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Using the Whole Brain: Republican Establishment/Romney Campaign In Need Of Advertising Ideas

It is time for RedStaters to come to the aid of the Romney Campaign: I have sensed the frustration building through various topics and through people on Talk Radio.

For example, here in Ohio, for weeks now, we have been bombarded on television with “Bain Capital” ads from either MAObama or his minions.  Even small cable networks (e.g. SPIKE) carry them. The only response so far (July 10) has been that BIG BRObama tells lies (according to the Washington Post) with a sound-bite of Hillary Clinton protesting BIG BRObama’s lies in the 2008 campaign.

The problem: the MAObama ad is fairly specific: one version shows the usual unemployed hard-hat worker, with quivering lips, talking about how Romney basically ruined his life, before moving on to torching the orphanage and the old folks’ home.

It has been noticed that Dems are all about the Right Brain: emotional appeals with falsehoods or distortions are often found in their ads.  It has also been noticed that Republicans have too often been obsessed with the Left Brain: charts, statistics, and “logical” appeals, as if they were speaking to the cousins of Mr. Spock on Vulcan.

How did that work for us in 2006 and 2008?

My intention here is for fellow RedStaters to publish their ideas for campaign ads: we cannot just show a chart about the economy going downhill and therefore “Vote for Romney!”

We have often written here that using MAObama’s own words against him – in context – is a strong argument.  Those ads need to be balanced with real people (preferably not the cliches seen in Dem ads with men showing 2 days growth of beard and farm women wiping their hands on aprons) commenting on how they feel betrayed, disappointed, etc. and why they are now switching to Romney.

So let’s show MAObama proclaiming how he worked with the Catholic Church in Chicago, and then switch to a Catholic saying how the Hell-th Care Bill is taking away Freedom of Religion.

My wife is presently frustrated by the silence about what the Republicans plan to do about Health Care, if they can repeal it.  Then what?  What is the Republican plan?  Here is an idea: no Republican Health Care Plan should be more than 20 pages or so, shorter if possible!  Some ideas, which I am just throwing forth here, would be: Tax deductions for all health-care services, tax exemptions on savings accounts for health care, transferring insurance between or among jobs, etc.  Tax breaks for companies offering insurance for pre-existing conditions or catastrophic illnesses.

Whatever Republicans plan as a replacement, both the proposed legislation AND the message about it need to be precise, brief, and delivered by sympathetic people, not a disembodied Caucasian voice, no matter how mellifluous.

Using something like this in a campaign ad for Romney would be rather dynamic:

Followed by Americans – not the voices of disgusted post-menopausal women, which are the ones usually heard in attack ads – expressing their dismay at the national Democrat leader’s dumb comment.

So I invite everyone to relate what they would like to see or hear: we need to use both sides of the brain in our campaign.  I do not trust that polls showing 3 out of 5 Americans or more thinking that America is on “the wrong road” will necessarily translate into a Romney landslide.  BIG BRObama right now is using classic “repeat-the-big-lie” strategy, because it worked in the past.

Why start telling the Truth, when that would hurt you?  Our side needs to proclaim the Truth as often and as precisely and as forcefully as possible.

So please sketch any ideas for ads here: we know that assorted Republican politicians either are members or read our essays.  Perhaps someone will take notice!

 

COMMENTS

  • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine

    The first is a transition phase for those already in and near Medicare and with a major feature of the second phase being a much reduced fed program for those that fall thru the cracks of a new market with much reduced prices and premiums.

    More later
    will try and find links to same as Rush used to talk about it several years ago as how much more cheaply we could take care of the truly needy etc

    • Ausonius

      Good idea: boiling it down into a 60 or 30-second commercial is the key, with “senior citizens” explaining the plan.

      Many thanks for digging into the plans for the severely disabled: you remind me of William McGurn’s column today (July 10) in the Wall Street Journal about how Catholic Charities in Chicago does a much better job than government agencies in dealing with the impoverished.

      See:

      http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303343404577516964017984118.html

      • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine

        and thx for that link. BTW, have you read The Tragedy of American Compassion by Marvin Olasky?

        http://www.crossway.org/books/the-tragedy-of-american-compassion-tpb/

        • Ausonius

          Yes, a long time ago, but the book is still valuable today, perhaps more than ever.

