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PR - what do we need to do?
By bs Posted in 2008 — Comments (16) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
To win in the 2008 election, one of the most important adjustments the Republican party must make is in PR - public relations. The Democrats have done a much better job (IMHO) of capturing the hearts and minds of the run-of-the-mill voter of late. Their messages are simple and resonate better. Some examples of messages:
Iraq:
Democrats: We need to get out, now.
Republicans: We need to prosecute the Global War on Terror and protect our country from terrorists (which we haven't seen since 2001)
Economy:
Democrats: Things are going to hell under Bush. We need change.
Republicans:
Mortgage crisis:
Democrats: We're going to help you by bailing you out of these terrible mortgages that those evil Capitalist Pigs conned you into
Republicans: We need to let the free market work (meanwhile, you may lose your house)
Environment/global warming:
Democrats: The world is going to burn up, so we all need to sacrifice to save it
Republicans: They're wrong.
Health Care:
Democrats: We're going to help you by providing you free health care
Republicans: We need to let the free market work (meanwhile, costs go thru the ceiling)
To this writer, the GOP message sounds like "Take your castor oil, son, it's good for you" and the Dem message sounds like "Here, have some candy - it's yummy!"
It seems that the GOP attempts to answer Democrat challenges with esoteric responses that require a Ph.D to understand or that sound heartless. We have not mastered the art of the elevator pitch. Democrat messages resonate with people (and the "why?" to that is really the question!). Our positions sound either like excuses, sour grapes, or doctoral dissertations.
We have to come up with easy-to-grasp, clever, and memorable selling points for our policies. Without that, "Hope and Change," no matter how lame and content-free, will win the day. How can we craft a message that is a) simple, and b) sinks into even the most simplistic of voter minds? Being right doesn't matter if we can't convince others that we are.
Unfortunately, I do not have an answer. I'm hoping the brilliant minds out there at Redstate are better at this than I.
(NOTE: I have the world's worst cold right now and I'm living on antihistamines, so if this seems incoherent, that could be part of the problem...)
I'll give it a try
by Joliphant
Iraq: taking the fight to the enemy
Economy: Boy things got bad after the democrats got control of spending
Mortgage crisis: The democrats want to cut checks to the people cheating you out of your house.
Environment: Biofuels what a great idea we managed to raise the cost of fuel and food
Healthcare: Heres a five grand tax credit go buy yourself a plan you like keep the rest
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
You have captured my thoughts exactly.
by Michael Handley
From what I have seen, the average voter does not pay any attention until a few days before he or she goes to vote. Look at the numbers. Most folks don't go vote in the Primary and barely half vote in the General. In my own town we just went through a vote for Mayor and City council. 150,000 people live in this town and about half are qualified to vote. A total of about 8,000 voted. During the campaign there was much wrangling over the candidates and the local paper, radio, and billboards played a big part but apparently it didn't make much of a dent in the apathy. I don't know what can get the attention of the average voter these days. Maybe the Republican Party needs to hire a successfull Madison Avenue PR firm. Whatever we are doing now isn't working and if they do go vote they tend to vote without giving it much thought. They don't do any research on the candidates and they seem attracted to simplistic slogans. I guess the lack of a quality education is taking hold...
Housing
by exitsfunnel
I think that at least on housing, the GOP has the winning public relations position. I can't for the life of me figure out why people think that a housing bailout is a popular idea. There are a lot of people in trouble with their houses but it's not *most* people.
The group of people who either (a) don't own a home or (b) own a home and can make their payments is much, much larger than the group in trouble. Why on earth would they want to bail out the (relatively) small number of people who bought more house than they could afford?
I think that this is an argument the GOP can win with the public - if they present it correctly, ie, is it fair for you to pay for someone else's mistake?
-exits
What Does Not Resonate...
by cmugrad
....with the voting public is saying that there should be no assistance to people who are having trouble with their mortgages while the government vaults to the aid of the investment banks that brought this financial disaster upon the country through their greed..
.
You wan't to tell me what aid was given ?
by Joliphant
I must have missed it.
Or perhaps you are participating in misconstruing something else ?
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
remainder sold off to the only bidder. Hardly how I'd want to be bailed out.
Socialism doesn't work. It looks nice on paper, but it's been tried and it's failed miserably every time (usually accompanied by widespread death and suffering).
Proud member of the V.R.W.C.
Yep pennies on the dollar
by Joliphant
I'd call it a rape not a bailout.
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
Fairly or unfairly, it's a lot easier for the left to spin this as a negative and a lot harder to counteract.
That has been payed back in full n/t
by Joliphant
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
Sure
by simpson316
if you are willing to ignore the fact that congress pushed banks into loosening their credit restrictions.
Now also found at The Minority Report
I think you may be right
by bs
But this is one of those things where PR needs to be employed. Yes, from a logical perspective personal responsibility makes sense. But I tend to think that's because I'm a conservative and it makes perfect sense to me. However, it provides the perfect chance for the Dems to paint us as the big bad meanies who don't want to help those poor souls who made a wrong decision.
We have to figure out how to counter the nanny-state-ism that has become so dominant in the minds of Americans. The Dems offer giveaways, and freebies always appeal to people. Must we match their giveaways? No. That's why PR is the key - what's the sales/elevator pitch that convinces people that we're right and they're wrong? You said it "present it correctly". That's the key. And that's where we repeatedly screw it up.
The Unofficial RedState FAQ
“You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say. ” - Martin Luther
There's a simpler way.
by StephC
Start by refusing to accept the Democrats' premises as truth.
Instead of accepting those premises and defending ourselves against them, refute them.
For instance, the housing "crisis". Put it this way, they're going to stick it to about 20% (lower middle class) of us in the form of higher taxes to bail out 1%. What's the ROI on that?
The Democrats are good at manufacturing crises aren't they? The purpose of such manufacture is to escape having to deal with the real issues.
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