Rove was the architect of George W. Bush's 2000 and 2004 presidential campaigns, and from 2001-2007 the president's senior advisor and deputy chief of staff. Of Rove, columnist Michael Barone said "No Presidential appointee has ever had such a strong influence on politics and policy, and none is likely to do so again anytime soon." Prior to the 2000 campaign, he was the president of Karl Rove + Company, an Austin, Texas-based public affairs firm whose campaign clients included 74 candidates for governor, Senate and Congress in 24 states.