Penn, Hughes Form Crisis-Management Team

Former Clinton strategist Mark Penn and former Bush adviser Karen Hughes are joining forces to create a corporate consulting organization at Penn’s current firm, the Wall Street Journal reports. The unlikely pair’s bipartisan endeavor will advise troubled corporations in areas of communications and public affairs—while serving to help both resurrect images tarnished by visible recent failures.

Penn has been tagged for the downfall of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, and Hughes recently left the State Department after an unsuccessful stint during which she was charged with bolstering international perceptions of the US. "Karen and I have had so many of the same experiences in the White House and campaigns," Penn said. "But we agreed that we won't let politics interfere in our business." (More Mark Penn stories.)