Former Palin scribe Lindsay Hayes takes top speechwriting job on Romney campaign

Lindsay Hayes has been promoted to director of speechwriting for Mitt Romney. A writer for Sarah Palin throughout the 2008 campaign and a writer for Alaska’s late Sen. Ted Stevens before that, Hayes has been writing for Romney since November, but got the top job partly because she works well with others, according ABC News.

“So much of what she does is based on not writing the words, but it’s getting the feel for somebody and what they want to say and how they want to get there,” said former Hayes colleague Andy Davis. “Principals, candidates, folks that matter in a campaign, they really like working with her because she takes the time to find their voice. … Lindsay listens well to those around her. A speechwriter gets a lot of input and Lindsay assimilates all that while keeping the process running smoothly. On top of that she’s an excellent writer—she’s just a true pro all around.”

Don’t look for behind the scenes interviews with Hayes, however; her reputation is to turn down interview requests and stay off social media. So far so good. I sent her an e-mail greeting a couple of months ago wishing her good luck and some sleep, and adding a question about how “severe conservative” came about. She thanked me for my kind words, and left it at that.