          Here is an excellent review and summary of Marvin Olasky’s eye-opening history of handling poverty through America’s opening centuries.

          http://www.jamesrament.com/book-review

      • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine

        the doctor saying: “I wonder what he can afford for an office visit” and setting the price accordingly in a market free from government subsidies.

  • westcoastpatriette

    It’s time for some satire. They should film the dismal insides of any DMV or welfare office, with lines of people waiting for hours — only, all the signs would be related to health care. IOW, depict the scenes as the future look for doctors offices under the socialist move toward health care that O is pushing on the country.

    My second idea would show pictures of Obama’s poverty stricken half-brother — living in the slums in Kenya — to show what an utter phony hypocrite the man is. And the ad should emphasize O’s millionaire status. http://jewishworldreview.com/0712/obama_brother_living_in_slums.php3

    • cbartlett

      Obama needs to be called on this class-envy cr*p. I am so tired of Debbie blabbermouth schultz talking about Romney’s Swiss bank accounts. Have an ad that acknowledges how Romney success in business resulted in wealth then show Obama on the golf course, family in Spain, some of the other obnoxious, arrogant, narcissistic stunts he’s pulled and say something clever about the pot calling the kettle black. Obama is NOT poor and the media never, ever talks about his extreme wealth (at least extreme as compared to many, many of his supporters). He’s taking advantage of the American people and he needs to be called on it every time somebody calls Romney “the rich white guy”.

      • Ausonius

        Excellent idea!

        Explain cronyism between BIG BRObama’s regime and all the “rich white guys” like Jeff Immelt of General Electric.

        By chance, an hour ago the Washington Examiner published this editorial on BIG BRObama’s “crony capitalism” sending jobs overseas:

        An excerpt:

        “The World Economic Forum has also downgraded the Obama economy. Its annual Global Competitiveness Index surveys more than 14,000 business leaders in 142 economies and ranks them on 12 “pillars of competitiveness.” When Obama became president, the United States ranked 2nd. Now we rank 5th. The GCI explains the Obama era decline in terms of increased government debt and concerns over “the government’s ability to maintain arms-length relationships with the private sector.” The survey also notes that “[i]n comparison with last year, policymaking is assessed as less transparent … and regulation as more burdensome. …”

        In other words, Obama’s crony capitalist policies have eroded trust in the business community, his record-breaking number of new major regulations have made it more expensive to do business and his failure to contain spending has increased fiscal uncertainty. That is what is driving American jobs overseas.”

        See:

        http://washingtonexaminer.com/examiner-editorial-obamas-crony-capitalism-and-new-regulations-drive-jobs-overseas/article/2501996

  • Ausonius

    Excellent scenarios, WestCoastPatriette!

    Intelligent satire – rather than the sneering tone seen in most supposedly humorous ads, especially from MAObama’s minions – is always a good way to persuade people of an essential truth.

    Today I happened to see a Conservative PAC’s ad against Ohio Dem Senator Sherrod Brown. The images, using a quiz-show theme culled from Jeopardy and other such shows, zipped by every second: way too fast!

    I am a fairly fast-talking Yankee, but this ad just overwhelmed the viewer with fast patter about Brown’s support of this, that, the other, and assorted bad ideas from MAObama. Too much packed into 30 seconds, not specific, and not very funny.

    • westcoastpatriette

      to confronting opponents. Obviously, he is terrible at doing it himself, but has no qualms about vicious, unrelenting attacks in commercials and such as we saw in the primaries.

      So, I’m hoping the Super pacs will take over in that regard and come up with some fantastic TRUE ads about O that expose him for the lying con man that he is.

      • http://impudent.edublogs.org/ kyle8

        when you personally attack you look petty and vindictive, But when you let surrogates do it then you are effective.

        This is the reason that most vice presidents are turned into attack dogs near election time. Uncle Joe is no different.

        • Ausonius

          General statements that MAObama distorts the record of any opponent and has “unfair, misleading” ads will not make it.

          V-P Cheney stated that his and W.’s biggest mistake was letting the “Bush Lied, People Died” nonsense take root, rather than specifically refuting the claims.

          Here is a to the point ad fro “Being Conservative” on FaceBook:

          “Apparently Obama thinks I need to worry about what Romney did with his own money, instead of worrying about what Obama is doing with mine!” :)

          See:

          http://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?fbid=10150928859310911&set=a.326021210910.160094.134193140910&type=1&theater

      • Ausonius

        Daniel Henninger has an excellent article in today’s (July 12th) Wall Street Journal (page A15) on selling the candidate to the American people.

