Think you know your election trivia? - CNN.com

For this election eve, here's some election trivia from CNN. Some highlghts:

"Either John McCain or Obama will be the first incumbent member of Congress to be elected president since John F. Kennedy in 1960."

"If McCain wins, he will have headed the first successful GOP presidential ticket in 80 years that did not include someone named Bush or Nixon."

"Democrats controlled both houses of Congress from 1955 to 1981. This 26-year stretch is the longest any single party has controlled both chambers of Congress. (The GOP took control of the Senate in 1981.)"

Question > Literature

What short story writer and novelist passed his time in 1996 writing speeches for presidential candidate Bob Dole?

UPDATE: Answer: Mike Helprin