March 2, Rita Kirk, Professor of Political Communication and the William F. May Endowed Director of SMU Dallas’ Maguire Center for Ethics and Public Responsibility, for a piece suggesting Democrats pivot on their messaging and reclaim the “middle.” Published in Inside Sources under the heading Democrats Can Reclaim the Center By Reviving James Carville’s Resonant Message Strategy: https://bit.ly/3HAfzaA
“Give me one good reason to vote for you.” That’s the challenge to Republicans and the rallying cry for voters hoping to find an alternative Democrat to support in the 2022 elections. I spend a lot of time talking to undecided voters. This year, I am finding many who embrace the “none of the above” option. Here’s why.
Neither party seems to be talking to centrists. Yet Republicans have established a message strategy that keys on themes most of us can repeat without prompting: Trump supports me, I’m more like Trump than my opponents, the 2020 election was rigged, immigration is bad, Roe v. Wade should be overturned, get rid of mask mandates, and the border wall should be completed. Run through advertisements of most any candidate running on the Republican ticket and you will find at least one of these issues. That’s message discipline. The absurd part is even incumbents whose offices have nothing to do with certain issues like the border wall try to find a hook claiming they have been “leading the fight” on that issue.