        It shows a picture of Romney and his wife on a jet ski, and a picture of him on the beach surrounded by grandchildren.

        Henninger comments:

        “If no one warned Mr. Romney of the Kerryesque lobster roast his ride would guarantee, then calls for a campaign upgrade are plausible.

        But what if the campaign staff did warn Mr. Romney but were waved off by the candidate himself, confident in his own judgment? If that happened, then neither the second coming of Lee Atwater nor James Carville will save this candidate from blowing himself up eventually with another bad call, such as a Dukakis-like photo of the candidate riding in an Abrams tank in front of the press….”

        “The man on that jet ski will be able to spend the next four years on vacation. The granddad on the beach just might spend four years with the grandchildren playing in the White House. If the candidate can’t see the difference between the two, he really does need someone along for the ride who can. ”

        See:

        http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303962304577510832513936646.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEADTop

  • WmCraig

    Obama thinks Bain Capital did what: help struggling companies reorganize to be more competitive? Raise additional capital? Go public?

    What does Obama think his bail out of the Auto industry amounted to, other than his personal effort at “Baining” an industry?
    Lets look at it.
    He sold off Chrysler to what an Italian company?
    He shut down Saturn.
    He stole millions of American’s retirement funds, city and state investments when he declared the bond holders values null.

    Oh sure he likes to go to the mid west and brag about the jobs he saved. Let him come to Delaware, to the closed plants he promised would be productive. Not only did he sacrifice thousands of workers he sold the assets to a Swedish company, who at this time has 5 employees in what once was the largest industrial complex in Delaware. Yeah, Delaware, the home of the Vice President. This guy will throw anyone under the bus.

    And Fiskar, now there is a great investment, millions upon millions of dollars that could have been used to lower the deficit squandered on a pie in the sky “HOPE” that this foreign company would build electric cars. It does, using the our money that Obama gave them to build cars in Europe.

    If Obama worked for Bain, he would have been fired for incompetence. He never would have advanced to lead a company where how you manage other peoples money and the success of your investments is the only job skill for advancement. Not lying about the results. In the Bain world, success not propaganda and photo Ops are how you are judged.

    Obama has proven he can not be trusted to manage America’s tax dollars. He doesn’t have a clue how to translate “Hope: into SUCCESSFUL action!

    Bain would have fired him, now it is our turn

    Let’s send Romney to Washington and fire Obama. And stop the Obamacrats outsourcing our money and our jobs overseas

  • Ausonius

    Especially good is your example from Delaware!

    The Bain ads are still everywhere here in Ohio: sometimes you see them twice to three times during a commercial break, and the only response so far from Romney’s campaign is a blanket denial: as mentioned above, one of the blanket denials uses Hillary Clinton in the 2008 primary campaign charging BIG BRObama with “spending millions” to lie about her. My wife thinks it is not bad, but could just be seen as the comment of a whining loser.

    So, yes, spreading these fairly unknown or unthought of examples are what we need!

  • Ausonius

    This is the ad I referred to above: it has been running here in Ohio for well over a week.

    For some reason The Weekly Standard has an article with the Romney Campaign calling it a “new ad” which will start airing “today.”

    At the moment (July 12th 1:30 P.M. EST) it is the lead story on Drudge.

    See this link: it has the video link to the ad:

    http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/new-romney-ad-calls-obama-liar-dishonest_648448.html

    If you have not seen it, take a look. I think it is too broad.

  • Kyle-MI

    I still like this idea from Ann Althouse. Emphasize Romney’s managerial strength, but do it in a very personal way. Do a kind of Ed and Louise with Romney sitting at the kitchen table advising them vs. “Obama”, not shown with just a shot of Ed and Louise with Obama’s voice giving them poor advice.

    • Ausonius

      Here in Ohio we already have seen Democrat scare-ads about cutting Social Security, cutting Medicare, etc. etc.

      So such an ad might be effective: something needs to happen soon on this front, for we are inundated right now with Romney the EVIL BUSINESSMAN ads, who steals your company, puts you out of work and on the street, and ships your job to China.

      Silence is an admission that the opposition has a point.

      Are you listening, Romney Campaign? :)

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