GOP vs. Democratic Messaging

E.J. Dionne recently wrote a piece about the open Supreme Court seat covering some of the same issues of Republican vs. Democratic messaging that I covered here and here. And a few weeks ago he wrote another article even more explicitly criticizing Democrats for continually losing the war of messages. Why are Democrats so terrible at this game? How is it possible for Frank Luntz to single-handedly kick Democratic ass time and again? I’d be willing to bet that the majority of folks at ad agencies are Democrats….so get them on the team.

You might think, and certainly we would all like to think, that policies and results are more important than messaging. Oh, how sweetly naive! If you lose the messaging battle, you never get to implement the policy and see the results. Messaging is how you get the support of the public, and since most people have very little time and/or attention for politics, your message has to be short and sweet.

Since Democrats can’t seem to get it together to develop appropriate messaging, I thought that I would take a crack at some of the key issues of the day. I don’t claim genius for any of these efforts – I’m a blogger, not a fighter – but maybe they will spark a little conversation and get some more talented folks to chip in.

Judges respecting individual rights
GOP

• Judicial activism
• Non-elected officials creating laws

Thoughtbasket

• Understanding the meaning of the Constitution
• Following in the Founding Fathers’ footsteps
• Looking at the spirit of the law if the language is unclear

Estate taxes
GOP

• Death taxes

Thoughtbasket

• Monarchy prevention policy
• Asset transfer payment

Regulation
GOP

• Government control
• Business killer
• Job destroyer

Thoughtbasket

• Public safety measure
• Children’s health initiative

Aid to Poor
GOP

• Socialism
• Promoting dependency

Thoughtbasket

• Safety net
• Short-term help for the most vulnerable citizens

Economic Equality
GOP

• Threat to liberty

Thoughtbasket

• Promoting American capitalism

Questioning Security Policies
GOP

• Unpatriotic

Thoughtbasket

• Keeping America safe
• Developing the best security system in the world

Healthcare Reform
GOP

• Government takeover

Thoughtbasket

• Preventing the deaths of innocent citizens

Finance Reform
GOP

• Enabling taxpayer bailouts

Thoughtbasket

• Stopping taxpayer bailouts

Raising Tax Rates
GOP

• Destroying individual initiative

Thoughtbasket

• Fiscal responsibility

Reaching Out to Non-allied States
GOP

• Appeasement

Thoughtbasket

• Realpolitik

Cap & Trade
GOP

• Energy tax

Thoughtbasket

• Grandchild Safety Act

Immigration Reform
GOP

• Amnesty

Thoughtbasket

• Continuing the American melting pot tradition

Nuclear Arms Treaties
GOP

• Weakening America’s defense

Thoughtbasket

• Making America safer by reducing nuclear proliferation