The recent advertising attack launched by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees against Republicans who voted against the recently passed stimulus package is the first real advertising shot in a message war designed to label them an obstructionist party. It is part of an overall strategy created by the Democratic Party to keep the GOP locked into minority status through at least the next election cycle.
Republican leaders still have the opportunity to take immediate action and successfully define themselves for the American people or risk being quickly defined by the opposition.
At present, Democrats are dominating the media cycle with expensive solutions to our nation’s economic crisis. President Barack Obama has succeeded in harnessing our nation’s stories of lost jobs, declining wages and economic anxieties in order to propose and pass mammoth economic policies that are steering us toward socialism. The stimulus package, bailouts for the auto industry and the creation of a national health care fund are examples of Democrats using the crisis to their policy advantage.
The strategy is working. After the stimulus package passed Congress, a recent Gallup Poll showed the approval rating among congressional Democrats jumped from 37 percent to 47 percent. Meanwhile, the approval rating of congressional Republicans also jumped from 25 percent to 36 percent. Improved ratings are good for Republicans, but more must be done to surpass the other side.
When I was the press secretary for then-Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.), Congress was reacting in real time to address vital national and economic security issues surrounding the Sept. 11 crisis. In this environment, we successfully labeled Senate Democrats obstructionist because they voted against policies Republicans depicted as vital to the nation’s safety. Several Senate Democrats didn’t return after November 2002 because they voted against critical defense funding and creating the Homeland Security Department and the Patriot Act.
Now that America is in the economic equivalent of Sept. 11, the other side sees the opportunity to paint Republicans as out of touch. With Obama leading the charge, the White House and congressional Democrats highlight the national and state unemployment numbers each month to push their policies and hammer Republican opposition. The AFSCME ad campaign used clips of Republican leaders saying no to the stimulus package and tied them to Rush Limbaugh.
There must be an answer to these attacks before the cement hardens. Here they are:
Disconnect Americans’ economic fear from allowing Democrats to act. In order for Republicans to improve their approval ratings and stop the Democrats’ numbers from rising, they must immediately work to sever the connection Obama and the Democrats have made between the crisis and their policies. Many Republicans are trying to accomplish this by dominating the debate over the long-term impact of Democratic solutions. While they are right about the enormous burden that Democrats’ policies will have on future generations, this is a conceptual argument that Americans aren’t visualizing because of the economic crisis at hand.
Some Republicans are connecting Obama’s policies to the plummeting stock market. The effort will help this “disconnection strategy” unless the market rebounds and undercuts it.
Connect with people’s feelings of anxiety about economic hardship.
Workers aren’t sure they will find or keep their jobs. Many worry about paying the mortgage. Families are concerned about putting food on the table. A positive, consistent Republican message would be reassuring now and give hope for the future. A clear message will convey what our plan does for people right now. In 2002, Democrats tried to fight with a negative message over long-term ramifications of the Patriot Act, the Homeland Security Department and increased defense spending. All Senate Republicans had to do to destroy their arguments was ask a question: “What is your plan to keep Americans safe?” The question for 2009 is, “What is the Republican plan to create and save jobs while stabilizing the economy?”
Establish an immediate, party-wide “economic first aid package.” Americans want to feel secure again. The Republican Party must offer them the tools to get through these hard times. A short-term, legislative economic first aid plan would help turn the focus away from crisis-driven Democratic policies and toward hopeful solutions Americans would feel tomorrow. This “crisis solutions agenda” would be used between now and fall 2009, the timeline Obama and the Democrats are following to push through their policies. Success depends on getting a majority of Republicans to sign off and communicate a solutions agenda. Americans would then have a real choice as to which party has the best plan to move forward.
Let no attack go unanswered, and get on offense. Republicans must organize and respond to Democratic attacks by using a positive answer of a common plan. Party operatives must return to the structural fundamentals of blocking and tackling. While many House and Senate Republicans are doing well communicating all kinds of legislative ideas, they must return to coordinating daily to develop an effective offense and defense around a common theme. Having a positive agenda to message is a great foundation for successful communications.
The AFSCME ad is a blessing in disguise for Republicans trying to find their way in the new message landscape. The Democratic Party has telegraphed its intentions early enough for Republicans to do something about them. Connecting with Americans by offering instant, credible solutions is the first step toward demonstrating that the party “gets it” and gives Republicans opportunities for further momentum to regain the majority.
Ron Bonjean is a partner of Singer Bonjean Strategies, a full-service public affairs firm. He was formerly the chief of staff of the Senate Republican Conference and the top spokesman for Speaker Dennis Hastert and Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott.
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