to a civic reflex that I didn’t possess.

But Mr. Wellstone’s campaign manager, Patrick Forciea, told me that there was more than just blind loyalty at work.

“If you stay close enough, long enough, there’s a good chance something will break in the media,” he said. “We are going to get as close as we can, wait for a lightning storm and then head out to the golf course and wave a 9-iron around.”

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