Is your name carrying a taint? Time to rebrand

Sean Noble, Nathan Sproul master the art of quick change

Remember when the political consulting firm of Sproul and Associates became toxic?  Nathan Sproul, an ardent McCain ally, initially was regarded as a player to be reckoned as he promoted a squeaky clean image and made $ millions. His name had panache…. until it didn’t.

Then, quick as a wink, with the loss of luster, Sproul and Associates morphed into Lincoln Strategy Group, as it reconfigured under a revered presidential surname. He also strategically cloaked himself as Strategic Allied Consulting.

So it is with Axiom Public Affairs, which has recently and without fanfare altered its name to Compass Rose Public Relations following the indictment of its principal lobbyist and government affairs specialist Jim Norton along with others not associated with the firm, (see indictment) on eight separate federal charges of bribery and fraud. The name change came as high-powered clients were fleeing.

The renamed firm’s home page has an amusing bit of irony, with the words, “Need Direction?” emblazoned across a still of the Phoenix cityscape and directly over the state capitol dome topped by a stark white Winged Victory look-alike.

Establishment operative Sean Noble, was listed as a partner at its 2015 inception along with Melissa DeLaney and Jim Norton. Noble juggles numerous  political consulting irons, DC London and American Encore, among them.

Compass Rose  claims to offer “unparalleled expertise and leadership in lobbying, communications, public affairs, media relations, campaign management and consulting, public relations, crisis management, political advising, and much more.”

In the wake of the fall of Norton, the “much more,” is a tagline that could well be eliminated. “Crisis management” is what they’re  currently engaging in, with the firm being the client.

A look at the bios of the principals of the firm reveals there’s usually a McCain connection. The aged Republicrat’s tentacles have a lengthy and reliably  unsavory span.